Tony’s Take: 👍 👍 In the Philadelphia street races of my youth, the Buick Grand National ate everything for lunch: Camaros, Mustangs, Cyclones and ‘Vettes. The big hair-era hero car started life in 1982 as a Regal and LeSabre trim option. Fifty GN’s were equipped with the Regal Sport’s 175hp turbocharged 3.8-liter six. A legend was almost born!
In ’86, Buick’s boffins went bonkers. Deploying air-to-air intercooling, they hiked power to 235hp (some say 290). That’s the Grand National that took scalps in Philly – a second faster from zero to 60 than a Corvette or Testarossa. The Grand National up for auction is a two-owner stripped-down, well-loved, well-preserved version of Buick’s forced-induction muscle car. Great but . . . Downside: GM cranked out 20k GN’s in ’87, this is where the recession starts to bite and it’s overshadowed by the rarer (547 cars) bad-ass GNX.
| Make | Buick |
| Model | Grand |
| Year | 1987 |
| Total Produced | 20,740 GN built in 1987. |
| Number of Owners | 2 |
| Mileage | 29k |
| Condition | ★ ★ ★ ★ |
| Price When New | $16,540 Inflation Calculator |
| Highest Previous Price | $100,000 (01/17/2022) |
| Auction House | Barrett Jackson |
| Auction Date | 08/27/2022 |
| My Prediction | $55k |
| Hammered At | $90,000 |
Growing up near Detroit in the 80’s and 90’s, The Buick Grand National stands out as a sleeper once an auto enthusiast knows what is under the hood.
https://www.caranddriver.com/features/a23739443/buick-regal-grand-national-gnx-history/
“The next significant improvement was in 1986, when Ron Yuille and the Turbo Engine Group engineered an intercooler for the 3.8 Turbo SFI V-6,” wrote Martyn L. Schorr in his book, Buick GNX. With a new two-piece aluminum intake manifold that increased airflow by 10 percent, the engine was rated at 235 horsepower and 330 lb-ft of torque for ’86, then 245 horsepower and 355 lb-ft for ’87.
Ed Mertz became Buick general manager in 1986, and GM’s aging rear-wheel-drive mid-sizers ceased production in 1987 to be replaced by new GM10 front-drive models for 1988.
https://www.motor1.com/news/556214/last-grand-national-barrett-jackson/
The Last Buick Grand National Built Has Only 33 Miles And It’s For Sale
It crossed the block at Barrett-Jackson’s 2022 Scottsdale auction in January.
also see auction results on Bring A Trailer
https://bringatrailer.com/buick/grand-national/
This example is beautiful however with the mileage,
I would not put a dollar amount however, I will estimate LESS THAN > $55,000.00
Own one?
They were the dominators in the city and we never knew the owners. They would show up at the street races, win, and then leave!