Hello
J in Virginia checking in! After years of internal debate between an Impala SS or a Buick GN I have decided to get a GN. I dont know if I am going to go restored, preserved or modded out, but dependability is the most important thing to me, I cant stand cars that dont run when they are supposed to.
Thanks for having all this information available!
If " Dependability is the most important thing for you " and " you can't stand cars that don't run when they are suposed to ", then GET THE SS.
Don't get me wrong these cars are in my blood and i've owned them for about 37 yrs now ,since i bought my first 78 sport coupe in 1980 or 81, and i'm pretty sure when i kick the bucket some relative somewhere will be inheriting a turbo regal or two, BUT...
1980's gm cars were not known for their great build quality to begin with and now these cars are 30+ years old and have 30+ yr old wiring, body mounts,exhaust, engines,engine parts,transmissions, etc. etc. and they have had at least 15 lbs of boost or so run thru them for decades now, and alot of them did lots of sitting around for extended periods also.
Don't know what yr ss you are talking about (I"m guessing 95-96 ish) but i would have to say it would be more of a get in and go , always starts and runs right ,limited problems type of car ( Except for maybe the optispark probs), and when they break down they are pretty easy to work on yourself and or the neighborhood garage probably couldn't do too much damage to it,(it's just a naturally aspirated small block chevy).
Its not to say that you can't find a turbo regal that will be reasonably trouble free, If it was well maintained and not beat to death,but these cars are not known for their ultra reliability, and can be finicky and troublesome at times and then get very expensive if not kept in very good tune and something goes wrong with it.
When something does go wrong you CAN NOT just bring it to speedy muffler or the gas station mechanic next door for repairs because they will almost certainly mess it up worse then when it was brought in.
I say all this not to put the cars down or talk you out of it if your heart is set on it, but to give you a shot of reality, these are great cars and can be addicting ,but when dependability and always running perfect is THE most important criteria, I'd have to say that the gn is probably not the best bet.
Spend some time going thru the tech sections,turbo lounge etc. to get a feel of potential problems and how frustrating and costly a tr can get if you are not knowledgeable of them.
But if i havn't scared you away ,then i would suggest looking for a lower mile , well maintained car as close to stock as possible, with the exception of small things done for reliability such as better fuel pump ,possibly upgraded brakes,scanmaster etc.
Oh and get an 86 or 87 skip the earlier hot air cars.
Good luck .