Best way to sell a GN??

[my85grandnation]

its not practical. its a rare, expensive car, that you cant, and shouldnt be driving everyday. theyre collectible muscle cars. not daily drivers. period.

Why cant you or should you be driving them everyday? I have my nice 49k mile all original GN that only comes out when its nice and only goes to shows, but I also have one with bad paint and interior and 100k+ miles that makes an excellent daily driver. They get decent gas mileage if you can stay out of the turbo, and makes for fun conversation at stoplights or where ever you are when people that know what kind of car they are see you. Even though my daily driver has cheap paint on it I get at least 5 or more compliments a week on it, and I get to enjoy these cars on a daily basis. I think that if you have a low mileage car you should store it away and not make it into a daily driver, but if you find one that needs work enjoy driving it and fix what you can when you can. Just my 2 cents.

 

[Adam Connell]

Well I guiess thats the question... Is 107k miles that many miles?? In my book that is a low miles car(especially if you have seen the car in person)... My 1994 jeep Grand Cherokee has 207k miles and still kicking!

So where do you draw the line on a daily driver miles car, and a weekend car? Right now this is purely a weekend car, but it seems like the only time I drive it on regular days is to brake something in(right now it's seat covers until I get around to ordering recovered seats). Im getting the tint redone this week also... I guess my real problem is not being able to draw the line on this car... I cant stop spending money on it and there is no end in sight So far nothing has broken on the car since I have owned it, but I keep on spending money on restoration items. The car will only get nicer the longer I own it, Im just not sure if I want to put any more effort into it...

 

[nero]

Why cant you or should you be driving them everyday?

I'm interested in this explanation, too! Just because it's a muscle car doesn't automatically demote it to a weekend cruiser. Yes, demote it, because a car is meant to get you from point A to point B be it muscle, import, exotic or otherwise!

:biggrin:

 

[Westside500]

I'm interested in this explanation, too! Just because it's a muscle car doesn't automatically demote it to a weekend cruiser. Yes, demote it, because a car is meant to get you from point A to point B be it muscle, import, exotic or otherwise!

:biggrin:

These cars are meant to be driven? Ive only put 100 miles on my car in 2 1/2 years!

 

[Daniel Jost]

"A 20 year old car that 's a money pit? That's an oxymoron!.. I saw your age the car is older than you are.. I would sell it and when you are older buy other one to really appreciate the car better." Westside500

Easy with the age and appreciation thing, it's not linear! I'm 18 had my car since I was 15 and wouldn't give it up for the world.

As for being a money pit THAT IS TRUE thats part of having an old performance car, they are what you make them, I choose to make mine a money pit, the more I mod it the more I spend fixing the things I break.

I drive mine everyday that the weather permits me to i have put on 7,000 since i bought it in 2004.

,Dan

 

[Westside500]

"A 20 year old car that 's a money pit? That's an oxymoron!.. I saw your age the car is older than you are.. I would sell it and when you are older buy other one to really appreciate the car better." Westside500

Easy with the age and appreciation thing, it's not linear! I'm 18 had my car since I was 15 and wouldn't give it up for the world.

As for being a money pit THAT IS TRUE thats part of having an old performance car, they are what you make them, I choose to make mine a money pit, the more I mod it the more I spend fixing the things I break.

I drive mine everyday that the weather permits me to i have put on 7,000 since i bought it in 2004.

,Dan

I was 17 in 1987.. how old were you?:biggrin:

 

[tzque]

I just bought a GN and the thought of selling mine has crossed my mind lately . I bought a low mileage car that wasnt driven . Getting this car up to speed is wearing me out . My car looks good though .
I have some advice . You are talking anyone out of buying your car . Most of the people on this forum are to informed for them to buy it from you .
Do a better job of selling your car .

 

[8AV8]

It's free to sell on racingjunk.com. You have said several times you paid $10k and would like to get $13.5. How much you paid doesn't determine what it's worth. It is worth what someone will pay you for it. Look around at what cars with your miles/xtras/condition are selling for and put a realistic price tag on it if you really want to sell. You may get your feelings hurt but if you have to take a loss, chalk it up to experience and do more research next time before biting off more than you are ready for. IMO

chris

 

[nero]

"
I drive mine everyday that the weather permits me to i have put on 7,000 since i bought it in 2004.

