Bidding is already very much up there for this 1987 Buick Regal Limited Turbo T, which the seller claims is one of just 1,035 made in black with a tan leather interior. While the Grand National typically has a monochromatic paint scheme dressed all in black and looks like a proper muscle car, the powerful turbocharged drivetrain was also used in a few other varieties that gave it much more of a luxury vibe as this “Limited” trim goes to show us. In fact, given how infrequently the turbocharged non-Grand National models show up for sale, it’s sometimes perceived as more desirable among Buick collectors. Find this gorgeous Regal Turbo T here on eBay where bidding is over $25,000 with the reserve unmet.
The number of Grand Nationals made far exceeds the Limited Turbo T, which was just as much of a performance car as a GN but it far more subdued duds. It really does look just like the one your grandfather drove, which certainly didn’t help make the Regal appealing as a young person’s car of choice. It’s ironic that such a “sleepy” performance car sat somewhat unnoticed for years on the collector car market, at least until the Grand National sales began to pick up. Aside from the wheels, you might not pay any additional attention to a mid-size coupe like this that was otherwise found littering retirement villages in south Florida in 1992.
The engine bay is bone stock and clean, clean, clean. The 3.8L V6 supposedly made 245 horsepower and around 355 lb.-ft. of torque at a super low 2,000 RPM. I say “supposedly” because I feel like time and again, there was rampant speculation that Buick underrated these cars from the factory to primarily avoid making the Corvette look weak when compared to this totally snooze-inducing grandpa car. 1987 marked a special year in Buick’s history, as this was the only time customers could effectively mix-and-match Regal parts with Grand National components in the sense that you could spec the interior with a bench seat and luxurious velour upholstery and pillows all the while keeping the thundering Grand National engine under the hood.
Now, the seller does walk back some of his claims on total production numbers as being estimates, which is an admission I wish more owners would make when they get into the weeds of distinguishing their vehicles by paint colors and wheel sizes. One area he doesn’t exaggerate is the quality of the interior, which does appear to be in shockingly good condition for a car with over 100,000 miles on the clock. The leather looks unmarked to the point that you wonder if this grandpa car had blankets strewn over every exposed surface while it was being used like any other daily driver. The paint, trim, and emblems are all new, and the seller has made some mechanical and performance improvements as well, including 60lb precision injectors, a voltage booster, TT 93 octane chip, and more. This one looks like a sweetheart and a fast one at that.
I worked for a Buick dealer when these were new. I remember the T’s, but not one equipped like this. And for it’s mileage, looks fantastic. I bet this chariot will fly! I think i like this better than even a GNX. Those are so priceless these days they’ve become ‘unobtainium’.
In 2012, I had a conversation with a retired Buick engineer at the Back To The Bricks car show in Flint, Michigan. He was looking at my 79 Buick Century Turbo Coupe. He confirmed that the turbocharged Buicks, especially the 86-87 GN and GNX, were underrated.
Hi Don. I as well have a ’79 Century Turbo Coupe and would really like to talk concerning these rare cars. My email is
trevormannerow@yahoo.ca
I was never really a fan of the all black treatment of the GN & GNX; this black & CHROME beauty ticks ALL the right boxes, and that interior, WOW! The next owner should be really happy with this one! GLWTA!! :-)
I bought one of its brothers new in 1987 same car a Limited Burgundy with Gray leather Bucket seats column shift NO CRUISE CONTROL I hate it ,Turbo black out. Dicounted price from Buick $15250.00.Was a fantastic car. Sold it about 10 years ago to a guy in N.C. Next one was a GMC Syclone truck in 91.
I owned an 87 Regal Turbo Limited in dark blue w/ blue velour bench seat interior. Suspension Techniques springs and larger roll bars, Bilstien shocks and a ram air system, Kenne Bell headers. Had it from 1992-2010. Absolutely loved the car, unfortunately my wife hated it. Glad I was able to sell to a guy who collected Buick turbo cars of all sorts. Only problem I had with the car was keeping rear main seals from leaking. Great memories indeed !!
Yours sounds like what I would order. GN powertrain with tufted velour seats and preferably wire wheel covers, and all the chrome trim.
Miss cars like that compared to.todays ju k
We bought a new black on black 87 T, I painted the grill and headlight bezels black and it was a sweet look. Only mod was a special chip from a fellow engineer at the GM plant that made the semiconductors and ecm’s on these. Pretty awesome performance and almost 27 mpg at 75 mph.
What a great highway machine these were…. that turbo spooled up pass anything with ease. And a comfortable ride.
These were no secret… everybody knew a Turbo Regal was a Grand National w/o the badge and the GN badge didn’t cost any more $ if you got a leather interior on your haul-ass Regal… this trick was not getting the t-top…t-tops leaked,squeaked rattled and flexed…and subtract 1000 bucks in today’s resale mkt
The 1987 Regal T and Regal Limited T coupes are indeed rather rare. There were only a handful of times during the ’87 model run that the 3.8 SFI Turbo engine option was available “free flow” (available on any Regal coupe). Those were the only times that the Turbo could be ordered and produced in anything other than a Grand National, and on those few occasions that it happened, the window closed quickly. At other times, if you wanted a Regal with that engine it was a Grand National or nothing, as the engine allocation was reserved for GNs only.
The 87 T Type is only a bit rare because most ordered the GN. I bought a new 87 T Type and it was a regular production option, and listed in the 87 Buick brochure. Worked at GM and am not aware of any restriction on ordering the T Type or Limited in 1987.