New to buicks.. Have some ??'s

[djj624]

Hi my name is Dennis and i am about to purchase an 86GN with 74,000 miles on it with T-Tops.. Car seems pretty stock save for a K&N with a different tube behind of it (inlet tube)? Im a former mustang man and want a crash course in turbo buicks... What scan tool to get, what was HP on this year, what boost should be from the factory, what factory turbo it is, 1/4 mile times ect ect.. Also what things to look for and test on the test drive... How are the T-top cars should they be reinforced with subframes or something like that for twisting, or are the pretty solid? Sorry for being a PITA just trying to learn the basics..

 

[SouthernCal GN]

Before you buy the car, go here:

Turbo Regal Web Site

Under the resources section, there is a wealth of information about our cars.

Get a case of beer/soda, and start reading. Do no get up until your brain is mush, and your dreams are filled with turbo-6 images and factoids......

Get a carfax for the car. Print out the RPO code sections on how to decode the SPID label (a white label on the inner trunk lid full of codes), and take that list with you when you look at the car. The VIN on the label, the dash,the door, and the title should match. If they do, look at the label for codes LC2, WE2.


Too many of these cars are cloned by goofballs trying to scam top dollar from you. If there's somebody local to you on the board (just ask), take that guy with you as a second set of eyes.

Good luck, and welcome!

 

[djj624]

Thanks for the site, appreciate it..

 

[jcj1407]

Another site I found to be good reading is Vortex Turbo Buick Performance. It has a lot of good technical explanations of how things work together in these cars.

 

[Junior Samples]

What scan tool to get, what was HP on this year, what boost should be from the factory, what factory turbo it is, 1/4 mile times ect ect.. Also what things to look for and test on the test drive... How are the T-top cars should they be reinforced with subframes or something like that for twisting, or are the pretty solid? Sorry for being a PITA just trying to learn the basics..

Startout with Scanmaster from fullthrottlespeed.com
then you can upgrade to datalogger etc.

HP was under rated @235 with a buttload of torque for factory.
1/4 mile is least of your worrys right now.

Things to look for are your basic car stuff, if your in a rustbelt, look for rust, look at your door striker, grab it and make sure it aint hobbled. take for drive and hit lots of bumps..you know the routine.

T-Tops..welllllll i'll leave that one be.

if its pretty much stock then dont make an assesment on the power cuz once you add an extra 1k and tune it..hold on
then you add another 1K then the only mudstanes you'll see will be in the rearveiw

 

[djj624]

Thanks again.. Its a good thing i found that the vin doesnt say weather it is a gn or t, because when i did a carfax i said to myslelf WTF! Then i checked out gnttype and read up.. Carfax was clean btw..

 

[Junior Samples]

GN's are black with pretty nameplates, all same drivetrains

 

[GNRick]

If you let us know the asking price I'm sure you will get lots of opinions on whether or not it's a good deal. Kelly Blue Book is pretty high now, probably to make up for all those years when it was too low. Also check E-bay. I bought an 86 with t-tops last year. I hardly drive it so I can't tell you for sure if the t-tops leak or not. One more thing- hard top and moon roof models seem to command more money than the t-top version, as folks believe there is less twist to the body if you plan on racing it. I bought the t-top model because I think it looks cool. I already have one with a moon roof, and one with a hard top.