BennyBuick
Member
- Joined
- Sep 10, 2014
- Messages
- 67
Car Is Sold
I really don't want to do this
, Lord knows I don't, but here for sale is my Buick Grand National.
Only reason for selling is to mend my marriage, and this is part of the deal we mediated
, otherwise no way no how would I sell the car!
The engine and tranny both have less than 8,000 miles on them and boy is it built right. $25,000 invested in the engine and tranny builds. Engine tuning was done by Julio from Alky control in Florida, where the car originally came from. Alky control unit has only ever had 100% methanol run through it. Knock is a non issue. Tranny shifts hard and fast, and it has a beautiful crisp feel to it. Car is dialed in and runs like a freight train. The turbo spools so fast it seems like turbo lag is a myth. Electronic Greddy boost controller allows you to switch boost profiles on the fly. Street tune is 19-20 psi, race tune is at 25 psi. My friendly local mechanic ran a couple pulls on his dyno to check the tune when I first got the car. With simulated road resistance and other features turned on, the car put down 448 hp and 555 ft lbs of torque. He said he could turn those features off to inflate the dyno number to show an impressive printout but I passed on it. These are real world figures on a dyno that, rumor has it, shows a bit lower number than some other shop's dunks. The 255s it rides on are not going to put this power down without feathering the throttle. I tried a couple times to launch the car from a stop and have never even gotten close to being able to without the tires just shredding. Even if you feather it enough to leave a stop without spinning the tires, if you don't slowly roll into the throttle until will past 2nd gear, it'll shred em. The turbo comes on so hard and fast I just gave up trying. Most all my fun has been roll on throttle accelleration. Theres been plenty of times when giving friends a ride in the car, that cruising at 55mph, high boost setting at 25psi, and it'll spin the tires for a bit before it hooks up.. AT 55mph!
This car is very mechanically sound and only has a couple small trivial issues:
1) As with almost all turbo buicks running lots of boost, it drips a spot of oil here and there. Its a small and more than reasonable amount for a car pushing 20-25 psi. Everyone I've been around thats familiar with these cars has said that it ain't nothin' . I was concerned about it when I got the car and was told that its perfectly normal and acceptable.
2) When running the A/C, condensation drips out of the floor vent on the passenger side carpet. For the life of me I can't figure out why.
3) Power steering pump is about the last thing on the car that needs replaced and is about to go. I have a new one sitting on the shelf and will be installed soon.
4) There is an airbag on the rear passenger side, It doesn't hold air for very long anymore. I never cared because I never raced the car so I never did anything about it and don't plan to.
5) This isn't an issue, but more of a result of high boost. When using the higher boost setting at 25psi, the driver side air breather has a tendency to get blown off the valve cover. When this happens, it is always laying in the same spot, with a bit of oil mist to clean up. Some knurling on the post to create some friction would go a long way i think instead of the smooth finish that slides on the oily rubber grommet. I cut bigger slits in the layered rubber grommet to relieve more boost pressure in the crankcase to help combat this issue and it helped some. But it did come off once since then when I got on it super hard to take down a brand new modded Camaro SS, see the Kill Fish section for the story.
Interior is very nice in the car. The front seats and carpet are brand new. The rear seat is original and shows some light wear but presents well. Door panels are nice but not perfect, but I have brand new replacements new in the box if you want it perfect. I never installed them because I like the worn in ones better, has character. Dash is not cracked by the speakers like they usually are. Has auto meter boost gauge in single pillar pod and matching water temp and oil pressure in lower console pod. There also is a fuel pressure gauge under the good. Scan Master in its usual spot above the heater and air controls. Air blows cold and was recharged right before I bought the car. Alky control box is also in its usual spot between the dash and radio housings. Ash tray has the 3 switch panel. One operates the electronic exhaust cutout and works perfect. One operates the line lock for front brakes. I've only ever used it once when I first got the car to check that it worked properly and it does perfectly. #3 switch isn't hooked up to anything. Billet black shifter etched with Grand National. T Tops are in nice condition, but the handles rattle like they did from the factory. Has anyone figured out how to rectify that. It's one of my gripes about the car. Rubber seals are new and T Tops don't leak one bit. Windows are tinted all the way around and done nicely. 20% i believe. Car has a nice audio system installed. I have original tape deck if you want it. Pioneer CD player, newer tweeters, speakers, amplifiers, and a single 12" kicker sub are nicely and professionally installed. Sub is light and doesn't weigh it down at all and is secured to the trunk floor tightly as are the amps. Gets plenty loud and clear enough to enjoy music with the T tops off yet isn't obnoxious and boomy like a teenage kids rattler. Trunk does NOT rattle when you turn the bass up for a bit of boom. I've been told buy the previous owner that the car has been dynomatted as well, although I never saw any in the exposed trunk.
