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Pontiac GTO
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at what speed do folks think the spoiler really comes into play giving significant downforce? on a roadcourse i bet speeds won't get anywhere near/above 100 mph, which is probably where the rear wing gets important.
i'm chuckling that you photoshopped out the side triangular markers. i couldn't stand those and replaced them with the monaro side marker lights. the lights look white when they are off but are orange/red when they flash. as you probably know, there are holes under the triangular plates - the side marker lights fit into the holes.
my other "mod", courtesy of getting rear-ended when the car was 3 days old, was to get the australian rear bumper cover which is flat-black and does not say GTO. also it has a square thing in the middle which i think must be an opening for a trailer hitch. i like it way better than the darker-than-cyclone-gray "GTO" that was there before. (the car color is cyclone gray).
Before we were married my policy was $750 and hers $450.
Mine is leased so I have only done things that can be removed.
I have done basically the same thing with my '04.
Deleted the spoiler and put white plastic caps in the holes.
18" Ronal R41 wheels in sterling silver.
And then I have actually gone the other way with the hood and decided to get the '05 SAP. I debated this but felt like the performance cue of having the twin scoops was what the car needed. I can see the twin hood scoops from the driver's seat and the looks I get from people are priceless. Last week I had a guy in a new Impala SS stop in the highway and look at my car as I was sitting at stoplight!
Poeple don't want to race my as much now because they think it is an '05 not the less powerful '04.
I have also left out the honeycomb grilles for the scoops so it looks like they are actually functional. There is still a black piece of plastic there but you really have to look at the scoops hard to see that they are nto functional.
If I knew how to post a pic here i would. Or I can send it to you for posting here.">
Had them turned last Summer and I think they need it again.
Anybody had this problem recur?
I see the consumer rebate has been raised to $2500 (thus making up for those of us who may have missed the $500 GM Card Bonus Cash, which expired Jan 3), but I'm not sure if I should try to negotiate a sale price (before rebate) of less than dealer invoice (which would be possible if there are dealer incentives available).
Thanks for any tips!
I have never understood the brake rotor problems people have. Perhaps I'm just lucky? I know the single biggest reason for rotors going bad is the lug nuts not being torqued properly. As I always rotate my own tires (and use a torque wrench), I don't have to rely on some lot jockey with an impact wrench set to infinity screwing up my rotors/studs/wheels. In fact, when I get new tires, I usually pull the wheels off and throw them in the back of the truck to deliver to the tire place loose. It's more work, but at least I know they won't cross-thread any lugs (yes, it has happened to me more than once :mad: ).
As far as posting pics; I posted that picture over on that "other" GTO forum and then just inserted the link in my message over here.
At this point, the 2006 appears to be only $1000 more than the 2005, considering MSRP's and customer rebates; if there are fixes incorporated in the 2006, then that plus the depreciation difference might make it worthwhile to buy a 2006, rather than a 2005...
Only took me 6 years of participating in Townhall to figure out to post an actual picture not a link. LOL.
Here is my '04 with spoiler delete. 18" Ronal wheels with KDW tires and SAP hood.
I really agonized over the decision to go with 18s.
Ride quality was of number 1 importance.
I talked with some guys and they said that the kind of tire you go with will affect the ride quality too.
I see only the slightest difference when I go overr bumps.
The tires aren't any louder than stock(because the alignment was off the stockers had a wear pattern).
There is a big improvement in cornering and traction.
Where it used to spin the tires on acceleration it just squats and goes. Turn in is quicker as is steady state cornering. Wet traction is better also. The tires have a very aggressive tread patern.
Hard to believe they are from the same KD line that our KDWS were. They are wearing better than the KDWS also.
I haqve $2130 in the wheel/tire package from ronalusa.com.
They also road force balanced them and I spent $30 mounting them here in Charleston.
The Ronals are easily the highest quality wheel I have ever owned. Everything about them is flawless.
The sterling silver finish is a lighter silver and it really pops when the sun hits them.
Magnacharger.
Vortech
STS rear mount turbos.
You could go to tbyrne.com
There are tons of places that will install and tune it for you.
