A pristine 1986 Pontiac Grand Am? Nicely, that’s not one thing you see on daily basis, particularly at a drag strip. Look nearer, and then you definately notice this isn’t any strange Grand Am. Turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder? 5-speed guide? Simply 6000 miles on the clock? And a cage and SCCA insignia? What’s this?
You’re taking a look at one in all three Grand Ams that GM pulled off the road for testing and improvement functions. Sure, the third-generation Grand Am had a 2.0 turbo, however it didn’t obtain that till 1987. This was one of many check mules. After improvement concluded, GM ordered all three destroyed. Nicely, that didn’t occur. One lived its life as a avenue automobile. One other became a drag automobile, with a special engine getting swapped in. After which there’s this Grand Am.
James Ward, a higher-up at Delco Moraine, a former division of GM, additionally used the automobile to check brake components, which Delco Moraine made. After that, he turned it right into a race automobile, competing in autocross and at his house observe of Mid-Ohio throughout the late Nineteen Eighties into the early Nineties. In 2014, James acquired the automobile titled, because it carried a VIN, and drove it round city sparingly. Regardless of residing in Tennessee, James’ grandson Derek grew up across the automobile. He spent his summers together with his grandparents in Ohio. “I bear in mind transferring the automobile round,” Derek recollects. “I pulled stickers off it a time or two. I’ve washed it since I used to be most likely in diapers.”
The Pontiac Gran Am again within the day. Photograph courtesy Derek Brock.
In 2019, Derek drove it from Ohio to Tennessee when the Grand Am had solely 3000 miles on it. “Went up there on a weekend and put a clutch in it that day, and I drove it house on that clutch as simple as attainable,” Derek remembers. “It was about 360 miles. That’s the primary journey that automobile had carried out–and that was 10% of its mileage. Didn’t get 300 miles till I had no clutch left.”
Certain, this Grand Am has no a/c for these scorching southern days nor a radio, however it does have energy home windows. However the true kryptonite for this Grand Am is its clutch. Derek cites its measurement as being the first situation. “It’s solely 8 inches–it’s so small,” he says. “It pushes 18 kilos of enhance. Because it boosts up, it spools and it spins the clutch.” Derek solved his clutch points by going to a stage 3 clutch from Spec, and Derek says he hasn’t had an issue in 2000 miles.
GM rated the two.0 LT3 used within the ’87 Grand Am SE for 165 horsepower and 175 lb.-ft. of torque. On the Knoxville Dragway’s 1/8 mile, Derek turned a greatest move of 10.4 seconds–nothing spectacular, however nonetheless respectable. Along with autocrossing the automobile, he’s taken it a number of occasions on the Tail of the Dragon.
“It’ll smoke the tires off in first and second–it’s hilarious for an old-timer automobile,” Derek says. “It’s on a minimize suspension, so it’s like a dart, it darts wherever you need it to go. It’s loopy how nicely it handles, however that’s what it was constructed to do, it was constructed for autocross. It’ll fly across the nook.”
Let’s face it: Posters of the Pontiac Grand Am didn’t adorn many partitions. Its efficiency, although, typically surprises folks, says Derek.
The Pontiac Grand Am right now, making a move at Knoxville Dragway.
“Once I was on the drag strip, my brother Jaron took [the Grand Am] down [the strip] twice,” Derek says. “I sat within the stands and any person was like, ‘Have a look at this man, drag racing a Grand Am. Are you able to consider that?’ The youthful era laughs till they hear the turbo spool up. Then they’re like, ‘Okay, there’s something there.’”
Each Drew and Jaron cherish their household heirloom, even when it attracts some side-eyed seems.
“It’s no matter you’re taking it as. Everyone has acquired their very own notion of what it’s,” Jaron says. “On the finish of the day, although, it’s simply cool, man.”
Derek Brock.
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One among my latest favourite automobile flavors?
Pre-production/prototypes that had been alleged to be crushed however weren’t.
J.A. Ackley mentioned:
It is at all times enjoyable to see what may have been.
Nothing there that wasn’t a was 
GM has at all times carried out some attention-grabbing prototypes/check mules. I beloved the Feretta too. A V8 FWD beast that was doomed from the beginning. Speak about torque steer…
I at all times favored that model of GA. I’ve little question that it smoked clutches, these issues are a bit heavier than the J automobiles that trans was meant for and the inventory enhance is barely like 7 or 8psi. The Isuzu trans that was bolted into the two.0 turbo automobiles was not very sturdy both – V6 J automobiles acquired a Getrag unit with a much bigger clutch/flywheel and rated for extra energy however the 2.0 OHC had a special bellhousing sample.
These Brazilian 2.0 OHC turbo motors had been ticking time bombs although. Head gaskets weren’t the best and when the turbos let go, it just about trashed the engine.
In reply to cobra17 :
The engine was Opel’s fault, no? Daewoo made a model up till pretty lately.
The turbo 2.0 would bolt right into a Pontiac Lemans, since that got here with a 1.6l model. The entire automobile was a Kadett which was kind of a German J-body, made in Korea. The low finish Daewoo-branded automobile (Lanos?) was kind of a Kadett and it used this engine household, too.
It wasn’t the pinnacle gaskets that failed, by recollection, as a lot because it was the cylinder heads cracking after about 60k miles like clockwork. Complete industries had been constructed round repairing them, or new castings.
Humorous this comes up now. Posting footage to the early days of autocross thread, I remembered a father-and-son displaying up at one in all our native occasions with some type of bushy Modified or Avenue Ready automobile. The factor broke midway by the day. Undeterred, they entered the dad’s bone-stock Grand Am simply to have one thing to drive and promptly shoved it across the course, entrance sidewalls contributing to traction as a lot because the tread. They had been very expert drivers and much from the slowest on track that day.
In any case these many years, I’ve forgotten whether or not that was the identical day the native VFD took their massive engine by the course and scored a clear run…
In reply to Pete. (l33t FS) :
The Lanos was very intently associated to, and used the identical 1.6 engine as the one you love Aveo.
In reply to Pete. (l33t FS) :
They had been utilized in Daewoos, similar engine household. I briefly had a 90 Sunbird GT with the two.0 turbo and needed to supply ARP rod cap bolts for it from abroad (for a Daewoo). There was a DOHC head swap from the Daewoo Nubira (IIRC) that may very well be carried out on these engines as nicely. I wish to say that Kia or Hyundai briefly used the identical structure, there was an enormous donor listing someplace on-line after I dug into it ages in the past.
The unique engines, non-turbo a minimum of, had been inbuilt Brazil and shipped stateside for the Sunbird so on the outdated J-body discussion board I used to be a member of, we simply known as them the Brazilian engines. My publicity with the two.0 OHC was temporary and tangential, I do know greater than anybody ought to in regards to the GM V6 J/L automobiles although as a result of I had an unnatural affinity for them in my youthful years.
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