The turbocharged Buick Regal Grand National in its gloss black livery was built from 1984 to 1987. Prior to 1984, the Grand National was just an appearance package, with little in the way of performance aspirations. The platform was coming to the end of its life cycle in 1987, and Buick wanted to send it out with a bang. Partnering with ASC/McLaren, Buick built the monster of all Grand Nationals in the 1987 Buick GNX.
You need an attentive eye to tell a Buick GNX from a garden variety Grand National. The GNX came with composite fender flares and front fender vents that allowed hot air to escape the engine compartment. Sixteen-inch basket-weave black wheels with polished lips were another styling cue, along with GNX badges in the grille, wheel center caps, and on the trunk lid. Inside, Stewart Warner analog gauges were used for oil pressure, coolant temp, and boost level, along with a dash number plaque indicating which of the limited run of 547 GNXs your car was.
Under the hood, the Buick GNX had freer flowing heads, improved engine management, an upgraded turbo, and less restrictive exhaust than its Grand National stablemate. The Buick GNX also benefitted from a transmission oil cooler, stiffer body, improved rear suspension design, stiffer springs and stabilizer bars. Output was grossly underrated at 276 horsepower and 360 pound-feet of torque, as was evidenced by a smoking 4.6-second zero-to-60 mile per hour time, and a low 13-second quarter mile time. The straight-line performance of the GNX was good enough to embarrass that year’s Chevy Corvette.
Our feature 1987 Buick GNX is #284 of the 547 built. It has covered just 766 miles from new. It retains its original gloss black paint over two-tone black and gray cloth interior. It is equipped with the original turbocharged 3.8-liter V6, Turbo Hydramatic 200-4R four-speed automatic transmission, limited-slip differential, air conditioning, cruise control, power driver seat, power windows, power locks, and Delco AM/FM/Cassette stereo.
This remarkably low-mileage Buick GNX is now for sale on Bring a Trailer. The auction will conclude Tuesday, December 12th, with the current bid at $185,000.
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Comments
That is crazy money.
It has to be at record price already.
In 2022 at $308,000 Barrett-Jackson:
https://www.barrett-jackson.com/Events/Event/Details/1987-BUICK-GRAND-NATIONAL-GNX-253380
They are only going up up up.
Barrett-Jackson Scottsdale 2022 LOT #1422.1 A GNX sold for $308,000. And they are only going up up up!
LOL I missed watching most of ’22 and I was actually vacationing in the valley at the time, must of had too much sun.
This one was Adam Levine’s. He owned it for 2 years.
BJ Scottsdale 2022 LOT 1425.1 A 2nd GNX sold for $291,500 !
I’m a car guy. I love Buick’s cars. And yet, I’ve never grown to appreciate the GN’s or GNX’s. They do look nice, but just not for me. But I have a nephew back in the mid-west who has wanted one for years and every time he finds one that seems to be in his price, he messes around and makes them stupid offers and they sell out from him. He just can’t seem to grasp that these won’t be dropping in price. Had he purchased one from about 5 years ago that I told him to buy, it would have gone up more than 10 grand by now.
A car like that transcended being transportation, or even a roadable toy. It is now investment art; no point in registering it. Just winch it into a trailer, store it away or display it for a few years and sell it when the value moves far enough. May as well be buying a Seurat.
Mecum at Kissimmee in 2017 – LOT F155 the last GNX ever made; #547 sold for $242,000 ! (at Mecum.com)
That was 3 TIMES the average selling price for a GNX. What is #547 worth now? About $750,000 to $1 Million.
Per the magazine articles, it was the fastest production sedan in the world in 1987, a title that can never be taken away.
GNX Guy, Buick (along with ASC) designed/built/sold the absolute most beautiful/practical muscle car of all time when they marketed the 1987 GNX. Nothing has even come close since. But, Buick REALLY let us down when they teased us with the Avista a while back. That car would have been a worthy successor to the GNX. Just my thoughts …
Beck, I agree, the Avista would have been nice even if it was a limited production run.
Buick unveiled it in January 2016 at the auto show, as a teaser of course.
Ironically, GM filed for a trademark extension for the GN and GNX in May 2014.
They had something in mind, then apparently scrapped it.
Buick Regals are big in China and are still being manufactured to this day. Maybe GM will bring it back in the U.S. someday. Anybody’s guess.