,Dan

Good man!!! :biggrin: Drive these suckers!!! Only live with 'em once... plus, get to keep the newer-tech cars in check. Nothing like vehicular ego checking with an 80s box!

 

[Foggedv6]

I was 17 in 1987.. how old were you?:biggrin:

7

 

[zeus87gn]

Adam Connell,

I am glad to read that you are one who is willing to take care of a vehicle, and I believe you have a beautiful example of a GN. I have to agree with others that have posted, you will regret selling your GN. Other than your motorcycle habit, you can't beat these cars for economy and performance in the same package. How many cars do you know of that will walk past most any other vehicle and still average 20mpg or more? And get you compliments at the same time!

You contradict yourself in that you say don't want to have a money pit, but then go on to say you are going to put your money in a Jeep. Believe me, the Jeep will cost you money as well. I know, I own one and have been dealing with them just as long as our GN. It really doesn't matter what vehicle you own, vehicles (in general) will always be a money pit. Expecially if they are 20 years old and have lots of miles. If you want a car that won't cost a lot on a frequest basis, buy a VW.

Yes, 107k is a lot of miles. But it isn't if you look at the big picture. You have an average 5k mile/year auto in your driveway. That is rediculously low mileage for a DD. I wish any of my 4 vehicles (soon to be 5) had that few miles.

Personally, I don't think $13.5k is out of line if the interior looks as good as the exterior. But, (as previoulsy stated) it is only as valuable as how much the buyer is willing to pay for it.

Good luck!

 

[Adam Connell]

Adam Connell,

I am glad to read that you are one who is willing to take care of a vehicle, and I believe you have a beautiful example of a GN. I have to agree with others that have posted, you will regret selling your GN. Other than your motorcycle habit, you can't beat these cars for economy and performance in the same package. How many cars do you know of that will walk past most any other vehicle and still average 20mpg or more? And get you compliments at the same time!

You contradict yourself in that you say don't want to have a money pit, but then go on to say you are going to put your money in a Jeep. Believe me, the Jeep will cost you money as well. I know, I own one and have been dealing with them just as long as our GN. It really doesn't matter what vehicle you own, vehicles (in general) will always be a money pit. Expecially if they are 20 years old and have lots of miles. If you want a car that won't cost a lot on a frequest basis, buy a VW.

Yes, 107k is a lot of miles. But it isn't if you look at the big picture. You have an average 5k mile/year auto in your driveway. That is rediculously low mileage for a DD. I wish any of my 4 vehicles (soon to be 5) had that few miles.

Personally, I don't think $13.5k is out of line if the interior looks as good as the exterior. But, (as previoulsy stated) it is only as valuable as how much the buyer is willing to pay for it.

Good luck!

Alright Im glad someone looks at things the way I do! Ahahaha, Yes I know all vehicles are money pits! The Alternator went out on the jeep last night! Im just not sure right now if this car is the right money pit for me... Im going to continue to make this the best example of a well kept clean Grand National that I can until it sells. I am in no hurry to sell it though, Im just putting it out there...

I dont see where people are buying these cars for 6-10K... Every one listed within 300 miles of me is well over 10,000$ and they are not even as nice as mine... I think it's because of my location. There are probobly only 30 grand nationals in Houston, and I have only personally seen 4 or 5, so these are really rare here. I have not even seen a t-type here. When I bought the car it was the same way, not a whole lot out there and the prices were high...

