Forty years ago, nobody dreamed that a BOSS 302 Ford Mustang might one day bring top-dollar at auction, or that opting to pay a few hundred bucks extra for a HEMI engine might quadruple the value of their Mopar. Ever since then, people have been looking for the next high value classic, buying up limited edition vehicles and hoarding them away, rarely driving them for fear of hurting their value.
So how long does it take for a rare, powerful muscle car to accrue value? Depends who you ask. The Lee Immke Buick-GMC dealership in Columbus, OH has this Buick Grand National GNX with just 676 miles on it. But is this rare Buick is worth $115,000?
The Buick GNX was the parting shot for the Grand National, Buick’s 80’s muscle car. In fact, after 1987 the Regal switched to a front-wheel drive platform, killing any performance potential. The GNX was a hell of a way to go out though, with 276 horsepower and a whooping 360 ft-lbs of torque from its turbocharged V6 engine.
Priced at $29,000, it was one of the most expensive vehicles in GM’s lineup at the time, and just over 500 of these cars were ever built, making them both rare and desirable. Because of their cost and rarity, many of these cars were kept off the road and in private collections. One of these rare GNX’s never even left the showroom floor. It’s hard to come by one of these cars these days, and even your standard Grand National is difficult to come by. Is it worth $115,000, even for this ultra-low mileage example, or does the Buick GNX require a few more years to ferment and accumulate more value?