This 1987 Buick Grand National looks like a smart buy at $28,500 with its mostly original condition, low miles, and clean interior, along with just two owners from new. Grand National prices are all over the place, from the truly obscene for non-GNX models to still-too-high for total basketcases. Finding a car that presents well and appears to be an excellent driver for reasonable money is definitely the sweet spot, and getting harder to come by. Presented as being a tidy example with lots of records, this Grand National listed here on craigslist in Worcester, Massachusetts, doesn’t appear to have spent much time in the snow and cold, and comes with some mild add-ons and all original parts.
The paint is said to be original, and it looks clean and straight in the pictures. The Grand National retains its original wheels and badges, and the seller notes that he has added a 3″ stainless Pitbull exhaust along with auxiliary oil and temp gauges in the cabin. There are no obvious signs of modifications to the wheel or tire setup, nor the suspension. The aftermarket exhaust must be fairly restrained in its design, as it’s not obnoxiously jutting out from beneath the bumpers. The original taillight lenses with their iconic black stripes through the middle are still present, as are the factory badges, and no mention of any accidents or prior bodywork are mentioned.
The interior is in great shape with clean cloth upholstery draping the factory bucket seats. The same goes for all of the gray plastic trim and console pieces, and the iconic three-spoke steering wheel remains in place as well. The additional gauges the seller mentioned are cleanly installed in the center console, and I probably wouldn’t remove them or the exhaust, as the latter likely makes the already impressive out-of-the-box performance even better. When it comes to Grand Nationals, keeping the original configuration intact is essential, and the lack of modifications aside from the exhaust and gauges is good to see. Given the low miles, I’d expect to see the interior in this sort of condition.
The engine bay is really nicely detailed, with clean painted surfaces, new-looking hoses, and fluid tanks not showing any signs of long-term standing with old fluids. The seller doesn’t provide any insights into a detailed maintenance history, but Grand National owners tend to be fanatical in all of the best ways. The seller notes everything works as it should, and that the new owner will get a three-ring binder with “provenance” – hopefully, that includes a long paper trail of records. Grand Nationals will seemingly always be collector cars, especially when they’re in a nicely preserved condition such as this one is.
I’m a fan of nearly every old car and I like these cars, but when it comes to Grand Nationals , its much easier to find a low mileage survivor than a beater . Like limited edition Hot Wheels , these must have been sold as collectors items as it seems so many were stored away that they are still common. In all honesty, if there was a row of these at a car show I’d walk right by them and check out the tired high mileage baby blue 4 door maverick – a true survivor !
Many of my friends bought GN’s and T-types new. They all drove them. The problem with them was they were incredibly easy to steal, nearly every single one was stolen, often more than once, or someone attempted to steal them. They couldn’t leave them parked overnight in the street or driveway. A couple of them even had them stolen at work. My friends eventually gave up and sold them, I’m sure many others just stopped driving them, except for special occasions. That’s a contributing factor as to why there are so many low mileage cars out there, many that were driven, no longer survive.
Steve R
These cars had there day. Compared to what is being produced today the GN quality and performance can’t even come close to whats offered today. Back in the day the GN was the Bad @ss but now its just a 250hp Buick Regal. Lastly at 28k one can get a newer better performing and handling used muscle car. Better made too.
I didn’t ever own one, but a friend did, and he was a fanatic with keeping it clean and maintained…think he took it back and had a step 3 chip installed in the computer to get that turbo really churning….we ran PC beach up and down …and street run a few Corvettes of that eara blew them away…..fast and clean great memories..
I love these GM models. My brother had a Turbo Monte Carlo which we don’t see around anymore. I still laugh at the 85 mph speedo like that would slow us down back in the day!😂 My girlfriend now my wife she had. Grand Prix with T-tops and a V8! That was fun to drive. I miss those T-tops as long the seals were good not leaking! Simple times..😄
The Grand National is a classic and I would take this low mileage car over anything GM makes today
I really like these but, for some reason the got to have it has worn off me. I see these posted almost very week now.
With what is out today, these cars are outdated in not a good way. To me it is a souped up Regal. and I just didn’t like that body style. But today some one would love to add it to their collection. Just not me.
A real sleeper and desirable in my book. Buick on steroids.
Well it can’t compare to the 800hp cars out now but it was fast enough for its time and I think they’ve aged quite nicely all the g body’s