The $12000 GT2 stinger rebuild project

[General_Vodka]

UPDATE:
I never thought it would be so hard to get a fender apron rail assembly for a fair price.... Already cancelled 2 orders because they wanted $300 for shipping. Oh well, guess dealer price is what I pay. Hopefully under 1k. On a side note, my eBay radiator support assembly arrived. Looks like new and probably is. The box was beat up but the part made it in one piece. Will try to make some progress this weekend. Also I broke some of the clips for the brake vent, looks like giving it a good tug was not the best way to do it lol.

 

[General_Vodka]

SAD UPDATE:
so the right turbo propeller is chipped.. don't know if that happened before or after the crash. probably crash related. don't know how much damage there is, hopefully, it didn't get into the engine. if it did, then i would be very sad. sigh. time to start planning my LS swap?

 

[Hoonin]

SAD UPDATE:
so the right turbo propeller is chipped.. don't know if that happened before or after the crash. probably crash related. don't know how much damage there is, hopefully, it didn't get into the engine. if it did, then i would be very sad. sigh. time to start planning my LS swap?

Oh man, I’m very sorry to see this. The good news is that there are a ton of turbos on eBay and car-part.com. You may be ok with the chip, just make sure you remove all intake piping, intake, inspect the inspect the cylinder heads, and run a compression test on each cylinder. Just clean every thing very well. If you are prepared for the insane amount of work it will take to do an LS swap, you likely have the motivation to pull the heads and inspect the cylinders as well. Due to the complexity of these cars and the systems that run through them, I’m not sure an LS swap is feasible or cost effective.

 

[MerlintheMad]

A "not a car guy question": what is an LS swap? Thanks.

 

[General_Vodka]

A "not a car guy question": what is an LS swap? Thanks.

When you swap an LS Chevy engine on a non Chevy car. The go to comment when someone posts about engine problems online. Lol

 

[MerlintheMad]

When you swap an LS Chevy engine on a non Chevy car. The go to comment when someone posts about engine problems online. Lol

So, sort of a private joke among modders? Is the LS engine some kind of ubiquitous "go-to" engine for use in a bunch of other cars or something?

 

[Hoonin]

When you swap an LS Chevy engine on a non Chevy car. The go to comment when someone posts about engine problems online. Lol

A "not a car guy question": what is an LS swap? Thanks.

Also, it is the easiest engine to swap in to most cars since there is a ton of OEM and aftermarket support for it (wiring harnesses, Computers, etc). Also the engines are fairly inexpensive, very easy to find since the majority of GM cars have them, and the parts for it are cheap/easy to find.

 

[Dreadnaut12]

Also, it is the easiest engine to swap in to most cars since there is a ton of OEM and aftermarket support for it (wiring harnesses, Computers, etc). Also the engines are fairly inexpensive, very easy to find since the majority of GM cars have them, and the parts for it are cheap/easy to find.

Also pretty easy to get good power from.

 

[General_Vodka]

Here are the pics. Good news is that it probably got stuck in the intercooler and didn't get any further. Also the turbo should cost me less than 1k. At least that is what I hope. The parts guy at my local dealer is nice and gave me a 15% discount for my fender apron. That won't really help if thier prices are insane however lol.

 

[ElChanclo]

Calling it now: The $120,000 GT2 stinger rebuild project

 

[Dreadnaut12]

Well he can brag about having the most expensive Stinger on the road! Seriously though, I hope this is the last of the unexpected hurdles you have to face.

 

[Sabs]

Yikes, sorry to see that. Thanks for continuing the updates, and I hope that's the last of the surprises.

 

[General_Vodka]

Correct about the crimps, if they are done 100% correctly there is very minimal resistance added. I still suggest running new wire though, just to make sure all OHM readings are within the correct parameters when the car is functioning properly. It could lead to a lot of annoying check engine lights and certain parts of the car under/over compensating.

It looks like some salvage yards are selling the MDPS for around 1,100, which cuts the price to just under half.

So it looks like the power steering motor is busted. And just my luck, Kia won't sell the motor separately. Have to buy the whole rack assembly. The best price I found was $1,750. Getting close to 6k for parts.. and i am not even halfway lol

 

[Gargamel]

What is it with "you americans" where you always have to add 10-15-20-30% of the price tag before you are done paying?

If im going to an auction and i bid 12K, i only pay 12k, and not "oh this fee and this feee and this tax and this" needs to be added too. Its up to the auction firm to pay those costs from the 12k i bid and possible won with.....

 

[BlueByYouGT]

Here are the pics. Good news is that it probably got stuck in the intercooler and didn't get any further. Also the turbo should cost me less than 1k. At least that is what I hope. The parts guy at my local dealer is nice and gave me a 15% discount for my fender apron. That won't really help if thier prices are insane however lol.
View attachment 38125 View attachment 38126

Opportunity is knocking and trying to sell you some bigger turbos. Are you going to answer the knock?

 

[Sabs]

What is it with "you americans" where you always have to add 10-15-20-30% of the price tag before you are done paying?

It's just something businesses get away with doing. They know the low initial price lures people in, then they add in profit with fees. It has gotten worse in recent years as there are no regulations in place to stop it.
Examples: hotel resort fees, internet/cellular/tv taxes, event tickets, etc.

 

[General_Vodka]

Opportunity is knocking and trying to sell you some bigger turbos. Are you going to answer the knock?

Who will tune those turbos? That's the real question. And I also happen to like my torque converter intact.

 

[BlueByYouGT]

Who will tune those turbos? That's the real question. And I also happen to like my torque converter intact.

Add a boat ride to South Korea to the total bill and Lap3 will tune it for you. Be a trend setter.

 

[Hoonin]

Who will tune those turbos? That's the real question. And I also happen to like my torque converter intact.

I am not trying to step between a deal, however if this were me, I would restore everything on the car back to stock first and worry about upgrades later. It will benefit your process of elimination when you run into a driveability issue.

When you start adding aftermarket performance parts on a rebuild project, you may run into issues that were a result of the car accident damage or a result of the aftermarket part. Plus you are going to tack on another thousand or so to tune and upgrade other aspects of the car so it runs properly with the turbos.

 

[General_Vodka]

UPDATE.
Have been a little busy lately but parts slowly starting to take up room. Still have a ways to go...