Real nice 86 Grand National in Western, PA

ryan319

Member
Joined
Aug 21, 2006
DSC03950.JPG20130207_200719.jpg20130207_200747.jpg20130207_200804.jpgDSC03952.JPGDSC03953.JPGIMAG0193.jpg Well sorted 1986 Grand National for sale. I’ve had this car for almost 5 years and have had a lot of fun with it but it’s time for me to move on to something else. 99K miles on the car, ~10K on the transmission and rear, and 1.5K on the motor.

Overall I think this car is really nice. Almost every time I drive it I get people that stop and want to compliment it or talk about turbo Buicks. I would rate the mechanicals at 9/10, the interior 8/10 and the exterior 7.5/10. And I’m pretty picky about my vehicles.
Body and Interior
· Very nice interior. No stains or rips in the seats or carpet. Has newish embroidered floor mats. Console gauge pod with oil pressure and water temp. Pillar pod with boost and knock gauges. Also a dash mounted tach. No holes were drilled in the dash for the tach and it can be completely removed. Both window motors have been replaced. The AC was converted in 2011 and works. Stock radio. The tape deck acts funny sometimes. Not sure if it's the player or the one tape that I have.
· The car was repainted by one of the previous owners with base/clear. It shines and shows nice but is not perfect, it’s real good driver quality paint. I had front and rear fiberglass fillers done last year. It’s probably a 10-15 year old repaint. It has T-tops with new weatherstrips installed in 2010. They didn’t leak before I changed them, they just looked bad. New dew sweeps installed at the same time.

Engine
· Block was decked, line bored/honed, and the cylinders were honed (they were 30 over from a prior build)
· Forged TRW pistons with Total Seal rings
· stock crank cut .10/.10 with ARP main studs
· reconditioned 2-dot rods with ARP bolts
· Calico coated main, rod, and cam bearings from Weber Racing
· Decked, ported and polished heads with Cometic gaskets and ARP bolts
· stock rockers with TA Performance hardened rocker shafts
· ported and polished intake with EGR block plate
· 210/215 roller cam with Comp roller lifters, beehive springs, and double roller timing chain
· new front cover and oil pump, factory style from Jay’s GN(RIP) (Jay is also a former owner of this car)
· 3” Terry Houston downpipe with bung for 02 sensor (test pipe with dump is on the car but I also have the cat)
· 3” dual exhaust with Dynomax Ultra-flo welded mufflers. I'm putting on new tailpipes this weekend. The previous owner had the current ones custom made and I never liked them. I have new 3" tailpipes from Torque-tech.
· Billet 60-1 turbo (thanks Bison). Billet backplate and polished compressor housing. HD adjustable waste gate
· GbodyParts polished stock location stretched intercooler
· 60 lb injectors
· Hotwired XP fuel pump
· Billet adjustable fuel pressure regulator with pressure gauge that can reach the windshield
· Turbo Tweak chip
· Powerlogger with 3 bar map
· LC1 wideband O2
· Translator with 4” GM MAF with integrated IAC sensor
· Cooling fan is wired to run from the computer or manually with a high/low switch under the dash

Trans and rear
· Transmission and rear end were rebuilt by one of the best local shops (Hoss’s Gear Shop). The trans shifts hard and I recently changed the fluid when I put in the Art Carr. It has a transmission cooler and the fluid that came out was nice and clean.
· Art Carr non-lockup 3400 stall
· The rear end is rebuilt stock posi and I recently changed the fluid

Suspension
· Bilstein shocks front and rear installed in winter of 2010.
· The front end was completely rebuilt in 2010. New idler arm, pitman arm, tie rods, and end links (all Moog).
· Tubular upper front control arms with greasable bushings. The lowers were rebuilt with urethane bushings and Moog ball joints.
· Boxed rear upper and lower controls arms from Speedway with Moog bushings
· Hellwig pro-touring rear sway bar
· Jeep steering shaft
· Rear seat braces and front undercarriage braces
· Front and rear brakes are good. I replaced the accumulator ball in 2009. Also replaced the front rubber brake lines in 2010 when I rebuilt the suspension.
· Stock wheels in nice shape. I repainted the black inserts in the winter of 2010 and they still look great. Tires are Futura, front and back have good tread left. If I recall the fronts are stock size and I think the rears are 265's.

A few minor things that it could need. A pin fell out of the hoodliner and it got into the alternator. I squared off the hole to clean it up but there is a 2"x4" hole in the hood liner above the alternator. There are a few small bubbles on the truck lip that could be fixed. It never bothered me enough to fix it but I may have this fixed soon. No other rust issues on the car and the undercarriage is very clean. The t-top weatherstripping needs glued in. When I replaced the seals I only dry fit them. I intended to go back after they set for a month to glue them in but I never go around to it. I don’t drive the car in the rain and it rarely needs washed so it hasn’t been real high on my to-do list. I would also put drag radials on it. The current tires will break loose way too easy.

I have receipts for the motor, trans, and rear end.This is easily a mid to low 12 second car as it sits. If for some reason I end up keeping the car I'm going to put alcohol on it and crank up the boost.

Like I said, overall I think this car is really nice and I’d like to get $14,000. It's ready to take out, run fast and look good as it is. I’m selling because I want to get a new GT500. I need to free up some cash and garage space to make that happen. I’ll also be selling a 1967 Camaro and a 2005 GTO soon. I’m located just outside of Pittsburgh.

I will post better pictures of the car, some of the undercarriage, and the RPO tag this weekend. Hopefully it will be nice enough that I can get it out and cleaned up for some better pics.
 
Here's a shot of the trunk tag and a few of the underside.
 

Attachments

  • DSC04492.JPG
    DSC04492.JPG
    137.3 KB · Views: 123
  • DSC04493.JPG
    DSC04493.JPG
    156.5 KB · Views: 123
  • DSC04494.JPG
    DSC04494.JPG
    122.6 KB · Views: 122
  • DSC04496.JPG
    DSC04496.JPG
    142.2 KB · Views: 122
  • DSC04515.JPG
    DSC04515.JPG
    154.3 KB · Views: 127
  • DSC04519.JPG
    DSC04519.JPG
    110.5 KB · Views: 121
  • DSC04488.JPG
    DSC04488.JPG
    147.7 KB · Views: 120
I forgot to mention that the car also has a driveshaft loop. I have the original t-top bags. I also have the complete service manual in binders with some extra books still in the wrapper. At one time I was offered $300 for just the service manual. It does come in handy.
 
I wish it didnt have ttops i take it off your hands car looks great good look with the sell
 
THIS IS A NICE CAR, I KNEW THE PREVIOUS OWNERS,AS FAR AS I KNOW IT WAS GARAGED IT'S ENTIRE LIFE. I SAW THE CAR THIS PAST SUMMER AT NORWIN HILLS SHOP, VERY NICE,STRAIGHT CAR..
 
Top