Is the grand national a muscle car

[tzque]

Let's start a discussion . Do You consider your gn a muscle car? I own a big block t a as well and even though my gn is quicker it doesn't have the raw grunt of my ta . I will tell you I recently road in a 600 plus gn and that was power . Is a six cylinder car muscle. Please share your thoughts

 

[charlief1]

Considering that the Trans Am/Firechicken came with a SOHC inline 6 and it's a legend and a curse it's up to you to decide. Not to mention the other 6 cylinder cars that are considered legends here.

 

[novaderrik]

Considering that the Trans Am/Firechicken came with a SOHC inline 6 and it's a legend and a curse it's up to you to decide. Not to mention the other 6 cylinder cars that are considered legends here.

the only Trans Am that ever came with anything besides a V8 was the 89TTA...

is the TR a muscle car? well, that depends on your definition of what it takes to be a "muscle car"..

for some, it's gotta be a domestically produced mid size 2 door with a big engine- Buick GS with a 455, Chevelle with a 454, Charger with a Hemi, etc. none of those cars qualify for this definition if they only had a small V8 in them.
a smaller car like a Nova, Camaro, Firebird, Mustang, Cougar, or Challenger doesn't fit this definition regardless of what's under the hood.

some people claim that it needs to have a V8 to be a true "musclecar", which eliminates the TR's, and of course the Syclone/Typhoon because they had a V6 AND because they were trucks.. the badass Dodge Little Red Express trucks of the late 70's don't qualify, either, even tho they had some pretty stout engines for the time due to being trucks..

my personal opinion is that, no, the TR's aren't "musclecars".. but they are faster than most of the "musclecars" from the late 60's and early 70's.. i don't really have a good reason for why i have that opinion, but i think that it might have something to do with the true "musclecars" belonging to a different era than the TR's- the "musclecars" were from an era before smog rules and safety regulations came together to make cars more boring, and the TR's were from the era when the manufacturers were just starting to figure out how to build good fast reliable cars within the new rules and regulations that killed the "musclecars".

 

[t3intercooled]

I disagree....if you go by the definition in Meriam websters dictionary it says this:

Muscle car is a term used to refer to a variety of high-performance automobiles. [1] The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines muscle cars as "any of a group of American-made 2-door sports coupes with powerfulengines designed for high-performance driving.

Buick Grand National = American

Body Style = 2 Door Sports Coupe

Turbocharged V6 = Powerful Engine

Fastest Production Car Made = High Performance driving

Go by the valid definition of muscle.car and hell yes a GN is a muscle car.

 

[turbofrank]

muscle car of unleaded gas era

 

[dsapper]

Car and Driver did a top 10 muscle car list in January 1990. The grand national was #9. If they don't know what a muscle car is, nobody does.

 

[novaderrik]

I disagree....if you go by the definition in Meriam websters dictionary it says this:

Muscle car is a term used to refer to a variety of high-performance automobiles. [1] The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines muscle cars as "any of a group of American-made 2-door sports coupes with powerfulengines designed for high-performance driving.

Buick Grand National = American

Body Style = 2 Door Sports Coupe

Turbocharged V6 = Powerful Engine

Fastest Production Car Made = High Performance driving

Go by the valid definition of muscle.car and hell yes a GN is a muscle car.

ask any old school hot rodder that grew up in the late 60's and early 70's and was around when the term "muscle car" first started being used and see if they agree with the official dictionary definition..

 

[BobbyBuick]

By definition it is NOT a Muscle car .In 1964 John Delorian was the first to put an engine of bigger CU In of 10 to 1 ratio in a car (MUSCLE CAR).That is what defined a muscle car .The Detroit Managment didnt like the Idea and was totally against it with the 64 GTO that car as a Tempest only came with a 326 or smaller(probably 3400 LBs).Sales Rocketed and all other competition jumped on boardWith that said my turbo cars would outrun any muscle car I have ever owned!Our cars would have to weigh in at 2200 LBS

 

[yelowta]

Trans ams never came with with a big block. No pontiac had a big block except in canada. The pontiac 455 block was the same size as the 350. It always drives me crazy when people say they have big block pontiacs

 

[TURBOPOWERED68]

Let's start a discussion . Do You consider your gn a muscle car? I

in my opinion, YES.

