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All show and no go... many 80s muscle cars were weak sauce

Posted on 6/8/25 at 7:20 am
Posted by udtiger
Over your left shoulder
Member since Nov 2006
108488 posts
Posted on 6/8/25 at 7:20 am


Hell, there are non-turbo 4 bangers that would beat most of these vehicles today (my old 4 cylinder 2.5L Accord pumped out 195 HP).
Posted by LSUDVM1999
North Carolina
Member since Aug 2010
2309 posts
Posted on 6/8/25 at 7:23 am to
That's where Buick's Grand National and GNX came in.
Posted by DownshiftAndFloorIt
Here
Member since Jan 2011
69368 posts
Posted on 6/8/25 at 7:26 am to
No better way to rile up a bunch of crusty old bastards at work than to tell them that old muscle cars were pieces of shite.
Posted by prplhze2000
Parts Unknown
Member since Jan 2007
55049 posts
Posted on 6/8/25 at 7:28 am to
Those weren't muscle cars.

Posted by highcotton2
Alabama
Member since Feb 2010
10101 posts
Posted on 6/8/25 at 7:30 am to
quote:

That's where Buick's Grand National and GNX came in


The regular Buick Regal Grand National wasn’t even fast in today’s standards.
Posted by tigerinthebueche
Member since Oct 2010
37069 posts
Posted on 6/8/25 at 7:31 am to
All I know is my friends ‘87 Mustang 5.0 was fast. And he drove it that way. Same with my other friend’s RX-7.

Can’t tell you shite about the engine specs, but both vehicles hauled arse.
Posted by auggie
Opelika, Alabama
Member since Aug 2013
29911 posts
Posted on 6/8/25 at 7:33 am to
Yeah.,,they had to figure it out
Posted by Macfly
BR & DS
Member since Jan 2016
9568 posts
Posted on 6/8/25 at 7:34 am to
It wasn't a good time in general with only GNXs or the early 90's Syclone outrunning their same era Vettes and Ferrari's.
Posted by The Torch
DFW The Dub
Member since Aug 2014
23967 posts
Posted on 6/8/25 at 7:37 am to
A friend of mines uncle had a GTO he let us drive some.

That sucker would haul arse and pin you back in the seat, you could scratch the tires shifting from 2nd to 3rd at 40 mph
Posted by Kcrad
Diamondhead
Member since Nov 2010
62038 posts
Posted on 6/8/25 at 7:38 am to
quote:

many 80s muscle cars were weak sauce
1972 was the end of the muscle car era.
Posted by GeauxTigers0107
South Louisiana
Member since Oct 2009
10354 posts
Posted on 6/8/25 at 7:41 am to
quote:

many 80s muscle cars were weak sauce


First off, muscle cars ended in the early 70's. I have legit never heard of "80's muscle cars". Furthermore, I have never heard of anyone hyping up the "muscle cars" of the 80's as being these tire shredding quarter mile beasts in the first place.

I read the thread title and my first thought is well duh...no shite...who is saying otherwise?
Posted by jake wade
North LA
Member since Oct 2007
2165 posts
Posted on 6/8/25 at 7:44 am to
True but, I think the mid to late 70’s were worse.
Posted by Scruffy
Kansas City
Member since Jul 2011
75173 posts
Posted on 6/8/25 at 7:44 am to
Were any of those cars even considered muscle cars?
Posted by Lonnie Utah
Utah!
Member since Jul 2012
29327 posts
Posted on 6/8/25 at 7:45 am to
quote:

there are non-turbo 4 bangers that would beat most of these vehicles today (my old 4 cylinder 2.5L Accord pumped out 195 HP)


Right. Because in the 80s, car designers did not have 25+ years of CAD and computer modeling to help them squeeze every single pony out of an engine. In the 1980s most engines were still under mechanical and not electronic control. ECUs weren't really a thing yet.

But the real thing that killed the 80s muscle car scene was the CAFE standards hit with a vengeance. In 1980 the CAFE standard for cars was 20 mpg. In 1985 it was 27.5 mgp. Manufacturers had to downtune their engines to meet that number.

Eta: I also forgot to add that until 1987, the national speed limit was 55 mph.

This post was edited on 6/8/25 at 8:20 am
Posted by Bamafig
Member since Nov 2018
4787 posts
Posted on 6/8/25 at 7:46 am to
It’s all relative. The government had their boot on the neck of auto makers at the time. Was the Camaro a world beater, no, but it was faster than a Ford Escort. Soccer moms now have four door Camry’s with more HP than 80’s corvettes.
Posted by lsufan1971
Zachary
Member since Nov 2003
22026 posts
Posted on 6/8/25 at 7:54 am to
quote:

A friend of mines uncle had a GTO he let us drive some.


389 tri power was a badass with 380 HP.
Posted by blueboy
Member since Apr 2006
60731 posts
Posted on 6/8/25 at 8:09 am to
quote:

The regular Buick Regal Grand National wasn’t even fast in today’s standards.

The GN got from 0-60 in under 5 seconds. That's still pretty fast by today's standards.

And they were made 40 years ago. The other 'muscle cars' were made 60 years ago. A lot of the performance and other innovations employed by modern car makers came from these old performance cars.
Posted by RogerTheShrubber
Juneau, AK
Member since Jan 2009
283533 posts
Posted on 6/8/25 at 8:12 am to
quote:


No better way to rile up a bunch of crusty old bastards at work than to tell them that old muscle cars were pieces of shite.


They werent.

Driving was a very different experience than todays current turbos.

While not as fast, they were much more fun to drive.

Posted by Galactic Inquisitor
An Incredibly Distant Star
Member since Dec 2013
17746 posts
Posted on 6/8/25 at 8:14 am to
That Firebird was the biggest piece of bullshite in automotive history.
Posted by LanierSpots
Sarasota, Florida
Member since Sep 2010
66772 posts
Posted on 6/8/25 at 8:15 am to
quote:

A friend of mines uncle had a GTO he let us drive some.

That sucker would haul arse and pin you back in the seat, you could scratch the tires shifting from 2nd to 3rd at 40 mph



When I grew up, my friends moms grocery getter was a very plain stock chevy nova. Not sure the year. It was ugly yellow with ugly arse plain rims and stock tires.

I think it had a 350 or maybe a big block but that thing was absolutely spin the tires off.

Ugly and plain. Imagine this car in ugly yellow


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