6LE 1987 Grand National 4.8 turbo swap APPEARANCE mods...

Let's keep the conversation on subject. There are already way too many unemployed comics....;)
 
6LE Designs said:
Price of the whole car is irrelevant. $9k was for a built motor, bigger turbo, alky, tune, installed and around 450hp... All the other stuff (paint, suspension, etc...) would be on top of that.

Under $9k is now for 4.8 with all ARP bolts/studs, custom cam, 60mm injectors, fuel pump, Edelbrock intake, ported heads, Turbonetics T76 turbo, built for 700hp 4L60-E with 3200 converter and warranty, PCM, wiring harness, tuning (dyno and street), shortened driveshaft, mounts, professionally built hot side and cold side, battery relocation, GNX style gauges, new shifter, HID headlights, AND some radio stuff AND more suspension stuff AND etc... for 550-600hp and great gas mileage.

Not like we just stuck a stock motor and trans in and threw a turbo on it. Have done that before into third gens and cost is usually $2k-$3k.

Not for everyone but perfect for me ;)
Click to expand...

See I may be a noob, and don't take what I say personally. I think you are misinterpreting what people are saying.

Yes the Buick v6 109 takes some money to get built right. So instead, if you thought that price of $9k was too high. Why not sell the car? Or why not trade your "Grand National" for a plain Jane regal?! It's bad enough most of the GN's are rusted through, being parted out or totaled, but swapping in an LS motor in a factory GN is plain bullshit especially if money is a problem. The v6 is what makes the car a legend. Excuse me if I'm wrong, but if money is an issue with building a 450hp v6 that can rape modern day cars on the road, frankly a GN is not for you.


Posted from the TurboBuick.Com mobile app
 
I didn't think the price was too high, I thought the power it would produce was too low.

I just don't see the sacred attachment you guys have to a $10k car. It's not a COPO, it's not a YENKO, it's not even a GNX. The GN didn't even get anything powertrain wise over a T-Type, it just got blacked out. There's no amount of money that is going to make that V6 make the same 600hp with the same gas mileage and driveability as the motor we're putting in. Some people buy the car because "it's a legend". I bought it because I like the look inside and out and believed the hype that they were still fast but any street rep the car has left in 1997 when the LS1 came out. Times change and if you actually drive the car every day, enjoy it and want it to keep up with modern cars then drivetrains change as well.

Why not just buy a Regal? Because I already had one...

The same thing could be said about people doing LS1 swaps into any old school muscle, and real metal '32, etc... If everyone was a purist car shows would simply be like walking through a dealer lot from 30 years ago present day, boring.

Besides, one lest original GN to bring up the value of your car ;)

AND the drive train went to a good purist home who wanted spares to keep his original so no worries, my baby was a gracious organ donor :)
 
trixdout said:
See I may be a noob, and don't take what I say personally. I think you are misinterpreting what people are saying.

Yes the Buick v6 109 takes some money to get built right. So instead, if you thought that price of $9k was too high. Why not sell the car? Or why not trade your "Grand National" for a plain Jane regal?! It's bad enough most of the GN's are rusted through, being parted out or totaled, but swapping in an LS motor in a factory GN is plain bullshit especially if money is a problem. The v6 is what makes the car a legend. Excuse me if I'm wrong, but if money is an issue with building a 450hp v6 that can rape modern day cars on the road, frankly a GN is not for you.


Posted from the TurboBuick.Com mobile app
Click to expand...

My LS swap kept me from insuring my car to the hilt and burning it to the ground. That's how fed up with the Buick v6 I was. Love the car though, so I saved it. And for less than $3000, including the turbocharger, it would annihilate your v6 car, and at half the boost pressure.
 
Black Power said:
My LS swap kept me from insuring my car to the hilt and burning it to the ground. That's how fed up with the Buick v6 I was. Love the car though, so I saved it. And for less than $3000, including the turbocharger, it would annihilate your v6 car, and at half the boost pressure.
Click to expand...
It may annihilate my v6, but it's a true grand national. And motto burst your bubble, but you must half been doing something wrong to get fed up with the v6. It's not that difficult to do own work, take care of the car, an make sure thing are in tip top shape. Granted people have flukes an things do t go their way but shit. It just ruins the car. It may be an attachment to a legend but I don't care about modern day v8's specifically the LS engine. All the old school cars that was mentioned in a previous post that people swap LS motors into are nothing special. None of those cars have a history like the grand national. They are just plain classics. The grand national something like a yenko, the 440 six pack dodges, the gt500, etc. but you know what, the grand national is better than that. All those 70's muscle were v8's, the turbo regal is a v6. The fact it kept up and beat the v8's was/is something spectacular. And it did it with ease.

