Waking up a Grand National

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RC104ever
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Re: Waking up a Grand National

Post by RC104ever »

Loved that car when it came out - and no one really knew how potent it really was when it came out. Amazing car - too bad there aren't more of them out there.
- Chris
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Re: Waking up a Grand National

Post by jwscab »

the best part of that car is the fact that the 3.8l buick motor itself is a polished turd. add the hairdryer and it became a hero. excellent example of how turbocharging can overcome many deficiencies.

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Re: Waking up a Grand National

Post by Coelacanth »

It was actually turbocharged for '84 - '85 as well, which certainly helped, but performance was still rather meek for those years. It was the intercooler option in '86 - '87 that really made a difference and made the GN a legend. Up to '85 it was just a mean-looking black car without the balls to back up the look. 8)
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Re: Waking up a Grand National

Post by jwscab »

yes, the 84/85 cars were non-intercooled, and the later turbo was much better. The intake was pretty crappy too, restrictive, but all the things they learned they incorporated into the 86/87 cars.

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Re: Waking up a Grand National

Post by Bong024 »

I had an 83 Regal T-Type. 3.8l turbo and carbureted. I loved the car, but made dismal power. That carb was always out of adjustment. The waste gate went and I "adjusted" it to always open. It made good power for about a week :). I had an 86 and still regret selling that car.
I'm not like them, but I can pretend...

Bong024
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Re: Waking up a Grand National

Post by Bong024 »

It was just like this one.
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I'm not like them, but I can pretend...

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Re: Waking up a Grand National

Post by slapshot1979 »

I had a few 3.8'sNA and they were great motors if you could keep timing chains in them. there was an upgrade to timing gears from GM but was $$.

Great story and nice car. I remember running GN with my older brother in his 5.0L I was a young impressionable lad of 10yrs. 8)
Sleeps with a night light on, not because he's scared of the dark but because the dark is scared of him...........stay thirsty my friends

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Re: Waking up a Grand National

Post by Coelacanth »

Good point about one of the known weak links with the 3.8 Turbos. This one still runs great but I know it's only a matter of time before I'll need to replace a cracked exhaust header and the nylon timing chain gear. Those are probably the most common engine failures. It's still at only about 92k km, so it might not be for a while yet...knocking on wood!
Completed projects: CYANide Onroad Optima | Zebra Gold Optima | Barney Optima | OptiMutt RWD Mid
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Re: Waking up a Grand National

Post by Daryl Lane »

Great story and a great car - I believe there are still a couple of them running in NHRA Stock classes and winning.
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Re: Waking up a Grand National

Post by biff85ta »

Daryl Lane wrote:Great story and a great car - I believe there are still a couple of them running in NHRA Stock classes and winning.
Buddy Ingersoll lived a few miles from me most of my life and it turns out I have some friends who knew him. I wish I could have met him.
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Fade...to black

Post by Coelacanth »

I finally took care of some detailing this weekend. The headlight bezels, originally black, had faded a lot over the years, and in a few places, were scuffed, scraped or worn through to the grey-colored plastic underneath. I removed them, disassembled the corner marker lenses, washed everything thoroughly and masked off the lenses, and gave them a few coats of SEM Trim Black. Good as new! 8)
HeadlightBezels_Before1.jpg
HeadlightBezels_Before2.jpg
HeadlightBezels_Done.jpg
Next thing to do is replace the PowerMaster brake accumulator ball, it isn't holding much pressure anymore and the "Brake" light blips on once in a while during braking. Better to be safe than sorry...
Completed projects: CYANide Onroad Optima | Zebra Gold Optima | Barney Optima | OptiMutt RWD Mid
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PlastiZapCA+
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Re: Waking up a Grand National

Post by PlastiZapCA+ »

Great work, those bezels came out perfect! Very beautiful car you have there. 8)

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Re: Waking up a Grand National

Post by LTO_Dave »

Nice work on those bezels! I love that SEM trim paint...I've used it on real cars and my RC crawlers to simulate real plastic trim.

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Re: Waking up a Grand National

Post by Coelacanth »

Thank you, guys! Everybody swears by this paint so I had to look all over town to find a place that sells it. I bought their last 2 cans, and I'm already almost done the first one. I need to buy some other Eastwood products including a vinyl/plastic interior dyeing kit so I'll probably be making a bulk online purchase this summer. Last year I scored some amazing front door panels for the Charger, they look near-mint...but they're blue. I'm re-doing my interior black.
Completed projects: CYANide Onroad Optima | Zebra Gold Optima | Barney Optima | OptiMutt RWD Mid
Gallery - Coel's Stalls: Marui Galaxy & Shogun Resto-Mods | FrankenBuff AYK Buffalo | 1987 Buick GNX RC12L3

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PlastiZapCA+
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Re: Waking up a Grand National

Post by PlastiZapCA+ »

You can order nearly all the products SEM makes including interior dye online here: http://www.yourautotrim.com/semdye.html I've never tried the dye, but I've heard it works great. Tempted to try it on my daily driver.

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