They had "FBI chips" too?

[michael evans]

At Super Shops we sold cheap Coopers to many GNs as went you heated them up, at the time it was the best traction to be had.

 

[Hotfoot]

A buddy of mine worked for a GM dealership years ago and a tech used to work on the GN’s back when and when he stopped working on them he had a bunch of chips leftover so I asked if I could get one just because. Never used it.
Talked to a retired state trooper a couple weeks ago and I asked him about the Turbo regals and he told me the state made them get t types but when they went to order them they could only get 10 t types and the other 18 were GN’s
Mike

 

[Anthony P]

@Hotfoot, thanks for posting the CT Trooper pic. I could not find it on my computer the other day. Brought back a few memories. Summer of 1992, I had my GN on Cape Cod, MA. Friends were getting together at Robert Moses State Park on Long Island and were encouraging me to take a ride. I knew various law enforcement agencies had turbo Buicks including CT state police. What I did not realize was the attention I would get on I-195 in RI and I-95 in CT. Even just moving at the speed of other traffic in the middle lane, other drivers were hesitant to pass me. Some may have just been checking out the car thinking it was a Monte SS while others just got back in line behind me all the way to Bridgeport where I was catching the ferry to Port Jefferson.

Back to questions from the OP...lots of good, informative posts from the forum...

different chip yielded more HP and torque through higher boost, timing, fuel curve, etc. there are some really good points above about the stock tires. The Eagle GT's were horrible. So were the later Eagle GT + 4. The BFG Radial TA noted sucked as well.

With the BFG's, the front end would snow plow and it was pretty easy to kick the rear end out in just regular driving. This was with the factory stock ACXA prom chip - 14psi boost with non-adjustable actuator. On an early summer morning with the road still wet from overnight dew, I went around, 360*, exiting an "S" turn at less than 20mph. just regular driving, exiting the last of the curve and I got back on to the accelerator. No WOT, had one or two LED's on the dash showing a couple psi of boost as I was beginning to speed up to the road's 35mph limit or so. And around I went like I was doing a donut on purpose.

So, spirited driving on the crap tires we had at the time, it could be pretty easy to loose control on anything that was not a straightaway. With one psi boost equal to about 10hp, adding potentially 60 to 70 more hp in low gears via performance chips on the street is quite exciting and could very well test one's steering and recovery skills.

 

[TurboTGuy]

At Super Shops we sold cheap Coopers to many GNs as went you heated them up, at the time it was the best traction to be had.

Not sure where you are from, but did you know a guy in the Super Shops organization named Dean LaFlam?

 

[corsair231]

@Hotfoot, I knew various law enforcement agencies had turbo Buicks including CT state police. What I did not realize was the attention I would get on I-195 in RI and I-95 in CT. Even just moving at the speed of other traffic in the middle lane, other drivers were hesitant to pass me. Some may have just been checking out the car thinking it was a Monte SS while others just got back in line behind me all the way to Bridgeport where I was catching the ferry to Port Jefferson.



With the BFG's, the front end would snow plow and it was pretty easy to kick the rear end out in just regular driving. This was with the factory stock ACXA prom chip - 14psi boost with non-adjustable actuator. On an early summer morning with the road still wet from overnight dew, I went around, 360*, exiting an "S" turn at less than 20mph. just regular driving, exiting the last of the curve and I got back on to the accelerator. No WOT, had one or two LED's on the dash showing a couple psi of boost as I was beginning to speed up to the road's 35mph limit or so. And around I went like I was doing a donut on purpose.

So, spirited driving on the crap tires we had at the time, it could be pretty easy to loose control on anything that was not a straightaway. With one psi boost equal to about 10hp, adding potentially 60 to 70 more hp in low gears via performance chips on the street is quite exciting and could very well test one's steering and recovery skills.

And here I thought it was just everybody's respect for the TRs that kept them from trying to race. I guess maybe some of them were just afraid to try because they thought they would get arrested.

As far as they tires on the law enforcement cars, I know most of the other special duty vehicles get different tires. I wonder if they did the same to the TRs? And I wonder if they did, were they coded on the factory SPID or if the agency changed them post purchase?

 

[salvageV6]

I had lotsa lines behind my WE4 in CT, 55 saves lives.

I never went over 65 because they would nail you, so I just moved to the right lane and let people come up and see I wasn't a cop then I wouldn't be the lead car.

Those days sucked but they had some nice colored T's for sure I don't remember any GN's but that was a long time ago lol.

The golden revenue days here in CT, now if you do 70 in any lane you get in the way.

 

[Pronto]

I traveled down to LI from NH in the late 80s for my friend's wedding. At the time there was heavy construction on the part of the highway I went by. I kept seeing Mustangs and wondered what was going on. I didn't notice Ts probably since I didn't know what they were. Eventually I saw a Mustang come barreling up on me trying to push me to go faster. Luckily I pulled over and them them go. Farther down the road he had someone pulled over. That's when I found out they were unmarked cars.

 

[salvageV6]

In CT they went to Mustangs and Mazda MX-6's, what a letdown that must have been. lol

 

[michael evans]

Not sure where you are from, but did you know a guy in the Super Shops organization named Dean LaFlam?

I am in Louisville, Kentucky. I don't know the name, but I will ask around. I am still in contact with a manage of one of the stores.

 

[turbofrank]

Back in the day my favorite street chip was Eastern Performance Street Lethal and Firestone Firehawk rear tires heated up best time 12.9'sl . It was a true stop light to stop light and 1/8 chip. There is a board member here that has an x police/FBI car he may chime in . His car still had gun rack

 

[Anthony P]

Currently for sale here is a former CT State Police T with Rosewood Exterior/ Red interior (buckets, console). Pics show bill of sale from CT surplus with Agency listed as State Police...need repaint/restoration but a cool project to bring back to her glory.

https://turbobuick.com/threads/1987...-ct-state-police-vehicle.461205/#post-3844888

 

[grass doctor]

wow didn't think any GN's were used in service but pic in post #22 shows otherwise very cool
now as far as I know only T's were used on federal level, read the only real way to tell a FBI car was the vehicle's history will show very late first registration correct, as they were not registered when used on the federal level, but what about state or county?

 

[william B.]

1988 i was on I-395 south in waterford ct. I came around a corner running about 57mph in my 69 rr and 5.0 notch mustang was lined up side by side with a turbo g body.both burning thier tires. they were both state troopers.

 

[XS29L9B]

Indeed, we were pulled over in Virginia back when I was a kid in the 90's by a Grand National for speeding.

Was worth the ticket just to see and hear that damn thing...

What agency in VA?

 

[getchasum]

I liked the D40M2 Dunlops in 235/60 size when the stock tires gave out at 20K.

The stock tires really sucked for everything in MHO. Made the rear end posi. noise around parking lot turns, even the Kenne Bell green rear end magic fluid didn't help lol.

My tire of choice for the GN back in the late 80’s was the Goodyear Gator Backs 255, 50, 15’s
Tuned with Hypertech Chip, bleeder valve and a KennyBell pump. Thought I was untouchable on the streets, laying waste to Iroc’s, GT 5.0’s and SS Monte’s