Buick Grand National: The unbeatable muscle of the 80-s...with a V6 engine

Рет қаралды 15,348

3 ай бұрын

When the "Malaise Era" was coming to its end, big V8’s were giving way for smaller engines, fuel injectors were slowly, but surely replacing carburetors, and the new safety and ecology standards were stifling car manufacturers, one brand managed to create a car so powerful, that it not only posed some serious competition to the American muscle of that time but even to the supercars from across the ocean, such as Porsche 911 Turbo!
What's even more surprising is that it was based on an ordinary family car!
It won't be a stress to call the Grand National the strongest muscle-car of its decade, even though, compared to the other muscle cars of the time, it did not feature a big V8, but rather a turbocharged V6!
In other words, "There's no replacement for displacement" does not work on a car like this! 😁

Пікірлер: 47

@andrewbourque3605 3 ай бұрын

One of the favorite cars of my childhood, my dad was a buick salesmanager and I wish we could have kept all the ones he drove home, i lost him last year and when i see these videos it reminds me of him so much

@RedLine_Car_Show 3 ай бұрын

It's very sad to hear about your loss, I hope you are recovering from it and feeling better, best regards to you!

@andrewbourque3605 3 ай бұрын

@@RedLine_Car_Show it has been a difficult 14 months since I last saw him, and I definitely appreciate your kind words

@19chucki74 3 ай бұрын

The Grand National is among the holy Grail of muscle cars, and one of my all time favorites. Great video.

@PFPTHEGREATEST 3 ай бұрын

Badass in Black but that grey and black one with the red pin-striping looks so good.

@19chucki74 3 ай бұрын

@@PFPTHEGREATEST totally agree, the two tone set the tone for the GN.

@andrebiddle1250 Ай бұрын

Don’t forget the 70 Chevy chevelle 454 SS LS6

@bubot17 2 ай бұрын

I know that the gnx is a great car, but after knowing more information here, man i became a big fan❤❤❤

@Troy-McClure81 2 ай бұрын

My best friends brother had a 87 T-Top national 600hp in the late 90s could hear that turbo screaming for blocks,he sold once the 2000 Yamaha R1 was released...The Transmission and intercooler was the only weak points in the National.

@RockandrollNegro 2 ай бұрын

The Grand National was dyno'd at the time by two of the big car mags of the day and were found to be getting 200hp _at the rear wheels,_ meaning they were closer to 240 net hp. GM absolutely would not let any other production car outperform the Corvette on paper, so as to not cannibalize the upmarket Vette sales.

@wrotenwasp 2 ай бұрын

I was 24 in 1987 and couldnt decide if I wanted a year old GN or an Olds 442. Now the 442 had the killer 8.5" 10 bolt rear axle with the 3.73 gear but the roller cam/swirl port head 307 was a turd. I was in to bracket racing at the local dragstrip and I knew that turbo cars weren't that consistent, the 200R4 wasnt up to bracket racing abuse and I wasnt too confident with a turbo for repeated abuse. The 442 I bought was $3500 less than a similar mileage GN plus the insurance was quite a bit less. I figured Id use nitrous on the 307 till I blew the ring lands off the pistons then just swap in an early Olds 350 with a Turbo 350 trans and in the beginning, mid 13s in the quarter werent difficult. Plus is was very consistent , no turbo and the turbo 350 trans was very durable. HOWEVER, now that Im 60 and dont bracket race or even go to the track anymore, the GN with overdrive and AC, a nice quiet sleeper, NOW Id rather have the GN but had a lot of great times in that 442 since I put the 350 in it back in 1988. Still have the car today and it runs 12.50s with a 1968 Olds 350. NO overdrive but quite streetable. Crude compared to a GN. I love those Buicks. Might have to make a swap soon.

@RedLine_Car_Show 2 ай бұрын

Oh, I love reading comments like this one! Really glad that you're still keeping your 442 instead of selling it, might not be the GN you've considered at one point, but no less sweeter IMHO, 12.5 seconds for a quarter sounds pretty solid too! 👍

@BobbyMitchellJr-lz5zk 3 ай бұрын

This is My Dream Car. The Buick Grand National,But The GNX, That's The One I Want 😊😊

@somejackball 3 ай бұрын

i was driving a 87 IROC at the time, and the Silkwoods up the street from me in S OK finally got their settlement over the Kerr McGee thing, and the son got one of these. and his sister got a Trans Am. i heard that the sister wrapped her TA around a pole after just 2 weeks, just bumps n bruises. but the son took care of that Grand National, would always see him outside washing it, polishing it. good times back then, and fun muscle cars! ☮

@RedLine_Car_Show 3 ай бұрын

Oh man! Pretty unfortunate for the T/A, but I'm glad everyone's ok!😃 What happened to the Grand National and your IROC though? It's a shame if they had to be sold🙁 Either way, I can't agree more, cars from that era are just built different, in the best way imaginable!

