How Many Left? 1988 Pontiac Grand Am LE

Did you know that GM built roughly 3 million third-generation Pontiac Grand Ams? I’m not surprised, considering you used to see these economy cars practically everywhere. Malls, high schools, suburban driveways – you name it, there was likely a Grand Am somewhere in the vicinity between the years of 1988 and 1998. These days, however, they have clearly been retired to the big junkyard in the sky, which is why a 1988 model like this one here on craigslist makes you do a double-take – especially since it has been somewhat restored with a fresh paint job and new mechanical bits. Thanks to Barn Finds reader Barney for the tip.

The N-body platform cars represented a significant shift for GM, as the X-body models rode off into the sunset. The Grand Am, like all Pontiac products, was marketed as the performance-oriented small car offering, and of course, it was designed to deliver driving excitement. On a purely cosmetic level, the Grand Am did look racy, especially when you purchased one that didn’t sit at the bottom of the trim hierarchy. Alloy wheels, bucket seats, an instrument cluster with lots of gauges – you know, the superficial stuff that made people think the car they just bought really was exciting.

Underneath it all was still a fairly ordinary economy car, like so many other GM products. Cheap plastics, seats with no real support, and plenty of panel gaps were all a foreshadowing of how easily the Japanese manufacturers would come to dominate the small car segment. However, these shortcomings didn’t bother many American consumers, hence the strong sales numbers. And, frankly, they were somewhat unkillable, like so many other GM offerings. You may find the entry-level Iron Duke 4-cylinder to be repugnant, but there’s a reason why so many U.S. Postal Service vehicles are still running this engine.

Speaking of the Iron Duke, the seller claims the 2.3L 4-cylinder runs just fine in his Grand Am, which has been given a scale of updates not often seen in this vehicle class. In addition to being resprayed in its original color, the seller notes the previous owner replaced the power window motors/regulators, struts, and shocks and that everything still works save for the cassette deck. With under 90,000 miles, the Iron Duke with its 98 b.h.p. and 135 lb.-ft. of torque should still move out just fine, but you may not wish to subject this Grand Am to the sort of daily driving abuse that befell so many others before it. Do you think the $7,400 asking price is reasonable for what is likely one of the nicest Grand Ams left in existence?