Ever get nostalgic for the good old days, when gas was (relatively) cheap and you didn’t need to get to the airport hours ahead of your flight to clear security? While life was (arguably) easier in the decades before the internet, email, tweeting and texting, options for performance cars pale by today’s standards.
In the mid to late 1980s, one of the fastest cars produced in America came from Buick, and it didn’t even have a V-8 stuffed under the hood. Instead, Buick’s Regal Grand National, murdered out before murdered out was cool, relied on a turbocharged V-6 to put out 245 horsepower and 355 pound-feet of torque. Those were big numbers back then, and the car’s quarter mile time of 14.6 seconds was quicker than a Camaro IROC-Z (15.1 seconds) and nearly on par with a Corvette (14.4 seconds).
Also, don’t forget that you can get discounted new car pricing with a free quote through qualified local dealer partners.
That’s not particularly impressive in light of today’s car choices, as even a V-6 Camaro will run a 14.3 second quarter mile. When you see Chris Walton test the (non-ABS) brakes, or muscle the baby-got-back Buick through the slalom, you begin to get a sense for how good we have things today.
We’d still love to have a mid-80s Buick Grand National parked in our garage, since it’s an important part of muscle car history. That said, we’re thankful for the performance cars of today, but eager to see how much they’ll improve over the next two decades.
Kurt Ernst has been passionate about automobiles and driving nearly his entire life. His early years were shaped working in the family service station, though his real passion was auto racing. After graduating from the University of Colorado, Kurt spent a year club racing with the Sports Car Club of America, before focusing on a business career in marketing and project management. Later, his passion for writing and the automotive hobby found him freelancing for a variety of automotive news sites, including Automotive Addicts and Motor Authority, where his work was syndicated and appeared in several national publications. Recognized as an expert in the automotive field, Kurt joined Hemmings Motor News as an Associate Editor in 2013, and in the years since has progressed to Editor, Hemmings Daily; Managing Editor for Hemmings Motor News, Hemmings Classic Car, Hemmings Muscle Machines, and the Hemmings Daily; and now, Managing Editor, Hemmings Auctions. Kurt was instrumental in organizing the Hemmings Motor News Concours d’Elegance from 2013-2019, and has served as a judge at this event and The Vintage Racing Stable Concours d’Elegance. A Skip Barber Racing School graduate and prolific writer, Ernst is also skilled in copyediting, project management, brand development, and public relations.
