Thread: Repair list...is it worth it?

Went over the car yesterday & here's the list of things that need to be done to keep the car looking/working good. Deciding if it's worth keeping...I think it is because I love the car, but thought I'd ask youguys to make sure it's worth the $$. It's a 98 GP GT in black.
Start with the engine, not too much there thank god but...

• New radiator
• Full tune-up
• Been hearing a wierd noise coming from the axles when I turn & brake...don't even know what that is yet
• Resonator for exhaust

Interior is in pretty great shape, just need to fix the passenger door panel, shop ****ed it up pretty bad when they replaced the window motor.

Exterior...the most annoying/expensive issues.

• A few hundred worth of painting in the back
• New front bumper cover
• New hood
• New headlights
• New front tires
• New rims...nothing too fancy probably, just something better than the non-polished ABS rims that've had dirt/curbrash since I bought the car. Even just the polished ABS rims would do it.

Originally Posted by minichopper6hp

well i would say so, most of that is cosmetic. its probably still cheaper than buying a different car that is used, most likely gonna need that work or its overpriced.

That's what I'm thinkin...it'll just ake time to make it the way I want it.
Where'd you get your grills?

Nice...got a link?

Thanks man, that looks sweet especially for $50.

I'll ask some of the guys form work...the best buy I work at does some sick custom work, we're in northern IL and we've had people sending us cars form as far as California.
Unless you wanna just make another set & sell em to me
Also do you or anyone else reading this know how to remove the front bumper cover?
And anyone from the area know any good junkyards other than Rt. 14?

Originally Posted by minichopper6hp

97-03 GRAND PRIX GT GTP EXTREME GRILLE GRILL INSERTS:eBay Motors (item 350210535080 end time Jul-05-09 10:58:10 PDT)

I actually still own a set of these grills, they are cheap, nothing fancy but they do the job well. The only difference between these and mine is the fact that the new ones come with that rubber guard around the center pieces, mine didnt when I got them. And that was almost 5 years ago. They are easy to maintain and upkeep as well. I paint mine once a year to keep them lookin fresh.

Originally Posted by BwolfGT

Went over the car yesterday & here's the list of things that need to be done to keep the car looking/working good. Deciding if it's worth keeping...I think it is because I love the car, but thought I'd ask youguys to make sure it's worth the $$. It's a 98 GP GT in black.


Start with the engine, not too much there thank god but...

• New radiator
• Full tune-up
• Been hearing a wierd noise coming from the axles when I turn & brake...don't even know what that is yet
• Resonator for exhaust

New Radiators are fairly cheap, you can even go as far as getting a junk yard one if you are looking to cut costs a bit. The "full tune-up" I would be a little leary about, mainly that usually consists of changing the spark plugs and going over the diagnostics. Pretty much you can get your own plugs and replace them on your own and save a ton of cash.

With regards to your axle noise, is a POPPING noise when you make a turn in one direction or is it the same for both? That would generally indicate a hub going bad if it pops in one direction over the other. Half shafts for our car are fairly cheap and somewhat easy to replace. I picked up a set from Rock Auto by CarDone1, they ran me $105 with shipping.

As for your brakes, the same applies here, you can go on eBay or hit up TDC for a set of his rotors, if you are still running factory discs on a 98, it is time for sure to replace them and the pads. A good set of rotors and pads will run in the $200-$250 range and that usually includes shipping. And there are enough tutorials or how to's here to allow you to do the job yourself.

The exhaust issue you mentioned, do you have a hole in your current resonator? Or is it just sounding like crap? Once again this is one of those things where you can hit up a junk yard and find a newer model GT and take its exhaust/catback to replace your old stuff. Or you can get the SLP catback setup for around $450-500.

Just some thoughts on your questions

Thanks for all the input geddy. Yeah there's a big hole in the resonator, I'm buying one from a member here for $30 shipped.
As far as the noise idk if it pops...it's more like some kind of crunching noise, i've never heard it before. But it seems to happen wherever I: Brake, turn (happens on left turns much more than right), and it's been happening when I first start accelerating away from a red light or something.

Ok thanks I'll try that, now it's happening almost every time I accelerate, decelerate, or turn.

I have a good GT radiator from my car, only reason i got rid of it was because i wanted an over-sized one for my top swap, pm me if interested.

Originally Posted by BwolfGT

Thanks for all the input geddy. Yeah there's a big hole in the resonator, I'm buying one from a member here for $30 shipped.
As far as the noise idk if it pops...it's more like some kind of crunching noise, i've never heard it before. But it seems to happen wherever I: Brake, turn (happens on left turns much more than right), and it's been happening when I first start accelerating away from a red light or something.

You could get a glasspack too for cheaper...and while your down there get rid of that U-Bend IMO. Get yourself some extra mpg's and HP. Might be CV Shafts too...check down there for a greasy build-up...if so then your boots are torn/ripped and need replacing...

Originally Posted by bluegtp91

You could get a glasspack too for cheaper...and while your down there get rid of that U-Bend IMO. Get yourself some extra mpg's and HP. Might be CV Shafts too...check down there for a greasy build-up...if so then your boots are torn/ripped and need replacing...

Yeah thats possible, the noise keeps getting louder and more frequent every time I drive. What parts do I need to get rid of the U-bend?

Originally Posted by BwolfGT

Yeah thats possible, the noise keeps getting louder and more frequent every time I drive. What parts do I need to get rid of the U-bend?

An exhaust shop will have a universal bung they can weld in to match your o2 sensor pattern and they will just cut it out and make a piece of straight pipe...just be sure to keep that flange after it !!

Originally Posted by bluegtp91

An exhaust shop will have a universal bung they can weld in to match your o2 sensor pattern and they will just cut it out and make a piece of straight pipe...just be sure to keep that flange after it !!

Ok thanks man I'll ask em about that when I bring it in for the resonator.