One the 1980s “holy grails” today is the Buick Grand National. It was named for the senior Winston Cup series in NASCAR. Buick won the Manufacturers Cup in 1981 and 1982 and they wanted to capitalize on the “What wins on Sunday, sells on Monday” strategy. The car was produced in low numbers from 1982-87 (skipping 1983) with the final year’s production exceeding all the other years combined. For 1985, there were 2,102 Grand National built and the seller’s near show-quality car was one of them. Complete with T-Tops, it’s located in Fort Worth, Texas and available here on eBay where the auction holds at $20,300.
The 1984 and 1985 Grand Nationals were essentially the same car. They only came painted in black with a 231 cubic inch Turbo-charged V-6 with sequential fuel injection and distributor-less computer controlled ignition. Thus, it was good for 200 hp and 300 lbs.⋅ft. of torque. The V-6 kept up with many V-8’s and could easily break 16 seconds in the quarter mine (with help, getting closer to 13). For 1985, the WE2 code stood for the GN.
The seller has only had the car about two years, but things change, and he needs to part with this beauty. He bought the Buick in Kansas and then drove it back to Texas with no problems on the trip. The mileage has changed slightly since then, now sitting at about 55,000. We’re told it starts up every time and runs and drives the way it should. The seller says it’s almost all original with very few modifications, but there is no mention as to what those might be. The seller is the fifth owner of the car, but three of the prior owners were all related to one another. It has received a new battery, tires and an alternator and a spare set of rims will come with the deal.
Finding anything wrong with the body and one-year old paint would be hard to do, but the seller took all the photos at dusk and there are shadows and darkness all around. Note to sellers: take pics in full daylight! He says there is no sign of rust in the frame, floors and trunk and not only do the T-Tops not leak, but he also has the bags they get stored in when not in use. The interior appears to follow the neat-as-a-pin assessment of the rest of the car, although there seems to be some scratches around the console.
The title currently resides with the seller’s bank, so there is no doubt a lien on the car that must be satisfied before the title can be dropped into your waiting hands. But as long as he owes less than the final selling price, why would that be a problem? Meet at the bank and do the deal or have your bank talk to his. There are quite a few Grand Nationals for sale online right now, especially 1985-87 models and $30-50,000 seems to be the range depending on condition and mileage. So, if the bidding doesn’t go wild, this GN could be a nice catch.
Most enthusiasts will hold out for the inter cooler equipped 86-87’s, when output was substantially increased. This model year will always play second fiddle to what followed, there no reason to act unless the price is significantly lower.
Steve R
Wrong rims on the car, Those are for ’86-’87 Grand Nationals. The ’84-’85 had a turbine style wheel on them.
For reference look at a Ttype, they use the early style wheel.
If you look carefully at the stock 84-85 GN wheels, they are the same as the “American Vector” wheel that was by popular in the 70s.
Sorry guys the 84 rims are totally different than the 85 86 87 Plus the 84 interior was also different It is black leather. Have one in my garage
GN wheels are not the same as American Racings Vector wheels. They might look close straight on at 75 feet but they are not really close at all.
He says extra rims come with it probably the original ones still looks good with those 86/87 ones
It’s amazing that the 85 SVO with only a four cylinder 2.3 L engine made the same horsepower.