Looking for some ideas from you guys..
My 1990 TGP has been my daily driver for the past 8 years. In that time I did a big turbo upgrade project, to a $1200 GT2871R turbo (475 HP-capable) with all custom braided AN hoses and fittings.
The car is now at 209K miles and rusting and clearcoat cracking. I really took care of it and maintained it well for the past 8 years but Wisconsin winters take their toll, as does the mileage.
I also:
- upgraded to 30# GMC Syclone fuel injectors, then...
- realtime laptop tuned the chip extensively myself (years & hundreds of changes) with Wideband O2 sensor and Moates Ostrich emulator for maximum safe power at 14 PSI boost on 93 pump gas (350 HP)
- JeffM Crossover pipe
- installed LS1 valve springs
- had the 4T60 professionally rebuilt by Roadmaster Transmission in Chicago to the best parts available around 130,000 miles
(http://powertuneplus.com/tgp/images/tgp_underhood640.jpg)
(http://powertuneplus.com/tgp/images/tgp_sun1.jpg)
(http://powertuneplus.com/tgp/images/tgp_sun2.jpg)
(http://powertuneplus.com/tgp/images/tgp_sun3.jpg)
Since the transmission was rebuilt I've put on 80,000 miles and now it has 209,000 miles.
THE BAD:
Problem is I live in Wisconsin and drove it in winter so the underbody has a lot of rust & corrosion:
(http://powertuneplus.com/tgp/images/tgp_rustunder1.jpg)
Now fuel tank sprung a leak last month and when I put it on a lift, I saw the control arm mounts are also corroded and decided it would be best not to drive it anymore.
The headliner also is falling down because the sunroof had a small leak that I could not solve (even after much effort). Now the sunroof (which did still work) has been caulked shut.
The transmission is also due for a rebuild, it works fine but after 80,000 miles since last rebuild, it no longer can handle full power (350HP) WOT shifts. It is fine for daily driving and has an awesome shift kit installed from the builder.
So my question is, how do I sell this and get the most money out of it? I need to sell this and buy another daily driver, and I don't have a lot of time. I am not a mechanic either (although I did the turbo install all myself). So I am not looking to part it out and spend weeks disassembling it into little pieces and shipping tons of little packages out.
THE QUESTIONS
Do I sell it as is? Maybe to someone looking to transplant the powertrain to their own 60v6 project?
Do I try to sell the GT2871R + 30# injectors + chip as a separate combo for someone to basically bolt-on upgrade their TGP to a 350HP big turbo tune?
I have about ~$1700 into the:
- Garrett-rated dual ball bearing 475HP GT2871R Turbo
- Moates Ostrich chip emulator
- 30# GMC Syclone injectors
- custom braided AN hoses and fittings and adapters for oil + coolant
- stock downpipe modification to fit WBO2 sensor
- JeffM Crossover
If I do that, what do I do with the car? Is it worth reinstalling the stock turbo and stock injector? Remember I'm not a great mechanic so it takes a HUGE amount of time and effort for me to swap turbos. I'm not like you guys who can bang it out in 2 hours time.
With the car high mileage and rusted, am I looking at junking it? I hate to see a 1990 Turbo Grand Prix suffer that fate, especially when it seems like it still has a lot of good parts.
Josh, I hope this does not sound cruel, But I am interested in the Turbo w braid lines, might be interested in the Moates system as well. Give me a price for both with shipping to 33870 Central FL., UPS ground, perferrably. Thanks Jimmy,
It really is terrible to see a car rot out like that. Honestly, the chances of finding anybody who will spend the money to restore the car and fix the rust is highly unlikely. If the chassis is no longer safe, I say part the car to have it prolong the life of other TGPs on the forum. You can make a lot of money parting out a TGP, especially a 350 hp TGP.
how much do u want for the gt2871r turbo? I am very interested so the sooner you can reply the better. Thanks
How much did the crossover cost originally, in case ~$25 is seriously unreasonable? Not 100% set on getting this, but just so I can get an idea of how much one would cost.
Slow and painful death by winter salt. Sad to see.
EDIT: Let me give you all a better idea of what I believe the crossover is, because, after perusing the forums, I don't think it's what I think it is. The mechanic who helped me work on the car on Vet's day says that the crossover connects those black circular covers (at the top of the picture, bolted by 3 fasteners each, presumably the top of part of the suspension for the front wheels) with some sort of "thing" that adds another layer of geometry to the suspension setup. How wrong am I? :icon_redface:
Quote from: Fred931 on November 18, 2010, 04:19:15 PM
How wrong am I? :icon_redface:
A crossover = the pipe connecting the exhaust manifolds to the turbocharger.
Quote from: mfewtrail on November 18, 2010, 11:40:05 PM
A crossover = the pipe connecting the exhaust manifolds to the turbocharger.
Quite, then. :laugh:
This is a crossover: http://www.tgpforums.com/index.php?topic=5684.0 (http://www.tgpforums.com/index.php?topic=5684.0)
I think you meant a strut brace (4th picture): http://www.w-body.com/showthread.php/48216-Junkyard-Fun?p=953984&mode=linear&highlight=strut+brace#post953984 (http://www.w-body.com/showthread.php/48216-Junkyard-Fun?p=953984&mode=linear&highlight=strut+brace#post953984)
I'd suggest you look on the w-body forum
What would you want for it whole as is? What would you want if you sold all the turbo upgrades and chip and put the stock stuff back on so it would still be drivable? And where in wisconsin are you located?
Hey guys thanks for your replys, I have responded to several PMs I got about the car & turbo kit and I'm going to try and make a decision this week.
My preference is to sell the whole car complete with all the spare parts (everything to return it to stock turbo, stock injectors) to just 1 person to make this easier for me. But more people are interested in the turbo kit so we'll see what happens. I will review my PMs again and try to decide this week and update the thread.
To answer Dark Ride:
For the car as is + everything to return to stock turbo, I'd sell it all for $1700 and you'd have the option to do what you wanted with it. You could part it out or you could even drive it. but I'm concerned about the fuel leak (it just left a puddle on my driveway so I dont know where its actually leaking but judging from what I saw on the lift, at the top of the tank. It only seemed to leak when it was a full tank.).
I am looking to get $1000 for the turbo + the AN hoses/fittings + ostrich emulator + my custom tunes + injectors. I think this is a fair price for a complete package which took me a lot of time and effort to assemble from various sources and make it all work together.
If I did sell the big turbo kit and return the car to stock, I'd want $700 for the car.
I'm located North of Milwaukee.
Josh
Would you consider a trade? For the whole car?
How much for just the turbo?