Buick called these Regals “the Car for the Supercharged Family,” and you’ll search a long time before finding a cleaner example than this 2002 Buick Regal GS Joseph Abboud Edition in Sonoma California. Not only does it have the supercharged V6 but the special Joseph Abboud leather interior and all the luxury features you’d expect in 2002. The claimed 81,000 miles sedan looks great inside and out, and comes with upgraded replacement parts. Check out more pictures and details here on Craigslist. The $8500 asking price buys a car with more performance, utility, and economy than modern family haulers costing ten times more. Thanks to reader Jack M. for spotting this sporty and practical four-door.
General Motors’ leather and interiors from this era have proven tough and attractive, and the switches and knobs do well too. The Monsoon sound system shown packs a wallop, but be careful replacing the head unit which also controls some of the car’s security features. Need a new key fob? Order two on eBay for $18 and use buttons on the stereo to code them to the car for free. Try that with your BMW!
Coil packs from GM 3800 specialists ZZP promise more zap in the combustion chamber. The Series II 3800 (231 cid) V6 began life as a variant of Buick’s Fireball V8 in model year 1962. when Buick chopped two cylinders off its legendary 350 cid V8. I daily drove a non Joseph Abboud GS for 11 years and spiced mine up with a Stage I kit from TKO Motorsports, bumping the stock 240 HP at about a half bar (7.x PSI) to around 300 HP at 12.x PSI, enough to bury a host of pricier performance cars if you could feather the launch. Even with the extra HP I got 30 MPG highway by myself and 27.x with four passengers and luggage.
Clean lines and slippery CD help fuel economy, and sedate styling renders you nearly invisible to law enforcement, especially in this plain vanilla wrapper. I used fishing line to remove the “SUPERCHARGED” script on the rear deck on day two. One foible affects the brightness of the instrument panel. Resistors fall off the back of the instrument circuit board over time, dimming the display. Thankfully there’s an easy DIY solution; my daughter and I soldered on new resistors for a permanent fix. Total cost = $2.80.
This California classic looks great underneath as well, and the seller claims $4000 of recent new parts. My GS hit 292,000 miles before roasting its transmission. I could have revived it, but I was ready for something different. Even then my leather interior remained immaculate, and potential buyers should not be afraid to buy this car and rack up the miles. Fewer engines are simpler to sustain than the 3800. Will you introduce this pristine Regal to your supercharged family?
Love how you de-badged yours J.O. 🏁👍
Peak front drive automobiles.
Love sleepers like this!
I currently daily drive a 2019 CT6 Platinum with the 3.0TT. Although the 0-60 is only 4.9 sec, so many people see a big black Cadillac and immediately think slow. Always love showing how well it corners and accelerates.
This is one impressive sleeper!!! Love it!!! I’m sure its suprised more than its fair share at red lights!! Really like the interior too, the two tone leather looks great.
In retrospect, they probably would’ve been better off driving this instead of pampering it because 99.4% of observers are going to wonder why you’re driving a 25 year old car from the airport Hertz. It will take a special kind of Buick geek to buy this.
I’m that geek! I’d love to have it if it wasn’t 2500 miles away
Love the minor tweaks on this one. Cars like this are simple enough to work on and enough modern conveniences to make it a reliable daily driver. If I had my way, I’d drive cars and trucks from this era for the rest of my life.
Beautiful car. I drove a 2003 Regal LS. I wish Buick continued to make cars like this. But I thought that the GS used premium fuel?
Yes the Series II SC engines “required” premium rather than “recommended” it as was the case for the Series I SC engines.
This is the sort of car people complaining about a lack of affordable cars should, but likely won’t, consider. It offers lot of bang for the buck, it looks good, handles well, is comfortable and offers good performance while not breaking the bank at the gas pump. This car was obviously well cared for and has well thought out modifications, yet seems overpriced for the market based on how long the ad has been active. Hopefully it finds a buyer that appreciates it.
Steve R
Actually I believe the 4.3 v6 was 350 with 2 less cylinders and the 3.8 came from the 305
No, Todd, the 3800 engine dates back to the 1962 Fireball derived from the all-aluminum Buick 215 V-8. You may be thinking of the later Chevy 4.3L 90-degree V6 which was indeed a 350 V8 reduced by two cylinders.
Thank you, Poppy. I was relying too heavily on my memory. The bore was the same as the 350 some years, but you are correct in the origin being the Fireball. I’ll see if I can gracefully update the article. Much appreciated!
One more reference point. This video is older, before today’s 700 HP street monsters, but it demonstrates the bang-for-the buck potential of the L67 supercharged 3800 in this Regal GS. Dude lays down 374 HP at the wheels and smokes just about everything on the road in those days. https://youtu.be/EUrfIW4zQmM?t=392
ZZ Performance offers many parts for these. This car has their high voltage coil pack, and the sway bar, strut tower brace, and sway bar links too it looks like. They also have an intercooler kit, PCM, exhaust systems, coil overs, and other goodies. I own a ’95 Park Avenue Ultra as a winter/local beater so I know of those guys.
Fortunately for my wallet, my car is too old for their parts. They only make stuff for the Series II 3800. The L67 didn’t go to the Series II architecture until the 1996 model year. As cool as they are, these 3800 supercharged W and C platform cars are not worth very much, so it’s not worth it to go down the rabbit hole of expensive mods, even less so than with many other cars. So it’s good to get the mods “free,” if you will, as you would here.
Too cool 😎 👌
Wow, never seen this version of the Regal.
Love to have one sleeper!
I had an 2002 Pontiac Grand Prix GTP with the same drive train as this Buick. I ran regular gasoline in it. It was one of the best and most fun cars I ever owned. At 338,000 miles the camshaft broke in two. Some one backed into the side of it and the over drive in the transmission quit working. I finally junked it. If this car wasn’t so far away I’d buy it in a heart beat. Some one is going to get a very reliable and nice car that will provide them years good service.
Nice writing Todd. I like this car a bunch. I have a 2003 Buick Century…no super charger but bullet proof car. I did have a big black Park Avenue 8 years ago that was super charged. It was quick for a big boat. I have never been to California as I live in Kentucky, but I would enjoy owning this car very much. I am 69 now and would still take care of this car but would still have some fun with the gas pedal. Thanks for what you do Todd and thanks for all y’all at Barnfinds.
Thanks, Hollywood and everyone else. This car would be easy to disregard if you know nothing about them. I’m glad the BarnFinds community can share knowledge and stories about classics that color a little outside the lines! A friend of mine actually has plans to L67 his late mother’s immaculate 70k 2002 LeSabre, so I might have to tell that story some day.
Joseph Abboud? Who da fark is that??? I had to look it up. 🤷♂️
I have to roll my eyes at some of this designer stuff, those of us who don’t live the Frasier Crane lifestyle wouldn’t know.
Car stands very strong alone without the designer endorsement. My father had a blower GS Regal & Riv. Way fun!!!
I think these are beautiful cars. I don’t see many here in Arkansas anymore. There’s a Century a block over that I fantasize about.