0:02 everything you love about turbocharged
0:05 American cars you owe to the grand
0:32 this is 1986 Buick Grand National yes
0:35 there were other turbo American cars
0:38 existing at the same time or predating
0:41 the Grand National /t type 1984 1985
0:49 dodge omni glhs although that was a
0:52 Mitsubishi engine mid 60s Corvair Corsa
0:56 84 Mustang SVO and the 62 O's will build
0:58 Cutlass Jetfire but all of these cars
1:01 with the exception of the SVO were
1:03 apologetic dabbles are built by
1:06 consultants operating outside the parent
1:08 company's sphere of responsibility so
1:12 the CEO could Pontius pilot his hands if
1:14 anything went wrong none of those cars
1:16 made turbos manly enough for the
1:19 legendary American male to whom the
1:21 first day of buck is the greatest day of
1:24 the year but the Grand National did
1:27 because it speaks to the one thing
1:30 Americans hold in higher regard than
1:34 food or guns or the Bible or v8 sore
1:38 Twitter's there any other trite gag the
1:40 BBC slaps down when talking about what
1:43 Americans like you know what we like we
1:46 like a good story we want a good story
1:50 not just a good story we want a tall
1:55 tale a fable something mythic we like
2:00 terrific stories legends a mythic legend
2:04 and the Buick Grand National is a legend
2:07 because it existed during the mid 80s a
2:11 low point for American pride Marvin Gaye
2:15 died tragically mash ended George Lucas
2:18 turned star wars into a screwball comedy
2:20 an o-ring blows up one of our space
2:23 shuttles iran-contra hits the fan and
2:25 Michael Jackson perfected a dance move that
2:26 that
2:30 every wedding reception but the Buick
2:33 Grand National Oh it captured that late
2:37 sixties early seventies Rough Trade no
2:40 condom Ozark Bone fest from a bass
2:44 baritone well digger with 80-grit pubes
2:47 cousin think of it how well-known is the
2:49 Grand National outside of the United States
2:49 States
2:52 hey Australia yeah yeah I'm talking to
2:55 you this is our equivalent of your xB
2:59 Falcon hey Britain Sutton this is
3:02 similar in spirit to your Vincent hey-oh
3:05 Japan Nihon the chase saga Artemis the
3:07 Buick Grand National isn't a standalone
3:10 car it's the third trim level of the
3:13 Buick Regal and the Buick Regal is a GM
3:15 G body and in the 80s that meant the
3:18 Pontiac Grand Prix Pontiac Bonneville
3:20 Chevrolet Monte Carlo Chevrolet El
3:23 Camino and Buick Regal were all the same
3:26 ish car this is a Buick Regal now the
3:28 Buick Regal had a sports level trim
3:30 running gear and engine package called
3:33 the T type the T type had a 3.8 liter
3:37 turbo v6 which dates back to 1978 when
3:39 it made back then a hundred and
3:41 seventy-five horsepower there abouts I
3:43 know it made more when it got into the
3:45 GN and the T type had an extra trim
3:46 package option for itself
3:48 and that's what the Grand National is
3:50 black everything different wheels and
3:52 badging and the turbo six emblem here
3:55 and there but all the Grand National is
3:58 is an appearance package for the Buick
4:01 Regal t-type but it's the correct way to
4:04 do an appearance package because no one
4:07 really wants the T type people who have
4:10 T types that will give you laundry
4:12 baskets full of reasons why they prefer
4:15 the T type over the GN but they're
4:17 they're trying to convince themselves
4:19 more than they're trying to convince you
4:21 and if they could get a hold of enough
4:24 General Motors super gloss black paint
4:26 and trim pieces they'd murder out their
4:28 t type and go around telling everybody
4:30 at cruise night that it's a real Grand
4:33 National and many do the Buick Grand
4:35 National is one of the most faked and
4:39 cloned American cars all you need is an 80
4:39 80
4:41 buick regal and black paint and some
4:44 fake jobs are very good now here's how
4:47 you can tell if a Grand National is real
4:49 first thing easiest thing pop the trunk
4:51 and look at the codes you are looking
4:54 for code we2 that is the Grand National
4:56 appearance package code from General
4:59 Motors it's got to say we2 back there
5:01 look in the driver's window and have a
5:03 look at the steering wheel now look at
5:06 the horn button on a real Grand National
5:09 the horn button will be black with the
5:12 Buick triple shield logo represented in
5:16 shadow the T types will have a big red T
5:18 however this isn't a total giveaway
5:20 because Buick never gave out the
5:22 replacement Grand National horn buttons
5:25 even back in the day if you requested a
5:27 replacement horn button from General
5:29 Motors you would get the red T even if
5:30 you told them I have a Grand National
5:33 son now look at the whole center console
5:35 and all the trim pieces on a real Grand
5:39 National all of them will only have gray