Question for you. If I beat you with a turbo'd v6 in your LS swapped regal, honestly what would you say? Guarantee you it would be difficult to swallow. The kills threads show it with all the v8 people who can't even snit defeat. So whatever. At least show some respect and do a swap in a plain Jane regal, not a factory grand national/turbo regal. Respect history.


Posted from the TurboBuick.Com mobile app
 
trixdout said:
It may annihilate my v6, but it's a true grand national. And motto burst your bubble, but you must half been doing something wrong to get fed up with the v6. It's not that difficult to do own work, take care of the car, an make sure thing are in tip top shape. Granted people have flukes an things do t go their way but shit. It just ruins the car. It may be an attachment to a legend but I don't care about modern day v8's specifically the LS engine. All the old school cars that was mentioned in a previous post that people swap LS motors into are nothing special. None of those cars have a history like the grand national. They are just plain classics. The grand national something like a yenko, the 440 six pack dodges, the gt500, etc. but you know what, the grand national is better than that. All those 70's muscle were v8's, the turbo regal is a v6. The fact it kept up and beat the v8's was/is something spectacular. And it did it with ease.

Question for you. If I beat you with a turbo'd v6 in your LS swapped regal, honestly what would you say? Guarantee you it would be difficult to swallow. The kills threads show it with all the v8 people who can't even snit defeat. So whatever. At least show some respect and do a swap in a plain Jane regal, not a factory grand national/turbo regal. Respect history.


Posted from the TurboBuick.Com mobile app
Click to expand...
My car is a true Grand National also. Check the vin or RPO, it's a GN. Mine just has a better engine in it than yours. Mine trashed the stock engine and spun the mains when I was racing. Pulled it out, put a non 109 3.8 and later a 4.1 v6 in it. These things have issues that will never be fixed. They don't oil well. They love to leak. The lifter bores are flawed. They have to run 30psi to be fast.

Not any more. If I get tired of the turbo LS (fat chance) and decide to put it back to stock, I can. I still have all the factory v6 stuff except the turbo cover. When you modify a car, it doesn't change what the car is. I took my car and decided I wanted it to be faster, more reliable, and not leak in my garage from a terrible rear main seal design. Mission accomplished, and now I actually enjoy the car and drive it, instead of leaving it on jackstands all the time.
 
Oh forgot to mention. If I lost to a v6 GN...I wouldn't care any more than if I lost to any other car. There are always gonna be faster cars than mine, and some will be v6 GNs. I'm content with it. My car now does what I want it to do, and my goal has never been to be the fastest Gbody on the planet.
 
the only downside the LS swap has, is that you lose the incredibly awesome/annoying buzz sound when it's at WOT. I honestly miss that sound a lot. Now it just sounds like a combo between a roar and a semi truck. Not quite as cool as the v6 buzz. Everything else is much better.
 
Damn, why cant people just appreciate other peoples stuff. Its always Mines faster then yours or mines better then yours. If you don't like something either keep it to yourself or just say not my first choice. Whether its a V6 or V8, an 8 Second monster or a daily driver, cant we just appreciate it for what it is, not what it isnt
 
One more "my cars better than yours, conversions are not right" post, and this thread is in trouble...........
 
Picking up the powdercoated intake, TB, etc... today. HOPING to pick up the heads (ported exhaust and intake, bowl work and valve job) and have her running this weekend :). Also finished our GNX style cluster and putting that in. Got some decent ebay gauges that look like the old GNX ones but have modern illumination :)
 
A sneak peek at the motor...
gnmotor.jpg
 
Looks nice, love the intake. Question: did you have to remove the inner fenderwells to make everything fit nicely or was it just by choice?
 
So far we could bolt them right back in but we're not going to. We're going to make some custom bead rolled aluminum ones to pretty up the engine bay.
 
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