Thread: Which Grand Prix to buy?

Originally Posted by porshuh

Hello all,

I'm in the market for a grand prix. I hope to end up with a reliable, fun car that will eventually get to be mighty quick.

My questions is which is the best (by best, I mean easiest/cheapest/most reliable) car to upgrade?

Series II 99-03 GTP
Series III 04-05 GTP (is the CompG package worth it?)
06-07 L32 Grand Prix GT (SC)

As far as what looks good to me, I like the newer interior (04 and newer). But of course I look at the price differences between an 05 and an 99-03 and well, I could get the older car and do the FULL upgrade (full exhaust, intake, etc etc) and still come up cheaper.

Should I be worried about a high mileage car, or do these cars really last forever?

If I go to look at and test drive one of the above listed cars, what things should I check for to make sure it's a solid car?

Thanks in advance for the advice!

Imo the 04 comp G is worth it you get better gearing (I think its 3.29's) <-don't quote me on that though, other GTP's have 2.93's. The series III's s/c are also a little faster than the series II s/c due to better flow through the supercharger and abradable epoxy coating designed to wear into itself. There are GTP's and GT's out there with over 180k on them, my GT has 125,xxx, and every now and then i give it a few runs, still on (stock motor and trans). Choosing one would better be decided if you know how far you really want to take the build. IMO If you want a fun daily and get into the low 14's-mid 13's with minimal mods id say get a comp G. If you want to take the build further id say get an older GT (you would need much modding). Good things to look for are:

-pop the cover off and check for LIM leaks; these cars are known for LIM leaks.
-check the way it shifts into gears
-check for odd noises comming from the supercharger snout

those are some things that come into mind, im sure someone will add to it. Good Luck!

Moved to the correct area.

Originally Posted by porshuh

thanks for the move, and thanks for the info, 99! Now I get to sound like even more of a newbie...what is a LIM leak?

lol its all good, LIM- lower intake manifold (what the supercharger sits on) from the factory (not sure on newer gen GP's) they have these garbage gaskets which tend to fail (leak fluids) on another note look for leaks around the valve covers as well.

Originally Posted by porshuh

cool. I'll look out for those leaks.

And I know there are a million and a half threads on the subject (I've read a lot of them)...but it sounds like if I go with headers/downpipe (zzp has a package for about $700), CAI, chip, and 3.5 or maybe 3.4" pulley, and keep a close eye on KR, I might have a car that will touch into the 13's in the 1/4...

Imo you would need- 104's (spark plugs), 180* t-stat(with a 160* your car would never warm up when its cold), A good set of headers such as zzp's, (wizard) CAI, (overkill) pcm (or if you feel up to it hp tuners and tune it yourself), and that 3.5 or 3.4 pulley. i think with a good launch and traction you could get into those high-mid 13's all day granted that the car you get is an 04 comp g.

97-03 would be ideal. IMO... the newer L32's dont like added timing like the L67's.....

97-03... sexiest looking grand prixs. get a GTP. 2 doors are sick.

get a 97 to 03 and put a gen v or whipple s/c on her =]

impossible to find a whipple anymore...I don't discriminate, I like all GP's 88' and up.

CompG were the only 04+ GPs with 3.29s, otherwise a base GTP will have 2.93s like previous years.

I like 99-02 2-door coupes GTPs personally. I got two high mileage ones that have been very good to me and well into the 100,000 mile range....

you can get a 97-03 and make it run 11s for the price of buying a new generation one.

i LIKE the new body styles. but i also have one. the older ones are mean looking and do look good. i think the newer styles are sleeker tho with a more hint of class (sorry guys).

i love my comp g!! mainly for the gears. but with the money you save you could get an older one and mod it up nicely. but idk, ive been seeing comp g's in the 8000 range, they can be found, just gotta look.