My only real complaint at this point is an idle inconsistancy. When the outside air temperature is cold, my idle is fine. When air temps climb, my idle (in "D") deteriorates. When the temps are in the 90s, my car idles like a 30-year-old school bus; vibrates so bad that the dash buzzes. Pontiac says this is "normal." Using the "mode/set-start" procedure with the DIC, I have noticed that as temperatures rise, the battery voltage goes down. In cooler temps, stable 13.9-14.0 volts. In the 90s, voltage drops to 11.3-11.6 range. Still working on this one...
That's interesting white6...has anyone else noticed this idle and battery issue? Is it only in the automatic? I live in Arizona and "cool" temperatures are definitely not the norm, so I'm wondering if I'll see this issue (when I get my GTO that is). I already have a 14 year old Acura with a quarter million miles on it...so it rattles and squeaks enough and isn't exactly aesthetically pleasing - I don't really want to hear rattles in a new car. (But she keeps on runnin' though! Knock on wood) :sick:
Oh, PS...GO STEELERS!
The first one I drove was an A4 because I had just had a fall and twisted my left knee.
The A4 felt kind of sluggish and would shift into 2nd at low speeds. It never seemed to be in the gear I wanted but there was so much power that I woud just dip into the throttle and it would go. If I gave it a little more throttle it would quickly downshift.
If I had driven it a little more I would have gotten used to it and liked it.
The other things i didn't like was that the ride was jiggly and the steering was Lexus light.
I basically wrote the GTO off at that point and posted my
test drive results in another GTO forum.
They said 2 things 2 me that made me look at the car again.
The tires were grossly overinflated for delivery. There was 55 lbs of air in them!
With 35 lbs of air it totally changed the steering and the ride, both of which are quite nice now.
Secondly, they told me to drive the 6 speed. I did and I bought it.
You will not be disappointed with either the auto or the M6.
My car with the M6 is actually pretty quiet at 80 mph.
The autos will have slighty higher revs at cruise but I understand that they also beat the EPA hwy number.
My M6 gets 25-26mpg at 75mph.
I stongly believe that the GTO is the best performance bang for the buck available. It is more reffined than the Mustang, a better long distance cruiser, and has a very nice, high quality interior.
I have an A4 and don't have the idle or battery problems. The stock battery sucks - mine leaked from the day I took delivery/car went into storage last January (long story, I'm in Wisconsin, it's GTO #2) and I dropped the darn thing (of course it landed post-first and fractured). Bought an Optima Red Top ($80 through a friend of a friend) and haven't looked back...
I did not care for the stock A4 shift patterns. I'm using the updated Predator performance tune and not only do I like the shift points much better, I get better than the EPA highway MPG ratings. Or maybe it's all of the Zaino on the car :-) Regardless, a good tune will do wonders for an A4...
--Robert
Hard to believe they still charge for the GGT. A car that gets mid 20's on the highway should not have to pay a hefty fee for that privilege.
It takes less than 10 minutes to take the spoiler off and I bought (4)3/8" and (1)3/4" caplugs in the hardware drawers at Lowe's.
The only hole you need to worry about leaking is the 3/4" one because the other 4 drain into the trunk channel.
I say go ahead and try it and if you don't like it put it back.
Lastly GM had record sales in '05 with over 9M vehicles sold Globally.
They are not going bankrupt.
-Faster seat motor
-Extra power outlet under radio
-Darkened taillights
-New colors
And what other problems w/ the '05's are there? I've read about the oil consumption one that basically was a non-issue for most posters once they let the car get over 3k miles and be broken in. Once the rings properly seated, it sounded like all of their issues went away.
--Robert
I had to come to a fairly abrupt stop from about 60 mph on a wet, rainy day. The ABS Fault warning indicator came on and the traction control switched off and could not be turned back on. I stopped, restarted the engine and everything went back to normal. But now, out of the blue, the warning light comes on and the traction control switches off. It remains in that state until the car is restarted.
The book says see the dealer and that the brake system will still operate without ABS.
So - I'm going to see the dealer :sick: but just wondered if anyone else has seen this problem.
Thanks
And, the list at that website does not mention the "Extra power outlet under radio" nor the "Faster seat motor" items you mentioned.
I consider the "rough idle" during hot weather a problem, as well as the less than optimal power in the A4's, and the bushings that lose their fluid under heavy-to-extreme braking. I don't know if there are other issues with the LS2 (for example, premature internal wear, etc.) that have not yet shown up in consumer cars but may be known to GM due to ongoing testing.
