Solid Price: 1987 Buick Grand National – Sold?

The Buick Grand National is one of those models that has perpetually been listed at eye-watering prices. Yes, a few have always pulled big money at the Mecum and Barrett-Jackson, but seeing one priced for a fair number is always refreshing. This 1987 Buick Grand National was originally listed in August 2022 on Craigslist in Port St. Lucie, Florida, for $44,500, has low miles, and comes out of long-term two-family ownership. It remains nearly bone-stock and has just one repaint in its history file. The seller claims it has been “treated well” since new, and it certainly looks solid throughout. Comparing the asking price against the Classic.com model guide proves the seller is on the money price-wise, as the average sale price is just under $47,000.

So why has the Grand National always been so sought after? Well, it’s got more than a few good reasons working in its favor. For one thing, the performance out of the box was seriously refreshing after years of malaise-era doldrums. The C4 Corvette was still fairly depressing for anyone who lived through the glory days of the muscle car, and the early attempts at turbocharging didn’t inspire confidence that it was the way of the future. The Grand National turned all of those preconceived notions on their heads, demonstrating you could unlock untold performance with a turbocharger and also showcasing how not every performance car from the General had to look like a Corvette. The Grand National went through a few iterations using the Regal shape and name before becoming the GN, with the ultimate form factor being the outrageous GNX.

The Motorweek RetroReview YouTube Channel features this test drive of four of General Motors’ muscle cars offered for the 1987 model year:

The Grand National is one of those muscle cars that need some pedigree to drive the maximum sale price. That could be why this one is listed for reasonable money, as the seller doesn’t seem to have much in the way of a history file aside from noting it belonged to two families and has been looked after. The respray occurred just to make a good car even better and not because of any severe damage or flaws, and the underside and interior both speak to a car that has been loved. The seller confirms it is “…mechanically all original,” which is absolutely a detail you want to see with these cars. Given how easy it was to unlock more power by adding bigger turbochargers or intercoolers, it was sorely tempting to mess with the stock configuration, making an unmolested Grand National a serious catch.

Here’s the seller’s description:

“1987 Buick Grand National
Clean Carfax
2 owners same family
Unmolested
67k real miles
mechanically all original
All original interior is in excellent shape
1 Re Paint less than a year ago to freshen up the car’s exterior. The body was very nice to begin with
If you know these cars, you know the paint jobs from the factory were never great
Check out underneath in the pics the car was always well maintained and treated well thorough out its life.”

Well-priced classic: how long do you think this Grand National will remain for sale given its fair asking price?