Way, way back, last century in fact, the Buick GNX was a turbocharged 3.8-litre V6 coupe that took on and beat some of the big bore muscle cars of the time. In combination with its performance, a sinister all-black paint scheme and a grille reminiscent of the helmet worn by the Star Wars character, the GNX earned the nickname “Darth Vader’s Car”.
The blown 3.8-litre V6 produced 206 kW and 488 Nm of torque, which made the GNX quick, even by today’s standards. In 1987 a GNX would launch from 0 – 100 km/h in 5.7 seconds, clock a quarter-mile time of 13.5 seconds and reach a top speed of 200 km/h. Line-up a GNX against some of today’s latest hot-hatches like the Volkswagen Scirocco R and Ford Focus RS and the old dog would still teach the youngsters a few tricks.
Now, however, a report from Edmunds suggests General Motors (GM) are looking to revive the Grand National, the associated T-Type and legendary GNX. The new models will reportedly be built on GM’s rear-wheel-drive ‘Alpha’ platform, which was introduced with the 2013 Cadillac ATS and, although the original Grand National was born of the Buick Regal, the current Opel Insignia-based Regal will not be the donor platform.
The more modest Grand National and T-Type models are expected to be powered by GM’s new twin-turbocharged 3.6-litre V6 engine, with power output in the 260 – 300 kW range. The flagship GNX will likely be given some V8 muscle in the form of GM’s LT1 engine, which will be good for around 335 kW. It remains to be seen, however, how GM position the GNX with respect to the Corvette, which currently produces 320 kW in base spec.
GM’s North American boss Mark Reuss, is a previous GNX owner and his father, Lloyd Reuss, actually signed-off the original GNX when he was executive vice president of GM North America in the ’80s. Mr. Reuss also happened to be the boss of Holden between 2008 and 2009, which fuels speculation that a new Buick Grand National could also be the replacement for the ageing Holden Commodore.
So it seems there’s no reason for a lack on interest on the part of GM’s top brass, but all we can do now is hope something does come of these Buick stirrings. Even so, we’re unlikely to see anything take shape before the Detroit Auto Show in 2014.