5:42 uppers and black lowers the upper part
5:43 will be gray the lower part will be
5:45 black and the same goes for the door
5:48 trim because the T type minty Reed if ur
5:50 n't colors the Grand National was only
5:51 gray and black walk around to the front
5:54 of the car no Grand National ever had
5:56 chrome bumpers now look at the grille
5:59 all grilles from 1986 and back were
6:02 chrome only the 1987 Buick Grand
6:05 National had a blacked out grille so if
6:08 you have someone and they have an 87 and
6:10 it has a chrome grille something's up or
6:12 or if they have a different year an
6:14 earlier year and the grilles all blocked
6:16 out mmmmmm that's suspicious too this
6:18 has nothing to do with authenticity but
6:20 watch out for bumper fillers this is
6:22 just a bit of bodywork between the
6:24 bumper and the headlights those things
6:26 crack and rot out really quick now the
6:29 name Grand National starts in 1982 two
6:32 years before the black GN debuted in 84
6:34 so the Grand National began before it
6:38 began the 1982 proto Grand Nationals
6:40 were just some self congratulated
6:43 lipstick job on the 82 regal for winning
6:46 a round round race only 215 were made in
6:51 1982 and of those 215 only 35 had turbochargers
6:52 turbochargers
6:53 and they weren't even all black these
6:56 proto jeans were nothing but gift bags
6:59 for shipyard magnates who would later
7:02 regifter their cone titted West Virginia
7:06 wives flown here you go Mary Mary Ann
7:10 Mary here's a new car for you it's an
7:13 exclusive car remember you signed a
7:17 prenup then in 1983 no Grand Nationals
7:20 1984 the Grand National returns although
7:22 a good number of people consider this
7:25 and I'm one of them that 1984 was the
7:27 true start of the Grand National because
7:29 it was all black and they were all
7:32 turbos even though the 84 is were hot
7:34 Air's no inner cooler inner cooler
7:38 started in 1985 and in 1984 American
7:41 needed the Grand National it fit
7:43 perfectly into the mid 80s
7:46 because 1984 was a turning point for our
7:49 economy but not for all citizens that's
7:51 the thing you must understand the 80s
7:54 the late 80s were prosperous and cocaine
7:57 cowboys and all that glitter yes yes
8:00 there was money but the mid 80s was also
8:02 the beginnings of the great split
8:03 between the rich and the poor I'm
8:06 quoting John Green from crash course in
8:08 1981 President Reagan persuaded Congress
8:12 to reduce the top tax rates from 70
8:15 percent down to 50 percent and in 1986
8:18 Congress further lowered the same top
8:20 income tax rate from that 50 percent all
8:23 the way down to 28% this was called the
8:26 tax reform Act but you know it better as
8:28 reaganomics and trickle-down economics
8:31 who wealth was coming but not for
8:34 everyone and the culture expressed this
8:36 frustration through many mediums aimed
8:39 at perceived oligarchy which didn't give
8:42 a damn about you look at music Billy
8:45 Joel's Allentown Bad Brains Reagan youth
8:46 I mean you're gonna have a whole thing
8:48 about eighties punk rock in itself
8:51 movies The Breakfast Club The Terminator comics
8:52 comics
8:54 Frank Miller's Batman Alan Moore's
8:57 Watchmen and cars the Grand National
8:59 think about it this is General Motors
9:02 the biggest Americanist
9:04 heartbeat of America
9:07 ten chevy truck International race of Champions
9:08 Champions
9:11 General Motors the automotive equivalent
9:13 of the ten commandments creating a
9:18 shadowy antihero a real-life Dark Knight
9:21 an Avenger for the disenfranchised a
9:24 twisted hero a foreboding Raven for
9:27 channeling our national feeling of grand
9:31 and justice a sinister rolling reminder
9:36 to any passing oligarch death claims all
9:41 yeah you want to know the truth this is
9:55 [Music]
9:59 fluttering get closer gladly
10:02 that that's the twist that's the
10:04 brilliance of the Grand National yeah
10:07 the Grand National has an aura around it
10:10 that it's a horrible chunk of disease
10:13 and rampage but when you drive one and
10:16 please please do you'll discover that
10:19 the GN is a car that explodes with joy
10:22 and happiness it's like seeing a punk
10:24 rock or all dressed in black leather and
10:25 you think he's bad news and then you
10:27 talk to him and you find out he just
10:30 exudes happiness and serotonin ahh
10:33 there's no point to talk numbers go
10:35 watch any other the hundred or so Grand
10:37 National videos and mini docs and black
10:39 hair if you want to listen to someone
10:40 read an instruction manual to you
10:43 besides the GM 3.8 liter turbo six is
10:45 easier tuned than a trombone and this
10:48 particular GN is no exception this Grand
10:51 National has a PT 54 turbo a rebuilt
10:54 engine ARP Hardware high pressure fuel
10:56 pump a lock-up torque converter that
