In May of '86 I was driving a '75 Ford 3/4 ton high boy since high school. Always wanting a monster truck, I put 14" of lift on it with 40" Monster Mudders. I transplanted a Chevy 400 small block from an old pulling tractor and a th 400 trans as well.
It was a fun truck as it ran high 15's at almost 80 mph @ 4000 rpm in 2nd gear with the factory 4.10 diff gears.
Looking for a more fuel friendly "car" to drive I was talking to my dad about a Volkswagen rabbit a co-worker was selling. He said "if you buy a foreign car you're out of my will"!
He said "its tough enough to make payments on a car you really like, let alone one you don't".
He asked, seriously, what car would you really like? Since I'd seen an '84 GN I said "I would really like one of those Grand Nationals".
So we went and checked them out at a small multi-brand dealership (no TR's on the lot).
The salesman said "you want to price a what kind of car"? So we delt with the general manager, made a list of options and prices, got a loan and ordered a minimally options '86 GN that I'd only seen in in the literature.
Being I was ordering it within the last two days of the cutoff to get an '86 I thought about waiting and getting an '87, but wasn't sure if I'd like the design changes, so I got the '86.
From being in the tractor pulling sport (mini-rods) I had heard of turbos, but with the lack luster performance thus far in the automotive industry I didn't expect much.
It wasn't until I checked on the car order two weeks later when the general manager gave me all the magazine reprints and pamphlets that I realized what I'd gotten my self into.
I picked the car up July 10 and I've had the car ever since.
Thank you for starting the thread dynoman, great stories.
Cheers, George