BTW, I'm disappointed in the 2006 pricing. While they reduced the MSRP $1005, the dealer invoice price appears to have dropped a mere $304, meaning we really won't be able to buy the '06 for less than the '05 from the dealers. Also don't forget that since '06 is the "last year" of this run, and there will be no '07 model, some dealers may decide to hold on to the end of their '06's (later this year) until they get the price they want.
--Robert
Less than optimal power on the A4 is a function of the tune on the car (and torque management). These are easily disabled or adjusted. Don't forget, M6 owners get the lovely "skip-shift" function until it's disabled. The radius rod bushings do seem to be a significant issue, which leads to alignment issues, which leads to strut rub. I'll be buying the upgraded bushings and getting my alignment checked when I pull my car out in a month and a half.
As to buying the '06 versus the '05, dealers got a final payout of $2500 on the '05's, so you should be able to get one for significantly less than an '06 (I was under impression that only the MSRP dropped on the '06's, not the dealer invoice). The improvements from '05 to '06 aren't as significant as from '04 to '05 - unless you want one of the '06-only colors (Spice Red, Brazen Orange). GM has not released production goals for the '06, but, given that there will be no '07, and they'll be building GTO's only (the Monaro and Vauxhall VXR are done) until at least June, maybe end of August (no later than that, though, since the current model won't meet FMVSS specs as of September 1), there may be cars sitting on dealer lots into next year.
--Robert
Outside of a bad head unit, no problems with it.I got some hotchkiss sway bars in the garage that I am dieing to get installed though.
In one GTO forum, a dealer claimed that he is getting an additional 20 cars for his yearly allocation, making it around 55 cars, with the last being delivered in June. Also, I read that they will be increasing production for feb/march. They could stop around that time. Remember, they need tine to retool the factory for the next Holden model.
Thanks also for the info about the final payout to dealers; that was the piece of the pricing puzzle I was still missing. I didn't realize the line will be GTO-only; if GM overproduces, then I suppose there very well may be incentives at then end of '06. It comes down to whether I want to try to sell the '96 Impala SS myself and wait for more substantial incentives on the '06, or trade it in now on an '05. (No one has a crystal ball; if there won't be customer rebates of $2000 or more at the end of '06, it may be better to trade now; otherwise it might be worth it to take the time to sell the Impala myself. Given GM has publicly stated it wants to curtail rebates...)
Unfortunately, I live in South Florida, and the dealers here tend to hold out as long as they can for top dollar. They all post their own "premium" stickers to start above MSRP. It wasn't until the "Employee Price for Everyone" and the "Red Tag Event" that we finally got decent deals here. That's why, while I would prefer to buy an '06 in Sept or so, I don't trust that, without a GM program of some sort, it will be possible to crack a fair deal here. And, if GM is serious about trying to reduce/eliminate rebates in favor of lowering MSRPs, the out-the-door price of '06's here may be substantially more than a left-over '05 now...
You might be surprised to find that that the resell value of the Impala has dropped in the last few years. You might as well keep it ( my wife has been driving my '96 Impala to work everyday, even with that junky front drivers panal!)
link">http://www.pontiac.com/gto/specs_viewall.jsp
The bushings would definitely be an issue for me, but small price to pay and it sounds like the "skip shift" is fixable - so now my only real issue is "Cyclone Gray or Spice Red?!!" I'm just torn.
What are the total incentives then?
Is it $2,000 + a possible $2500 from the dealer for a total of $4500.
Please clarify.
Thanks in advance.
(We'll let Robert clarify...)
Things that I like better about the GTO:
faster, better handling, way nicer interior, six speed
Things I like better about the Impala SS:
Way, way more trunk space, more interior room.
One thing that I noticed about the GTO that bugs me is that the steering wheel is offset to the left of the driver
My Impala also has numerous mods for hp and handling.The interior is falling apart, the paint is rotting, but the rest of the car is pretty fine. For a long road trip, the Impala is still tops.
Long wheelbase, solid body and not too stiff supsension.
Going from a Camaro to a GTO made me wonder how I ever took a long trip in that thing.