 

[VadersV6]

I sold my 99 cobra, with 400hp, in awesome condition, for 12,300. The market dropped so bad that this is all I could get for it. I paid 12k for my GN. The GN barely ran. It had enough problems to fill up 5 sheets of paper. While I did pay too much for mine, the general value has gone up alot in the past 5-10 years. Dont think of your car as an investment. Every dime you put into it is going down the toilet. Hope to get what you paid for it. If you do, you're lucky. Or hold onto it awhile longer and wait for the value to rise even more. The only way I'm going to make a profit on my car, is with ALOT more work, stop driving it, and wait 15 more years. Ive given up on the idea that this car was an investment. Its a money pit.
As far as not being a daily driver....Ive driven this car to work and back every day for the past 2 years. 70+ miles a day. Its been a serious challenge to keep it on the road, but its mostly been a bunch of small things.

 

[zeus87gn]

The Alternator went out on the jeep last night!

Told ya so...

There are probobly only 30 grand nationals in Houston, and I have only personally seen 4 or 5, so these are really rare here...

That's a pretty good population for TR's considering how many people there are down there. If my boss has his way, it will be 31. Right now, we have the only one for quite a ways around here.
http://www.turbobuick.com/forums/members-rides-friends-family/192680-only-tr-county.html

Just consider all your options before selling. You have a piece of automotive history, and it will only get better as time goes on. Jeeps are a dollar a dozen. I don't care for motorcycles so that is up to you.

 

[Adam Connell]

Told ya so...


That's a pretty good population for TR's considering how many people there are down there. If my boss has his way, it will be 31. Right now, we have the only one for quite a ways around here.
http://www.turbobuick.com/forums/members-rides-friends-family/192680-only-tr-county.html

Just consider all your options before selling. You have a piece of automotive history, and it will only get better as time goes on. Jeeps are a dollar a dozen. I don't care for motorcycles so that is up to you.

In a city of 4 million cars... 30 aint so good ahahaha. There might be more, but I very rarely see them, and most of the guys all know each other who have them...


Im also pissed... my shifter left me hanging at a wendy's drive through today.... I have the aftermarket billet unit from Mark and I guess it over time got too far up on the shaft and allowed the botton shaft to pop out... It took me a good 5min to get the shifter off... Talk about embarassed ahahaha.

 

[GregInAtl]

IMO, Autotrader, and a National Collector Car mag are the best. I sold over $200,000 of GN/GNXs last year w/ this method. I had calls from Puerto Rico, to Canada. They reach thier market.

 

[Turbo6Smackdown]

Ya wanna know why these cars shouldnt be daily drivers?

http://www.turbobuick.com/forums/ge...06472-what-parts-still-avail-gm-86-87-gn.html

http://www.turbobuick.com/forums/st...03-stolen-84-gn-wisconsin-milwaukee-area.html

http://www.turbobuick.com/forums/st...gn-stolen-north-mississippi-memphis-area.html

http://www.turbobuick.com/forums/st...ck/195378-stolen-1986-buick-regal-t-type.html

That first post.. see how many parts are dropping off the planet? If we didnt have kirbans/postons/gbodyparts.com.. we'd be SCREWED, even more than we are right now. Let something happen (got forbid) like a bad storm, level kirbans for example.. Do you know what that would do to our cars? its not like theyre chevells or corvettes, where they have endless amounts of catalogs like year one, jegs, summits, jc whitney etc etc.
You can count on your left hand how many overall parts stores we have here in the U.S. for our cars. Sure, theres like 20 stores in the front page of this site, but all those stores are either just distributors for exact same products, or specialty stores, that sell only a certain kind of product.
I mean like big stores, that sell all sorts of different parts for our cars like g body parts, or fullthrottlespeed or postons.. but then again, who knows how many of those guys are just 're-distributors' of the same products from a higher echelon store. Just a re-seller if you will. Just a phone number and a store front. We dont have a huge variety of places to go to.
Then theres theft. these are high visibility cars. Theyre about the exact opposite of 'non descript' you could ever get. Look it up in a thesaurus under non descript. the opposite will show a picture of our cars. lol.
I know im one of the 'anal' guys, and not the 'drive it till it breaks' kinda daily driver guys but its just how i feel. I have a restorators heart. I like to keep things neat and in order. Call it obsessive compulsive i guess. I dont wash my hands 44 times a day, but ill q tip the hell out of my interior though lol. I just love these buicks, and theyre an intense source of pride for me. Mine was a product of my service to my country, and I love showing it off. Thats ok. In 15 more years, take a look at my car, then look at all the daily drivers out there. Youll see why i'm like this.

