Buick Grand National Documentary 'Black Air' Hits Shelves
Ponderous in appearance, the Buick Grand National was more than a black sheep and a sleeper. It was, and likely still is, one of the most under-appreciated performance cars ever built.
As the antithesis of shallow-minded car buying, that’s a reality unlikely ever to change — at least to the degree it should. Be that as it may, a documentary of the car’s story, Black Air, went on sale today.
Buick started building the Grand National starting in 1982, but the turbocharged 3.8-liter V6 with 245 hp and 355 lb-ft of torque didn’t come out until 1987. At the time, it was faster than cars from Lamborghini, Ferrari and Porsche.
Needless to say, it turned a few heads.
Fast as it was, the car struggled with its identity. Ugly was an understatement, but just like the Scion FR-S, it was a performance bargain.
The clip below is a trailer for Black Air, which you can buy for $20 on DVD at gnmovie.com.
Luke is an energetic automotive journalist who spends his time covering industry news and crawling the internet for the latest breaking story. When he isn't in the office, Luke can be found obsessively browsing used car listings, drinking scotch at his favorite bar and dreaming of what to drive next, though the list grows a lot faster than his bank account. He's always on <A title="@lukevandezande on Twitter" href="http://twitter.com/lukevandezande">Twitter</A> looking for a good car conversation. Find Luke on <A title="@lukevandezande on Twitter" href="http://twitter.com/lukevandezande">Twitter</A> and <A title="Luke on Google+" href="http://plus.google.com/112531385961538774338?rel=author">Google+</A>.
More by Luke Vandezande
Comments
Join the conversation
it was a bit ahead of its time in terms of design trends too. it wasn't until a few years ago that the GNX's black wheels with polished lip look started to gain popularity (you see them on everything from civics to race porsches). the "blacked out" look also is gaining popularity again... the modern day cadillac is sort of what buick with their grand national was back in the day. old people drove stodgy caddys. as they did buicks (and still do?). but you don't mess with a sedan (or wagon, in the case of the CTS-V) that can keep up with a vette...!
Can someone please tell me where I can get a DVD copy of Black Air?