A couple interior blemishes to note: 1) some jacka$$ that owned the car at one point must have installed a Tachometer and there are 2 small, superficial yet noticable holes in what is otherwise a beautiful condition dash. I never understood why someone would clutter these classic dashes with a tach unless you built a drag race purposed car.. 2) the lower center console trim piece below the shifter on the passenger side is cracked. it is a clean straight crack and no one notices it. It looks like it was made that way. 3) rear seat fabric has very light sun fading and an old barely noticeable stain 4) Trunk has the regular pathetic thin carpet and not the nice full trim carpet that's available. So trunk sides and rear seat are exposed in the trunk. I was always going to do that nice trunk liner carpet but never got around to it. 4) at the end of last fall, I was listening to music quite loudly, and the sub amp shorted out and I believe it's fried. It was an entry level kicker amp that was probably very cheaply made. I am willing to replace this before the sale if a buyer wants me to. Otherwise, I'll let the next owner choose what to replace it with. The pioneer amp that runs the other speakers is great though, and probably much better built.
The Good:
The performance. The car is exhilarating to drive and performs about as good as can be with the stock block in a reasonable & streetable setup. The transmission feels absolutely bulletproof and will be reliable for a long time to come. Engine is done right! Knock is an absolute non issue so long as you have good fresh premium fuel and methanol doesn't run dry. This thing will out accelerate just about anything on the road and will do so reliably. My mechanic is very impressed with the car and gives it a very clean bill of health and so will you or your mechanic, I can guarantee.
Steering is tight and crisp especially for a G Body. Upgraded parts and much time and attention was given to this and it shows. Much better steering feel than they were from the factory. Very predictable and controllable under power, and relatively little slop compared to how these were originally.
Brand new one piece rear bumper filler from SpoolFool installed. This replaced a less than stellar quality 2 piece that just drove me nuts.
This is a drivers car, meant to be driven! Which brings me to the not-so-good...
The Not-So-Good:
This is not a show car. You can take it to a show, but its not going to win a cosmetic award here. The body and panels are straight and true, but not without surface blemishes and a ripple here or there. The paint is decent and presents well from about 6 feet away. Up close, you will find some imperfections. It absolutely does not need a paint job, I'm just nitpicking here and want to be upfront that if you are looking for a perfect paint job with mirror glass finish, no ripples, chips, or blemishes, this isn't it. I have, however, seen worse, much worse, many times over again. Its still probably better than what they came from the factory with, man the original paint on these was crap. The worst part is the rocker panels below the doors have some cracking and it is chipping. This area could use a refresh.
Hood liner is not original and is kind of a hack job custom made afterthought. But it works, and most people don't notice until I point it out. It's always kinda bothered me, but its better than nothing.
And the big one for me... the brakes have not been upgraded other than bigger rear drums off of an S10 for a bit less fade and bit more bite, and it has a new slightly oversized booster which helps a small tad. It brakes well for what they are and has steel braided lines to the calipers. Pads, shoes, and rotors are good. If I was keeping the car, my next project on this car would be fitting some newer modern brakes. A car with this much power should have a couple grand invested to bring the brakes up to date with modern technology in the form of multi piston calipers and bigger rotors.
