After the long, dark years of Mustang IIs, wheezy Corvettes, performance packages on the Chevy Citation, and lardy 301c.i.d smog motor Trans Ams that couldn't pull a greased string out of a cat's ass, the mid-1980s saw a renaissance of Detroit performance.
The C4 'Vette was strong. Tuned-port IROCs and H.O. Mustangs were incredible bang for the buck. The Chrysler guys were bolting intercooled turbos on everything in the company lineup. And Buick... once-stodgy Buick ...was showing its taillights to most everybody in the mid-'80s with a mid-size two-door stuffed full of turbocharged 3.8L V-6 cranking out *mumblesomethingbutlessthanaCorvettehonest* horsepower.
Alas, the two-door G-body on which the Regal was based made the go-aways after the '87 model year. But surely there was still hope, right? Because Buick wouldn't let all that performance experience go to waste, yeah? And there were rumors of a two-seater car coming...
Double alas, the Reatta turned out to be a plush-bottomed front-wheel-drive boulevardier plagued by QC issues and with dull-as-dishwater driving characteristics. And they wanted a mint for the things, too. They sank without a ripple after three model years; not even the last minute introduction of a convertible model like the one in the picture could help. I guess everybody should have been suspicious of a GM car allegedly built at a "craft center".
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