Like they say on TV. "dont crush em, restore 'em"
Thats my story, and I'm stickin to it.

At any rate, I think you should store it and leave it for a while. Collect some patience and get back to it a couple years later. I think youll be happy you did.

 

[corymc]

hey Adam do you have any pics of your rear center cap on your wheel? I s it the grey power six logo?

 

[Adam Connell]

Ya wanna know why these cars shouldnt be daily drivers?

http://www.turbobuick.com/forums/ge...06472-what-parts-still-avail-gm-86-87-gn.html

http://www.turbobuick.com/forums/st...03-stolen-84-gn-wisconsin-milwaukee-area.html

http://www.turbobuick.com/forums/st...gn-stolen-north-mississippi-memphis-area.html

http://www.turbobuick.com/forums/st...ck/195378-stolen-1986-buick-regal-t-type.html

That first post.. see how many parts are dropping off the planet? If we didnt have kirbans/postons/gbodyparts.com.. we'd be SCREWED, even more than we are right now. Let something happen (got forbid) like a bad storm, level kirbans for example.. Do you know what that would do to our cars? its not like theyre chevells or corvettes, where they have endless amounts of catalogs like year one, jegs, summits, jc whitney etc etc.
You can count on your left hand how many overall parts stores we have here in the U.S. for our cars. Sure, theres like 20 stores in the front page of this site, but all those stores are either just distributors for exact same products, or specialty stores, that sell only a certain kind of product.
I mean like big stores, that sell all sorts of different parts for our cars like g body parts, or fullthrottlespeed or postons.. but then again, who knows how many of those guys are just 're-distributors' of the same products from a higher echelon store. Just a re-seller if you will. Just a phone number and a store front. We dont have a huge variety of places to go to.
Then theres theft. these are high visibility cars. Theyre about the exact opposite of 'non descript' you could ever get. Look it up in a thesaurus under non descript. the opposite will show a picture of our cars. lol.
I know im one of the 'anal' guys, and not the 'drive it till it breaks' kinda daily driver guys but its just how i feel. I have a restorators heart. I like to keep things neat and in order. Call it obsessive compulsive i guess. I dont wash my hands 44 times a day, but ill q tip the hell out of my interior though lol. I just love these buicks, and theyre an intense source of pride for me. Mine was a product of my service to my country, and I love showing it off. Thats ok. In 15 more years, take a look at my car, then look at all the daily drivers out there. Youll see why i'm like this.

Like they say on TV. "dont crush em, restore 'em"
Thats my story, and I'm stickin to it.

At any rate, I think you should store it and leave it for a while. Collect some patience and get back to it a couple years later. I think youll be happy you did.

Ya I think I might hold onto it... after talking to more people here locally I think holding onto the car is a good idea. One of the things that is bugging me is the fact that the transmission will need to be replaced in the next year or so if I want to keep driving it like it is meant to be driven... it will last a good 15,000 more miles if I drove it like a granny mobile, but half the fun of this car is making old dudes in ferraris look bad in my buick regal...:wink:

I guess it's more the fear of having to spend even more money just to keep the car at it's current level. Been pricing transmissions, and it looks like I can get a decent performance unit that will more than meet my needs(I want an 11.50 car) and hold up for years to come.

 

[jurassic five 7]

..... and it looks like I can get a decent performance unit that will more than meet my needs(I want an 11.50 car) and hold up for years to come.

Well, when you get it done, make sure it's done right. Since you're in Texas, i'd have Mike Kurtz do it.

I'm in Kansas, and Im having Bruce at PTS do mine. Could have had Mike done it, but never called him. It wont be cheap to get the trans for 11.50 car. That's what i plan, and i know my combo can do it. I'm hoping to turn 11's this race season, since ill have a better combo then i did. It will probably cost 4k+ for a good trans with the correct parts to handle the power.

-Adam