I just tried to submit the post and I'm over my character limit for a post so i'm breaking it up, to be continued below..
cheers
I really don't want to do this
, Lord knows I don't, but here for sale is my Buick Grand National.Only reason for selling is to mend my marriage, and this is part of the deal we mediated
, otherwise no way no how would I sell the car!The engine and tranny both have less than 8,000 miles on them and boy is it built right. $25,000 invested in the engine and tranny builds. Engine tuning was done by Julio from Alky control in Florida, where the car originally came from. Alky control unit has only ever had 100% methanol run through it. Knock is a non issue. Tranny shifts hard and fast, and it has a beautiful crisp feel to it. Car is dialed in and runs like a freight train. The turbo spools so fast it seems like turbo lag is a myth. Electronic Greddy boost controller allows you to switch boost profiles on the fly. Street tune is 19-20 psi, race tune is at 25 psi. My friendly local mechanic ran a couple pulls on his dyno to check the tune when I first got the car. With simulated road resistance and other features turned on, the car put down 448 hp and 555 ft lbs of torque. He said he could turn those features off to inflate the dyno number to show an impressive printout but I passed on it. These are real world figures on a dyno that, rumor has it, shows a bit lower number than some other shop's dunks. The 255s it rides on are not going to put this power down without feathering the throttle. I tried a couple times to launch the car from a stop and have never even gotten close to being able to without the tires just shredding. Even if you feather it enough to leave a stop without spinning the tires, if you don't slowly roll into the throttle until will past 2nd gear, it'll shred em. The turbo comes on so hard and fast I just gave up trying. Most all my fun has been roll on throttle accelleration. Theres been plenty of times when giving friends a ride in the car, that cruising at 55mph, high boost setting at 25psi, and it'll spin the tires for a bit before it hooks up.. AT 55mph!
This car is very mechanically sound and only has a couple small trivial issues:
1) As with almost all turbo buicks running lots of boost, it drips a spot of oil here and there. Its a small and more than reasonable amount for a car pushing 20-25 psi. Everyone I've been around thats familiar with these cars has said that it ain't nothin' . I was concerned about it when I got the car and was told that its perfectly normal and acceptable.
2) When running the A/C, condensation drips out of the floor vent on the passenger side carpet. For the life of me I can't figure out why.
3) Power steering pump is about the last thing on the car that needs replaced and is about to go. I have a new one sitting on the shelf and will be installed soon.
4) There is an airbag on the rear passenger side, It doesn't hold air for very long anymore. I never cared because I never raced the car so I never did anything about it and don't plan to.
5) This isn't an issue, but more of a result of high boost. When using the higher boost setting at 25psi, the driver side air breather has a tendency to get blown off the valve cover. When this happens, it is always laying in the same spot, with a bit of oil mist to clean up. Some knurling on the post to create some friction would go a long way i think instead of the smooth finish that slides on the oily rubber grommet. I cut bigger slits in the layered rubber grommet to relieve more boost pressure in the crankcase to help combat this issue and it helped some. But it did come off once since then when I got on it super hard to take down a brand new modded Camaro SS, see the Kill Fish section for the story.
Interior is very nice in the car. The front seats and carpet are brand new. The rear seat is original and shows some light wear but presents well. Door panels are nice but not perfect, but I have brand new replacements new in the box if you want it perfect. I never installed them because I like the worn in ones better, has character. Dash is not cracked by the speakers like they usually are. Has auto meter boost gauge in single pillar pod and matching water temp and oil pressure in lower console pod. There also is a fuel pressure gauge under the good. Scan Master in its usual spot above the heater and air controls. Air blows cold and was recharged right before I bought the car. Alky control box is also in its usual spot between the dash and radio housings. Ash tray has the 3 switch panel. One operates the electronic exhaust cutout and works perfect. One operates the line lock for front brakes. I've only ever used it once when I first got the car to check that it worked properly and it does perfectly. #3 switch isn't hooked up to anything. Billet black shifter etched with Grand National. T Tops are in nice condition, but the handles rattle like they did from the factory. Has anyone figured out how to rectify that. It's one of my gripes about the car. Rubber seals are new and T Tops don't leak one bit. Windows are tinted all the way around and done nicely. 20% i believe. Car has a nice audio system installed. I have original tape deck if you want it. Pioneer CD player, newer tweeters, speakers, amplifiers, and a single 12" kicker sub are nicely and professionally installed. Sub is light and doesn't weigh it down at all and is secured to the trunk floor tightly as are the amps. Gets plenty loud and clear enough to enjoy music with the T tops off yet isn't obnoxious and boomy like a teenage kids rattler. Trunk does NOT rattle when you turn the bass up for a bit of boom. I've been told buy the previous owner that the car has been dynomatted as well, although I never saw any in the exposed trunk.
