Is there a difference in looks between the 85 GN and the 87 GN??

[Matt37]

Hello,

I am new to the whole GN thing, so bare with me as I may ask some pretty stupied question.

I am looking into getting a GN and was wondering if there is an difference between the 85 and 87 GN?

If so what are the differences, I believe the 87's are inter-cooled and the 85's are not.. but once again I am a beginner in this whole GN thing so I may be totally wrong.

Thanks in advance.

 

[84gnguy]

84 and 85 are not intercooled,86-87 are,and have the "intercooled" nomenclature on the fenders
87's have a completely blacked out grille,84-86's are not blacked out along the top and sides (but are in the "center" so to speak) and say "Buick" on the top..87 has a "Buick" emblem on the grille

 

[Fuelie600]

There are many differences. Cosmeticaly, the wheels, air dams, and fender badges (intercooled) are different. Mechanically '85's are down on HP, lack intercooling, have a belt driven cooling fan, rear manifold turbo location ( with limited turbo upgrades available ), ect. If your looking to go faster with mods, stay with the '86/'87 models. Brian

 

[quick85nat]

non intercooled cars also dont have the 3rd brake light in the rear window

 

[83ttypecooled]

cosmetic differences

Hi,
That's a good question. Are there any cosmetic differences between the hot air cars and the intercooled vehicles, besides the split air dam? Anyone?

 

[GSX-PKV]

The 3rd brake light came out in 86 so hot air cars do not have them. Paul

 

[WIKEDV6]

The 84 and 86 grill are the same, the 85 looks very similar but there is a slight difference in the strip design, every 10 or so there a thicker one. The 87 grill has wider gap between each strip. I also think there is a difference in the moldings, the one goes across the fender/door and quarter panel. I think the 84-85 had metal/rubber setup that is riveted on to the body where the 86-87 is just rubber that's just glued on. I also believe on the top of the door, the flat surface there is a flat metal molding that runs the length of the door between the side view mirror and the window weather striping. Also There is a difference in the back window rear defroster,84-85 the lines are straight all the way across top to bottom where the 86-87 the lines bend around to accommodate the third brake light towards the bottom. I know there are few items that I am missing other than the ones others have mentioned.

HTH
Prasad

 

[turbofish38]

The 84 and 86 grill are the same, the 85 looks very similar but there is a slight difference in the strip design, every 10 or so there a thicker one. The 87 grill has wider gap between each strip. I also think there is a difference in the moldings, the one goes across the fender/door and quarter panel. I think the 84-85 had metal/rubber setup that is riveted on to the body where the 86-87 is just rubber that's just glued on. I also believe on the top of the door, the flat surface there is a flat metal molding that runs the length of the door between the side view mirror and the window weather striping. Also There is a difference in the back window rear defroster,84-85 the lines are straight all the way across top to bottom where the 86-87 the lines bend around to accommodate the third brake light towards the bottom. I know there are few items that I am missing other than the ones others have mentioned.

HTH
Prasad

Almost right, 84-86 GN usesthe same grille which is a standard 84 Regal grille painted black on the verticals and those verticals are all the same width and spacing. The 84 T-Type also uses this grille. The 85 and 86 T-Types use the standard 85-86 Regal grille that has the staggered and different width verticals and is painted black. And of course the 87 GN and WE4/W02 use the all black version of the standard 87 Regal grille. Only the 84 GN and T-Type used the wider belt molding. 85 to 87's used the common narrow version. Non IC turbo cars can be differetiated from the front or back by the type of front spoiler and the rear window with the 86-87 having the HMSL(High Mount Stop Lamp). 1985 GN's did NOT have the Grand National name plate on the trunk lid so that is another way to tell a 84 from a 85. There is some conflicting evidence concerning this last bit of information so I wouldn't consider it 100% fact.

 

[WIKEDV6]

Almost right, 84-86 GN usesthe same grille which is a standard 84 Regal grille painted black on the verticals and those verticals are all the same width and spacing. The 84 T-Type also uses this grille. The 85 and 86 T-Types use the standard 85-86 Regal grille that has the staggered and different width verticals and is painted black. And of course the 87 GN and WE4/W02 use the all black version of the standard 87 Regal grille. Only the 84 GN and T-Type used the wider belt molding. 85 to 87's used the common narrow version. Non IC turbo cars can be differetiated from the front or back by the type of front spoiler and the rear window with the 86-87 having the HMSL(High Mount Stop Lamp). 1985 GN's did NOT have the Grand National name plate on the trunk lid so that is another way to tell a 84 from a 85. There is some conflicting evidence concerning this last bit of information so I wouldn't consider it 100% fact.

You may be right about the grill, I did not get my information from reading any where, it’s strictly an observation based on what I have on hand. I have one 84 GN and two 84 T types, two 85 GNs and two 85 Ttypes, two 86 GNs and one 86 Ttype, nine 87 GNs and two 87 Ttypes. all the 85s, the grill is different with a thicker one in between every 10-15 fins, I don't know if they were all changed at one time due to an accident or not. Who knows, where the 84 & 86 GN/Ttype has the same grills. I didn’t by these cars new but every time that I had to identify one I was right on the money.especially the 85s.

Prasad

 

[Jerryl]

............ I have one 84 GN and two 84 T types, two 85 GNs and two 85 Ttypes, two 86 GNs and one 86 Ttype, nine 87 GNs and two 87 Ttypes.

WOW!!!! What a collection!
How big is your garage?

Edit:
OOOPS! Not mean to hijack. Just think it is GREAT to have such a collection.

 

[WIKEDV6]

WOW!!!! What a collection!
How big is your garage?

Edit:
OOOPS! Not mean to hijack. Just think it is GREAT to have such a collection.

Since I got in trouble with the county for having too many cars on my property (they gave me few citations) I went and bought a farm. The Garage is 40'X60' with 12 foot ceiling. It’s already dry walled and heated. I also had a 2 post car lift installed. I also have two pole barns, one is 80'X160' for car storage and another one is 50'X100' for parts storage. By no means these cars I have are in mint shape; I restore them and sell as a hobby. I hate to see these cars get parted out. I buy them from Insurance auctions to just anybody that don't have the means to fix them if the price is right.

HTH
Prasad