3.8L turbo beginners questions...

[Newbie1]

Greetings! I like the look of your site so I thought I'd enroll today.

I'm a presently a Mustang 5.0 veteran. I've had two cars inside of 6 summer seasons of fun.


First off, I've always liked the Turbo Regal cars. I first saw them at my local track back in like 1988. Some of them were lightly modified and were still turning high 12's. Ouch! This is what a '67 427 Vette could pull!

I've got some beginners questions....

1. What did these cars turn in the 1/4 when they were just off the showroom floor?

2. I understand that the 1987 year GN or T-type are years to get for a few reasons. What are the typical trouble spots a guy like me should look for when looking into buying one of these 17 y.o. high performance cars? I'm sure there are places prone to showing if the car has been abused. I can tell you volumes about Fox Chassis Mustangs, but why bring a knife to a gun fight?

3. How are their values looking? I can only assume that they are beginning to trickle up.

4. Has anyone ever hooked up a 5 speed manual trany to one? I knew someone who had a 4 speed in a ’78 Grand Prix.

 

[ACME RACING]

Stock ran 14.3 - 14.7 depending how cold and tire grip.....add a K&N filter and a Chip would get you in 13's

Rear main seal was an old tech "rope seal" design which leaked, easy to be replaced.. After 70,000 miles valve springs should be changed..Buick used light weight springs since it had low lift and mild timing. Some go 100,000 miles with stock springs , but changing will help a lot....use 90lb replacements to protect the cam. Hopefully previous owner changed oil on a normal basis since the turbo needs clean fresh oil to last...
Some drivers side header cracks and needs to be re-welded...not hard to do with a good welder or buy a replacement which has a better design.......... These are some minor problems that happen.....Others will post with some more minor ones too

 

[Vendor Defendor]

Originally posted by Newbie1
I've got some beginners questions....

1. What did these cars turn in the 1/4 when they were just off the showroom floor?

2. I understand that the 1987 year GN or T-type are years to get for a few reasons. What are the typical trouble spots a guy like me should look for when looking into buying one of these 17 y.o. high performance cars? I'm sure there are places prone to showing if the car has been abused. I can tell you volumes about Fox Chassis Mustangs, but why bring a knife to a gun fight?

3. How are their values looking? I can only assume that they are beginning to trickle up.

4. Has anyone ever hooked up a 5 speed manual trany to one? I knew someone who had a 4 speed in a ’78 Grand Prix.

welcome to the dark side.. i will answer some of these to

the best of my abilaties...

1. we did about 13.8-14.4 stock depending on the driver and car, or combination of both. but with light mods you can easily get a low 12 second time slip in your hand.

2. here are some tips to look at when looking to buy a TR. Buyer Guide

3. you can find these cars from 5k-50k depending on what you are looking for, miles and condition wise. for a good car with about 75k on it you probably looking at dropping about 10k.

4. a five speed manual in one of these cars will create more headaches then pleasure. so i have been told, i asked this same question a while back, here is the thread that i started. 5-Speed Manual in a TR?

i hope that helps, that may not be all that accurate, but it should give you a ball park

-Neil

 

[1970gsx]

This should answer your questions. http://www.gnttype.org/general/buyguide.html