Hey guys

Today I got the new car fever and started looking for a new set of wheels. I found an 05' GXP and was wondering if if there is any reasons i should not get it. It has 107k miles and they want $10k for it. (staqrting to think $10k is high for that many miles) i am looking for any input on these cars for I am not very familiar with the N*engine. My neighbor had one in her Cadillac and it ate coolant all the time.

So should I get rid of 00' SSEi (160k/mi) or go for the newer GXP and jump into the payment?

Thanks ahead of time.

Brandon

That price seems quite high to me. There is currently a black 2005 GXP for sale for $8000 with 80,000 miles and its been for sale for awhile. Maybe the car is a mess, but from pictures it looks pretty clean.

The GXP is likely to have all the common issues your SSEi has or had. Not sure what repairs you have done on your car, but expect the same on the GXP. Those engines have really seems to be proving themselves as I have seen many GXP's well over 100k. Its just the cost of repairs to the N* is very expensive due to crammed engine bay.

For this particular car (and not seeing any pics) I would say the price is way to high and to keep looking, or keep driving the SSEi..just my $.02

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Eric

2005 SLE, Greystone Metallic, 152K.

A few mods..

Thanks Y

Where did you see the black Gxp at? Is it on the forum or is somewhere local to you. The one I looked at was in detroit. i am in pittsburgh and debating the drive up to see it. I will admit i really like the color (very dark red/ crimson)

Heres the black one I mentioned:

http://chicago.craigslist.org/nwc/cto/2810008680.html

Also a Red one near me:

http://grandrapids.craigslist.org/cto/2784658179.html

And a silver one:

http://grandrapids.craigslist.org/cto/2788422339.html

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Eric

2005 SLE, Greystone Metallic, 152K.

A few mods..

Eric Thank you i have some more work to do.

Honestly, I'd take the money you'd spend on a GXP and put it in the SSEi, fix everything that's wrong. We paid $12,500 3 years ago for our GXP and it had 47k on it. No way I think a car with 100k miles is worth $10k. Those others by Eric are much closer to the ball park.

I just don't trust the Northstar engine. The rest of the car is great, but the Northstar is known for violent, expensive death. We have 90k on my dad's car, and are already looking into its replacement. I think that unless you have bad rust on your SSEi, it's worth keeping and putting some money into to make it more exciting. It's going to get better mileage and the engine is bulletproof. If the transmission hasn't been rebuilt, I'd set aside some cash in a savings account, get the car fixed up, put in a stereo, a new set of rims or some engine mods and drive it till it literally falls apart. Your car can easily go another 100,000 miles if you keep it in good shape.

This is just my personal opinion on the matter. If you really have your heart set on a GXP, go for it. Just be sure to flush the coolant and keep up on your maintenance.

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Bye Bye:

RIP sandrock

Other Chicago Options:

http://chicago.craigslist.org/chc/ctd/2807316100.html

http://chicago.craigslist.org/chc/cto/2803785806.html

http://chicago.craigslist.org/nwc/cto/2799034658.html

http://chicago.craigslist.org/nch/cto/2756574515.html

Black must have been the most common color on the GXP by far. Maybe its only the black ones getting sold since the owners of the other colors know how rare they are! haha

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Eric

2005 SLE, Greystone Metallic, 152K.

A few mods..

Don't forget that the GXP will be more expensive in terms of fuel due to the poor mileage in comparison to the SSEi. If you are performance-minded, the money put into the SSEi will easily spank the GXP in most performance categories.

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Click here for mod list for both cars
93 SSEi, 95 SLE (supercharged) 97 Buick LeSabre Limited
PontiacDad at WCBF '04: Cruise control? That's like surrendering!
Comprehensive guide to troubleshooting, rebuilding, and modifying Eaton Superchargers

It will depend on the price difference between regular and premium in your area. I'm actually saving money with the GXP. It takes 87 octane just fine, and the loss in mileage is less than the extra cost of premium from the 95 SSEi. I'm getting 8% worse mileage but saving 11.5% in cost. By getting ~27mpg highway, I am doing the same as getting 30 out of the L67. As always though, YMMV.

If your 160,000 mile SSEi is doing fine and is reliable, I suggest keeping it. A payment situation is probably not worth it. The GXP is a very different animal, delivering performance in a completely different manner. It is absolutely a performance-oriented car, but not one meant for lots of tweaks to the powertrain. It is a great handling car that will breath fire when provoked. Power delivery is opposite of the L67 (top end vs. low-end torque), and the refinement levels are much higher.

Later Northstars do better for reliability - the head bolt issues don't seem to be there like they used to. Gaskets (both for oil and coolant) seem to be an issue, but I am not a good judge of this, as my motor is not original and has been flawless in the 30,000 miles since its top end rebuild - 20,000 of which has been under my ownership.

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Jerry /// Past: 95 SSEi (June 2010 COTM) -- 04 GXP (July 2011 COTM)
91 Honda Civic Wagon DX 2WD (fuelly) -- 208,000km -- 92hp -- Autocross Warrior
09 Lexus LS460 AWD -- 94,000km -- Daily Driver
09 White Hot G8 GT -- 155,000km (fuelly) -- LS3 Cam -- GM LS3 CNC Ported Heads -- Kooks 1 3/4" Long Tube Headers -- Solo Catback Midsection -- Hooker Maxflow Mufflers -- Pat G Tune -- Rotofab Intake -- Tein S-Tech Springs -- GXP FE3 Dampers -- BMR Subframe Cradle Inserts -- BMR Subframe Connectors -- Forgestar F14 Gold 18x9 +40 -- Michelin Pilot Super Sport 245/45/18 -- Maverick Man Carbon Fiber Spoiler

beast your very wise,like a 50 year old man trapped in a 20something guys body

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Sounds back ass-wards to me... Why go North to buy a car where salt eats them up? People from Detroit go to Pittsburgh to buy cars, not vice versa.

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Inferno Red 2009 Dodge Caliber SRT-4 125k

Could be the fact there aren't any GXP's around his area. I have noticed when traveling down south that Pontiacs (Bonneville, Grand Prix, 3800 platforms) are much less common. Around this area, these cars are everywhere. Kinda makes sense since these motors were mostly made in the Detroit area...

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Eric

2005 SLE, Greystone Metallic, 152K.

A few mods..

Jed
I would agree that it would seem strange to go into an area known for bad winters to get a car, but Pittsburgh winters are just as bad as they have in Detroit (I lived in the motor city for 4 years) maybe a little less snow but everything here is still covered in salt for 4-5 months out of the year. The lakes that surround michigan are all fresh water so no concern there. Either way the car was purchased from an auction out of Pennsylvania and it still had the PA state inspection until Sept. When i asked the guy he bought it about 50 miles north of me. Go figure.

Either way he is not budging on the $10k price so i told him to beat it.

I always liked the way these cars looked and always figured I would like to get a GXP one day.

@beast Thanks for the insight its easy to get caught up in the moment of getting a newer car and sometimes you need someone to bring you back to reality especially with the price

Everyone else thanks for the links.