A couple interior blemishes to note: 1) some jacka$$ that owned the car at one point must have installed a Tachometer and there are 2 small, superficial yet noticable holes in what is otherwise a beautiful condition dash. I never understood why someone would clutter these classic dashes with a tach unless you built a drag race purposed car.. 2) the lower center console trim piece below the shifter on the passenger side is cracked. it is a clean straight crack and no one notices it. It looks like it was made that way. 3) rear seat fabric has very light sun fading and an old barely noticeable stain 4) Trunk has the regular pathetic thin carpet and not the nice full trim carpet that's available. So trunk sides and rear seat are exposed in the trunk. I was always going to do that nice trunk liner carpet but never got around to it. 4) at the end of last fall, I was listening to music quite loudly, and the sub amp shorted out and I believe it's fried. It was an entry level kicker amp that was probably very cheaply made. I am willing to replace this before the sale if a buyer wants me to. Otherwise, I'll let the next owner choose what to replace it with. The pioneer amp that runs the other speakers is great though, and probably much better built.
The Good:
The performance. The car is exhilarating to drive and performs about as good as can be with the stock block in a reasonable & streetable setup. The transmission feels absolutely bulletproof and will be reliable for a long time to come. Engine is done right! Knock is an absolute non issue so long as you have good fresh premium fuel and methanol doesn't run dry. This thing will out accelerate just about anything on the road and will do so reliably. My mechanic is very impressed with the car and gives it a very clean bill of health and so will you or your mechanic, I can guarantee.
Steering is tight and crisp especially for a G Body. Upgraded parts and much time and attention was given to this and it shows. Much better steering feel than they were from the factory. Very predictable and controllable under power, and relatively little slop compared to how these were originally.
Brand new one piece rear bumper filler from SpoolFool installed. This replaced a less than stellar quality 2 piece that just drove me nuts.
This is a drivers car, meant to be driven! Which brings me to the not-so-good...
The Not-So-Good:
This is not a show car. You can take it to a show, but its not going to win a cosmetic award here. The body and panels are straight and true, but not without surface blemishes and a ripple here or there. The paint is decent and presents well from about 6 feet away. Up close, you will find some imperfections. It absolutely does not need a paint job, I'm just nitpicking here and want to be upfront that if you are looking for a perfect paint job with mirror glass finish, no ripples, chips, or blemishes, this isn't it. I have, however, seen worse, much worse, many times over again. Its still probably better than what they came from the factory with, man the original paint on these was crap. The worst part is the rocker panels below the doors have some cracking and it is chipping. This area could use a refresh.
Hood liner is not original and is kind of a hack job custom made afterthought. But it works, and most people don't notice until I point it out. It's always kinda bothered me, but its better than nothing.
And the big one for me... the brakes have not been upgraded other than bigger rear drums off of an S10 for a bit less fade and bit more bite, and it has a new slightly oversized booster which helps a small tad. It brakes well for what they are and has steel braided lines to the calipers. Pads, shoes, and rotors are good. If I was keeping the car, my next project on this car would be fitting some newer modern brakes. A car with this much power should have a couple grand invested to bring the brakes up to date with modern technology in the form of multi piston calipers and bigger rotors.
I just tried to submit the post and I'm over my character limit for a post so i'm breaking it up, to be continued below..
cheers
Last edited:
