1988 Buick Lesabre T-type

Welcome to my page! This page is to show my 1988 Buick Lesabre T-type. This relatively rare car (1 of 6426) sports many features unique to the T-type. Special interior, wheels, spoilers, suspension, among others separate this car from the regular Lesabre - and the rest of the pack!

Most who are familiar with this era of Buicks know that cars like this came with the 165 horsepower 3800 V6. This one was no different, however...

When my supercharged '95 Riviera succumb to body rot, I kept the engine, transmission, and PCM and swapped them into my T-type! I'm not the first to do it, but one of the only to do it with the Series I L67 engine. Most swap in the Series II because of it's easier ability to modifiy for power.

The swap was certainly a project. I took apart the entire front end of the car, dropped the entire subframe with the old engine and trans, and swapped the new engine and trans right onto the frame. I needed new mounts, axles, and wheel hubs but everything was either a GM part or direct replacement. No fabrication required.

Wiring was the main issue with this project. I had to fool the Riviera's computer into thinking it was still a Riviera. After a month of pouring over my wiring diagrams and tinkering with the car, I've got a stock looking system with all systems working normally, with no modifications. I even have the stock cruise control, and full OBD data connectivity.

To the untrained eye (ignoring the red paint as well) one would never know this engine wasn't supposed to be in here. The car was a blast to drive originally, but now it's even more exciting! The sound of the supercharger is addicting - GM should have built this car this way. I'm certainly proud to have accomplished this project (in only 4 months, working weekends on it) and I hope to have the car for a long time to come.

Now for some regular pictures, ie., a tour of the car. I've done some minor appearance modifications to the car, besides the engine. I've added hood louvers, which are reproduction GNX fender vents placed on the hood. They REALLY help to alleviate the engine compartment of heat. I've added a 'T-type' script emblem to the grille, and modified the exhaust.

When I bought the car back in 2006, the interior was cloth. I changed it over to a set of leather seats I had from my original '89 T-type (transmission died, sold 2006). I believe that my interior is one of the better ones out there, as GM was not known for their interior materials quality during the 80's...

Since the engine swap, I've added a vacuum/boost gauge to keep an eye on the engine a bit more, and a few years back, changed the shifter handle from a vertical grip to a horizontal grip from a '90's Chevy Eurosport.

Even at 121,000 miles on the clock, the car looks fantastic, having been painted once and the wheels refinished by your truly. It's a garage queen - it is in the garage every night, without argument. It DOES get driven though. I move it about 3,000 miles every year, mostly to work and back, with a trip or two during the summer.

These next few pictures are about 4 years old, but besides the hood louvers and L67 engine, are fairly accurate.

One of my favorite recent pictures. Sorry, these aren't in any particular order.