Thread: I want to buy a Grand Prix- TURBO

New to the forum here, just recently came across the Grand Prix and I have been doing some research.

Im currently looking to replace my current car for something different. The sale of that car would more than cover the cost of the Grand Prix and mods(turbo). Upon doing some research I saw that getting a gtp Grand Prix and adding the car tuning turbo kit with inter cooler(currently on sale I believe making the inter cooler "free") will add quite an increase in horsepower.

Now for the questions.
1. Has anyone on here done this recently and or currently running the set up?
2. It seems that with this setup there are absolute musts regarding supporting mods- tranny seems to be most important, what else?
3. What gen? I've heard both good and bad things about the 97-03 then the next body style. Would one be better for the car tuning kit?
4. Platform? Should I look for cars under a certain mileage? Any other constraints?
5. Streetable? Reliability?


Im sure there are things I'm forgetting and hopefully can be guided in the right direction by all the incredible enthusiasts on this forum.

Thanks in advance

Thanks for the quick reply. I have already spent most of my browsing in the turbo section, I was hoping to get a more detailed suggestion pertaining to my situation. It seems a lot of people already have cars, most of the time with some modifications, and decide to go turbo. My plan is to buy a car specifically with a turbo kit in mind and install asap. Ideally this thread will help me as to what the best route is and what's the best car to pick so I can avoid any other unnecessary hassles.

Perhaps this thread should be moved to the turbo section? As I stated, however, this is also about acquiring the whole car as well so I thought it was best placed here.

Thanks again

Typically people use the l67 or l32 (GTP) engine for their turbo builds. Trans is a must.

because the car is an automatic it will be streetable. only way a grand prix would not be streetable was if you set it up to run an 8 second 1/4 mile.

Originally Posted by txslow6

Hope that helps...

Wow... Exactly what I was looking for.

Went to look at an '04 GTP this weekend from a dealer.....
Seller claims "absolutely no modifications"......on our test drive we took it to our local mechanic who confirmed that it had an aftermarket pully, headers/exhaust, a huge gauge pod sticking out of the A pillar, some other misc. stuff, and very possibly some tranny work. (ALSO SAID IT WAS 100% PAINTED AT SOME POINT AND THE CAR APPARENTLY SPENT SOME TIME IN PUERTO RICO) 85k miles he is asking $6999
Mechanic did not get significant time with the car, just looked at it in the parking lot. He said if we get any closer(as I planned to keep options open and look at a few more cars) to bring it back and he will put it on the lift.

Seemed to drive nice, pulled with some force and screamed when making boost. Never driven a fwd car that had the possibility to produce torque steer so not sure if this would be it, but when I made a right on red and hit the gas I noticed a bad vibration through the wheel almost resembling what I would imagine wheel hop to feel like. Not sure.

How does this sound as a platform? Should I jump at the idea that the dealer apparently "has no clue" it's so intensely modified? Or do I claim its way "too" modified and try to really cut the price significantly.



Now coming out of left field, I found an 08 GXP V8 for sale not to far from me with similar mileage for 9999$

Any experience with turbocharging the v8? Or would the v6 already built for forced induction be the better bet?

Do I consider it a plus that the v6 is already modded? Or should I not risk it with no receipts and get the work done myself.

Thanks again everyone!


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Originally Posted by tod1d

better off with the L26 (04+) or L36 (97-03) so you don't have to block off the supercharger that you won't be using

Seriously?

L32 has stronger rods and lower compression, then use a l26 upper and lower intake.

Originally Posted by Fivefingerdeathpunch

Not to argue but find me a situation where someone really showed that the L32 made it better.

Both the L67 and L32 will handle the power, they will both blow up in the same fashion. Melted piston, chipped piston, exploded piston. Havent heard of anyone breaking a rod in half from pure power or bending one. It's kinda like the LS blocks, the 5.3 and 6.0 are more sought after for piston design and displacement but the 4.8/5.3/6.0 will all bend rods at roughly the same power point of 600+.

A valid point, I was just using it to make a point. Either the the l67 or l32 Will work I was just saying most turbo guys are using the gtp block as the starting point for the turbo build. I'm using the l67 block with l32 rods.....does it matter.....probably not. The real problem is the supporting trans.