@somejackball 3 ай бұрын

@e_Car_Show not sure what went on with the Silkwoods, we moved around 91, and i traded my IROC in 91 for a dark green GTA. miss those cars alot! ☮

@RedLine_Car_Show 3 ай бұрын

The GTA is a sweet ride as well! But yeah, I understand you, these cars are awesome, and it's unlikely that we're gonna have anything similar to them at this point 😔

@THROTTLEPOWER 3 ай бұрын

Great vid!!!!🤜🤛 Love the GN

@JacobisLaya 3 ай бұрын

Such a cool car made by a company that isn’t known for being cool. This is one of the cars I’ve dreamed of owning. My dad wanted one but he had an 86 Monte Carlo SS which I think is also badass. Great video!

@RedLine_Car_Show 3 ай бұрын

Monte Carlos are badass, same platform as the Regal/Grand National too! Can't agree more, Buick used to be that one company that just makes boring cars, and then creates an absolute monstrosity once in a decade! Cars like the GNX and the GSX are the prime (and probably the only) examples of that. Now buick is JUST boring, without the second part, it exists simply because of it's popularity in China...

@user-tv4qw3bb7l 3 ай бұрын

Our auto tech school in high school had a grand national for training donated from gm sometime in the 80s. They had removed and bypassed the turbo years before i got to see it in the late 90s. Instructor says they didn't want to train students with turbocharging! What a shame. They cut the thing up along with a few other 80s cars with very few miles on them in the early 2000s. That was even more of a shame! Good video thanks!

@RedLine_Car_Show 3 ай бұрын

Oh man, a shame it is indeed, would definitely be more useful for studying purposes if they didn't cut it up😔 Either way, your feedback is much appreciated, so thank YOU!😃

@jasonfoltz2037 2 ай бұрын

Would have been cool if Pontiac did it to the grand am to

@boataxe4605 3 ай бұрын

What a fucken tease. GM released anemic cars throughout the 80’s, but made this one to show that they could make a powerful V6 engine that met emissions standards,but just didn’t want to.

@relentlessflashbackin 29 күн бұрын

6:57 Nope. ASC McLaren and McLaren are not the same. The first one was founded by Heinz Prechter in Los Angeles, California as the American Sunroof Company in 1965 the latter one was founded by Bruce McLaren in England in 1963.

@misstania5887 3 ай бұрын

Great English skills!

@eddiesequoia5293 3 ай бұрын

My neighbor has one

@gregorylyon1004 3 ай бұрын

The best and fastest car of the 1980s was the Buick GNX. Hands down it will whip any Corvette of the same era

@anthonypalese3153 Ай бұрын

Dont forget the 89 Turbo Trans Am

@jurzyjohner432 3 ай бұрын

Great video and piece, i learned stuff i never knew thank you.

@RedLine_Car_Show 3 ай бұрын

You learn something new every day, and I'm glad you learned something from my videos! 😃

@jeffbranch8072 3 ай бұрын

Unbeatable... almost. The 1989 Pontiac Trans Am 20th Anniversary car (1502 made) used the GNX engine without a governor since the F-body had better aerodynamics so that the front end wouldn't lift off the ground at 140 mph like the G-body would, and was also lighter. My money is on the T/A.

@RedLine_Car_Show 3 ай бұрын

Oh yeah, I've heard of that one, same for the Grand Nationals doing wheelies from the start, they had to STOP GN's from doing wheelies! Either way, thanks for your contribution😁

@anthonypalese3153 Ай бұрын

Stock chip does cut the spark at 150 ( the speed rating of the Z rated tires) My friend made me a chip that wrote that limit out and I hit 159 mph in my Turbo Trans Am..also it was 1555 made not 1502

@orollins61 3 ай бұрын

My favorite car from the 80's. I wish I could've afforded one...

@RedLine_Car_Show 3 ай бұрын

Can't blame ya, it's a sweet ride... Even now they're pricey too

@user-sm3np2ts8b 3 ай бұрын

Gnx is a fast car people forget how rare they are everyone like to make it out like the regular stock Gn is fast if you look at qtr o-60 times really not any faster than 5.0 foxbodys

@woohunter1 3 ай бұрын

Obviously GM had some good engineers at the time, starting to make some smaller engined, but turbocharged cars and trucks. Just think they jumped a little too soon.

@RedLine_Car_Show 3 ай бұрын

From what I remember, GM played the role of Prometheus when it came to bringing turbocharging into the USDM vehicles, wasn't quite a big hit at first though...

3 ай бұрын

GM turbocharged the Corvair in early 60s.

@nestorpargas5163 2 ай бұрын

Legend ❤

@Rao_Rolland 3 ай бұрын

So it's a muscle car now? You guys go back and forth so much on what is and what isn't, that I have no problem admitting that I don't really know the difference.

@RedLine_Car_Show 3 ай бұрын

Widely considered as one, why wouldn't it be? Sure, it misses 2 more cylinders to be considered as by some, but in my opinion, it totally deserves to be called one!

@RockandrollNegro 2 ай бұрын

It's a full sized car with the most powerful engine that GM offered at the time. That makes it a muscle car. If it were a small, or mid-sized car, it would be a pony car.

@jerodlewis1356 3 ай бұрын

It was the fastest until 1989 turbo ta was faster…

@jeffbranch8072 3 ай бұрын

Same engine, no governor. Had a friend who owned one, got a ride in it. It was amazing. (Funny thing was he took his '84 T/A in for service and while he was waiting he bought the '89 on the spot. LOL! I had a '90 Formula at that time I knew him.)