 

[BobbyBuick]

The Trans Am was considered a pony car.To compete with the Camaro,Mustang,AMX,That was a separate war not to be confused with the Muscle car ,an intermediate car with a big body motor .Correct on the Poncho motor Basicly the same block from 326 to 455 not really but basicly.421,428,455 all differant with 3.25 mains

 

[highboostgn]

Does a one legged duck swim in circles?

 

[BEATAV8]

All I know is when I bring my 87 T out to a cruise, I've been accused of being "one of those guys".

But if I bring my much much slower 79 TA, I fit right in.

 

[coach]

Answer to first question is...YEP.
Answer to , What is a Muscle Car?...ANY American produced passenger vehicle that produces at least 1 horsepower per cubic inch....point blank!
To many people just consider the model. OOOH I got a 69 Z-28 with a 350 4 speed...SORRY, NOT A MUSCLE CAR.
Throw out the 350 and add the 427...TA-DAAH!!!
Same with the GT350 Shelbys...
Im not trying to make anyone mad, but the facts are, when these cars were new...if you went to the dealer and said you wanted a Muscle Car, he did not take you to the GT350...he took you to the GT500!!!
The term Muscle Car was coined in 1963-64 and used to describe the 409 Chevy, the 427 Ford, and the 426 Hemi and Max Wedge. They were the Holy Terrors of the highways and displayed fender badging as such. EVERYBODY HERE, THAT KNOWS CARS, KNOWS THAT ...IF IT DOESNT HAVE THE FENDER BADGES...YOUR NOT AFRAID OF IT!!!
That is why the small block cars, are not Muscle Cars. Now I gonna get bashed by guys who own these cars, and like I said, I'm not trying to make anyone mad. The small block cars run...and run good, but they just dont have the title of Muscle Car attached to their stature. MUSCLE CAR refers to the amount of power made by the power plant under the hood...not the sheet metal it is wrapped in.

I have had this conversation since alot of you were in diapers...(Not you Charlie...You didnt use diapers) because I have lived these car since birth. My dad was a lightweight HEMI racer for Strausbaugh Dodge in Youngstown Ohio. I spent my first day home from the nursery in a baby seat, between a 64 Hemi and a 69 Hemi GTX, at Youngstown Drag City.
I also own a 1962 Chevy 409, a 1964 Max Wedge Dodge and a 1965 Super Stock Plymouth, so add in my GN and I will tell you this. That little SOB runs right up there with any of them when the big blocks were stock. I think it would take the 09, and maybe the Max, but cant touch the Super Stock car from the factory.

Just my thoughts on the subject. Agree or disagree.
Coach

 

[KevinB]

There is a long thread on yellowbullet about this..interesting to see what others out side of community think.

 

[deezdad]

Does a one legged duck swim in circles?

no, they swim in ponds.

 

[coach]

There is a long thread on yellowbullet about this..interesting to see what others out side of community think.

I tried to join Yellowbullet a few weeks ago. Not taking new members it said. I was bummed.

 

[KevinB]

That's odd. Did you try again?

 

[t3intercooled]

ask any old school hot rodder that grew up in the late 60's and early 70's and was around when the term "muscle car" first started being used and see if they agree with the official dictionary definition..

Opinions are like a$$holes....everyone has one....cant argue with the true definition. Theres a difference between fact and fiction....and opinion is classified fiction, a definition is a fact

 

[3-5.0]

I think of it as a muscle car. Theres many categories that many cars including the GN can cross lines-pony car,sports car,etc. Any car that is generally American and has a performance engine and special edition package above and beyond its base model. Is an Omni GLHS a muscle car? how about the new Challenger R/T?.

Its just easier to classify it as such,it looks like one. An argument could be made its a sport cruiser cause it sure can't corner like a sports car. Wasn't designed to.