There’s no denying the appeal of the Buick GNX. The recipe was simple; take one already impressive 1987 Grand National, make some body tweaks, upgrade the wheels, tires, suspension and gauge cluster, weld in some additional chassis stiffening, and pump up the performance by close to an advertised 31 hp and 45 pound-foot of twist to the rear tires, and you had a low-thirteen second G-body on your hands.
You have to remember back in 1987, a Mustang GT, IROC-Z Camaro, and even the Trans Am GTA were typically pulling down 1/4-mile times in the mid-15s. While a stripped out 5.0 Mustang LX 5-speed notchback, Corvette, or a Formula 350 would dip into the low to mid 14s, a 13-second V6 Buick Regal was like something straight out of a science fiction movie. Which probably part of the reason why some refer to the all-black Buick as “Darth Vadar’s car.”
With only 547 of these retro badasses produced for the one single model year, all of which being individually numbered, both their collectibility and rarity were assured form day one. Now, some 27 years later, GNXs typically fetch six-figure sums for all-original low-mileage examples in perfect condition.
When we say low mileage, we mean in the facility of 10,000-15,000. When we heard of GNX #085 popping up with less than 50 miles on the ticker, with all of the dealership interior plastic still in place heading to Mecum Auction on October 9th, our curiosity was piqued. Learn more about this particular example by clicking here.
Rick Seitz is the owner and founder of GMEFI Magazine, and has a true love and passion for all vehicles. When he isn’t tuning, testing, or competing with the brand’s current crop of project vehicles, he’s busy tinkering and planning the next modifications for his own cars.
