new guy in phoenix, '84 wannabe GN...

[azturbo]

bought this yesterday, working on cleaning it up so i can at least work on it (i can't work on a filthy car). uhm... '84 regal from factory, someone "somehow" got a grand national worth of parts and swapped most of them over (engine, seats, center console, guages are VDO, hood, spoiler, wheels, etc..etc...) was a government seized vehicle, i knew it wasn't real when i bought it but, still a cool project that looks the part. the block is a 109 block.

what do i look for on the trans to verify it being original GN?

it doesn't run....fuel pump apparently doesn't work according to the PO, i haven't even tried to start it yet. if the drivetrain is good, i'm going to have a new windshield put in, source some new seats (current passenger and rear seats show some....wear due to the az sun), dash and door panels show the same. have a paint job done (has a little hail damage, but not bad, no rust...body is actually very straight). and make it look nice.

 

[chopped39]

Welcome aboard. That car is a gn as far as Im concerned. Remember they are all just regals. The last three titles said buick regal coupe:biggrin: So your all good. You have a bunch of good guys down there Arizona gn/ Nick Micale . Ta performance.

 

[TurboTGuy]

I can help with the windshield, interior and paint stuff.

I have good connections here in PHX for that stuff.

Welcome aboard!

Mechanical - Nick Micale @ AZGN

Parts - TA Performance will have what you need.

Best piece of advice I can give - Listen to what Nick tells you.

 

[azturbo]

well the PO stated he replaced the fuel pump....but no fuel was getting to the engine, so they even directly wired the fuel pump (pretty scary wiring job...connections left open to the air...ack) and still nothing. he bought the car 6 months ago.... so i pulled the fuel tank down, unhooked the hoses and ran it from a battery...didn't put out enough flow to run a weed wacker, SO i pulled the pump, while the pump/strainer/sending unit does look new..the gas smells about 3 years old, and there isn't enough fuel in it to run the car....i think he put the new pump in, and forgot to add gas :-x

gave it a shot of ether (i know...i know...but i was so curious) and it went VROOM! so i'm excited. going to drain what i can of that old gas out, clean up this wiring job a little (just makeshift for now, but still need to clean it up some) and see if i can't get it running under it's own power tomorrow. also pressure washed the engine, noticed quite a few vacuum lines needing replacement (simple yes but, just was noticing stuff) and my engine bay is ugly, even "clean"...it's ugly. but i'll worry about that after i get it running decent (or should i say IF?).

 

[TurboTGuy]

I have a working "period correct" Pioneer Super Tuner and plate that will fill that hole in the dash.

You can have it if you want it, gotta come pick it up though.

 

[azturbo]

i appreciate the offer, i will check and see if the wiring is hacked up or not and get back to you. really focused on the drivetrain for the time being, if the motor or trans turn out to be crap, i'll be dumping the project (we're planning to move before next summer hits...though it'd be nice if this summer would *$%# off!!!) so, if the engine/trans are good, i think i can finish it with plenty of time, however if they aren't...i don't see me justifying it.

 

[charlief1]

Looks like you've got the GNX dash insert in it or are my eyes seeing things.

 

[TurboTGuy]

The wiring for the radio is ready for plug and play, even for a power antennea.

 

[azturbo]

dunno on the gnx insert, they're "vdo" guages... thats all i know. i'll go take a better pic of it and add it in a few.

and no i mean't the wiring in my car...the way this thing is, it might be hacked to crap in the radio area.

 

[azturbo]

just another interior shot of the gauges and one of the rear

 

[azturbo]

i went out and looked at the stickers on the air box.... it says 1987 on the sticker. the turbo says Garret A/R 60 M10...but the body tag's, vin, and title are '84...so someone either stole a GN, or got a parts one, or...???? and built this one from it. (don't freak out on me...this was bought as a US Government siezure vehicle....so regardless of how this car became the bastard it is, the government has wrote off on it).

would have been exciting if it turned out it was built from GNX parts, but no the guage cluster isn't right, the rpm goes to 7k on mine, stock gnx went to 8k, boost guage on gnx was 15psi, mine goes to 30...

 

[charlief1]

It's an after market cluster but not a GNX copy. A very nice upgrade from stock btw.

 

[Nick Micale]

With a lots of work and some $$$, this will be a nice car.

Before going too far, I would verify the paper work, especially the title. Hopefully it has been transferred into your name? Maybe even consider a Level III inspection by DMV.

I have dealt with MANY stolen recoveries and "cloned" GN's over the years, and have seen some problems?

Without the factory shifter, it seems this car has been "assembled" as a GN?

Do not want to rain on your parade, but I had one GN that had a "washed" title, and it was returned to the legal owner.

If I can help in any way, contact me.

 

[azturbo]

it was bought from auction, being sold for the US Government as a seizure vehicle....it's not different than buying a drug runners car with the pot seeds all over the carpet still (my first big diesel i bought...they didn't even clean all the pot seeds off the floor...took hours to clean that thing up), my altima was also a drug runners car....not sure what they did to it but aside from being stripped out when i got it, it looked stock, it runs a 13.8 in the 1/4...they were apparently trying the "haul ass through the desert" technique.

 

[mat231v6]

welcome to turbo buick

 

[vic86gn]

Welcome Aboard!

 

[azturbo]

thanks guys. didn't have time to work on it at all today. did go do the title and whatnot this morning so thats done with. the fuel pump doesn't get proper voltage, i can hook it up direct to 12v power and it runs...and gets to the rail (and flows back around) but it doesn't run then either. anyone care to come lend a hand to get the beast going, i'll buy lunch?

 

[Nick Micale]

How about a name, phone number and location so maybe a couple of us could stop by some time? :smile:

We do lunch!

 

[TurboTGuy]

How about a name, phone number and location so maybe a couple of us could stop by some time? :smile:

We do lunch!

I'm looking to make that one of these Saturdays!

 

[azturbo]

Name is Al...don't feel comfortable giving out specific location or phone number in a public forum, but i'm near 59th ave/indian school, the heart of the Ghetto! would be happy to set something up in a bit less public setting (private message) if you're serious. could either BBQ some burgers or dogs here, or pizza, or...whatever sounds good.