11:00 engages at 3,000 rpm forged pistons a
11:02 double roller timing chain and an
11:04 enlarged intercooler the Grand National
11:06 only came in automatic like a girlfriend
11:16 man yo man you're missing the point ok
11:18 number one every great design needs a
11:20 character flaw in a Metal Gear Rex kind
11:22 of way and to the smooth auto
11:24 transmission in the Grand National means
11:26 that you've never drop off boost right
11:28 people there are people who convert
11:30 these things to manual and then find out
11:32 they're running a half second slower in
11:33 the quarter-mile the automatic
11:35 transmission is part of the Grand
11:37 Nationals happiness it wants you to
11:39 enjoy it it's a puppy that's running
11:42 around to everybody at the park sniffing
11:43 everybody come play with me play with me
11:45 play with me he wants everybody to have
11:48 a turn a grand national wants everybody
11:50 to drive it so it's not gonna scare away
11:52 anybody with a manual transmission he's
11:53 not comfortable with those things no you
11:55 open your door you get in the seats go
11:57 Boing Boing Boing they're really heavily
12:00 sprung stock Buick seats you get iminium
12:03 and you bounce and it wears its turbo
12:05 right up front or everybody can see it
12:07 it's not hiding it down and similar like
12:08 a some of the steers like now I'm a
12:12 turbocharged car here it is look at it
12:12 the grand
12:15 Nacional isn't death its life that just
12:18 miss masquerading is death meet your
12:20 here this is one of the heroes that you
12:22 can meet the Grand National will not
12:24 disappoint yeah yeah don't don't don't
12:26 hype up a Grand National it'll only let
12:33 you down meanwhile turbo lag hell yeah
12:35 lots of it that's the point you get in
12:37 and you you this the the anticipation of
12:39 that you push your foot on the floor one
12:42 two and then it comes it comes in a
12:46 gigantic shove I mean it still is ATGM
12:48 you get inside stuffs rattling and
12:50 banging you know Josh is moving around
12:53 feels like I'm gonna break this shifter
12:55 off it's so tinny and thin coming up
12:57 from here now the previous owner of this
13:00 GN had gay these adding I know these
13:02 gauges are right here but their period
13:04 gauges I mean this is what would exist
13:07 on a Grand National in 1986 if someone
13:08 would have done up these are from the
13:10 80s that oil gauge there that's that's
13:12 not electronic there's an oil line
13:14 coming right through the dash up to that
13:17 gauge I'm not a fan of a pillar pods but
13:19 at least this one has an old-school
13:21 knock sensor and it's period and down
13:23 here there's a period-correct
13:26 quarter-mile timer this digital dash is
13:28 odd that was an option for the Grand
13:31 National not many people got it but when
13:33 you drive it all you want to do is keep
13:35 stabbing away at the throttle so you can
13:37 feel the pressure build and then then
13:45 it's intoxicating how much fun this is
13:47 who are those people who said this is an
13:49 old car that no one cares about this is
13:52 joy in its finest form a Grand National
13:55 is everything right and good and a
13:57 little bit off with the world it's the
14:00 bitter taste of a smokers nicotine kiss
14:03 the Grand National loosens the pickle
14:05 jar of human goodness it takes you back
14:08 to a past that's irretrievably but
14:11 internally present just on the edges of
14:13 your consciousness like all good things
14:16 this childhood innocence can be called
14:19 up on a drunken night because sometimes
14:20 you start thinking about where you come
14:23 from and sometimes you call your mom
14:24 just to hear her voice
14:26 and when she asks why you called you
14:28 just say I have a missed call from you
14:30 but maybe it's old my phone doesn't say
14:33 you both know it's a bull but you let it
14:35 go because you just couldn't bring
14:37 yourself to say I just need to hear your
14:42 voice mom through the windows of a Grand
14:44 National you see it all all the great
14:46 possibilities that are welcome in this
14:47 country in the world
14:50 past and present as if it just happened
14:52 yesterday drive a Grand National and
14:54 you're right back there playing Turtles
14:56 and time and drinking juicy juice out of
14:58 a triangular-shaped hole you made with a
15:01 can opener in a Shawshank way the Buick
15:03 Grand National is a good thing maybe the
15:05 greatest of things the Buick Grand
15:09 National is a tangible example when all
15:12 pretenses worries and fears and doubts
15:15 are shaken off and we unleash the grand
15:33 Oh wonder [Music]
15:56 you're still here the grand national
16:00 story doesn't end with this I'm going to
16:02 be straightforward is there anybody out
16:05 there who will loan us a GNX because if
16:09 the Grand National was an album the GNX
