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Gina got her weekly bath today and I treated her to a shoe shine as well. It was a nice cloudy day today and I was going to polish as well but then the sun came out full swing and started beating down...and since this afternoon it rained, never fails does it

My phone takes pretty decent pics so I did an all around shoot of the car. I have a few problem spots but she cleans up nice. A few paint chips, faded window molding, delaminating tails, and the dreaded gas cap rust has started :( Enough sappy stuff, onto the beauty!



Gleaming rims after the Mothers Billet polish treatment


Front shot




Under the hood, I took off the engine cover and hung it on the wall. Seems the general consensus is on here that they do more harm than good. Note the new oil cap that came in the mail Friday! I will take it in to get cleaned soon, I'm too scared to wash under here myself (my luck it would never turn another piston again)


Here's a close up of the new filler cap


Shot of the faded window trim. I found the thread on installing the new vinyl and plan to redo sometime this summer.


Tail lights and all their delaminating goodness. Is there any way to stop this or can I cover it up if I smoke them?


Slightly hazed, uncleared headlights, another summer project on the list


Damaged window trim. Previous owner said this is from when the insurance company taped plastic over the broken back window. Hopefully harofreak AKA Andrew can hook me up with a new piece


Dreaded gas cap rust :'( High on the list to get fixed depending on quoted price. (Moms '07 supercharged Grand Prix in the background)


Small dent on rear driver door, need just the right angle to catch. May give the dry ice theory a whirl on this. Anybody heard of that or had any success at it?


Nice badge and rim shot


Onto the interior, only 87k on the clock!


Back seat, few minor blemishes in the leather


Front seats. They look pretty great! Any suggestions on leather care and conditioner products appreciated


Back view. Note my new '3.8L L67' license plate frame that also came Friday!




Friday I took it to a shop in the cities here called Ziebart and talked to a Lindsay (real straight forward nice guy) Wanted to see if they could stop the gas cap rust but he said it was too far gone and to have a body shop take a look at it. He gave me the number of a guy he recommended too. He described the rust to cancer and said that the sooner it was addressed and taken care of the better. He said the rest of the car looked great though and recommended I get the rust neutralizer and prevention treatment they provide. I also want to get the car undercoated by them. I would rather sink my $ into performance at this point but have to prioritize my funds on preserving her beauty right now I think. I plan on keeping this car for a long while and want it to stay as nice as possible. Also looked into window tint (I want to do 35%) but I cannot find any shops that will go below the 50% state limit. MN passed a new law about a year ago that has them all scared sh*&less I was told. Any suggestions on anyone who could do this in the metro or St. Cloud area appreciated. I would do it myself but I hear it usually ends up turning out like crap. Thanks for taking time to look and give your input! I look forward to getting to know everyone on here.

I've had quite a few cars done here..... http://gjerdessolarshield.com/car/legaltint.html
Being that I moved to South Dakota in 2008, I stopped paying attention to how stupid Minnesota laws are. I will ask a friend of mine in the St. Cloud area who he uses for tint as I know he does most of his cars 20% all around.



P.S. Look how dark the cop car is!!!!!

Lovin' that color!

Thanks! I wanted to go to Lookin' Good in St. Cloud, I know he has always done amazing work but he refused to touch it. Said it's a $1000 fine and up to 90 days in jail if it comes back to bite him in the a**.
I know right? They should practice what they preach haha. Most cops are pretty good, the troopers are usually the sticklers. That’s why I want to go with the 35%, I won’t stick out like a sore thumb but it’s enough to know its there. If all else fails I’m going to have to pay a doctor to write me off for sensitive eyes I guess.

Thank you! Black is usually my 1st choice. Its all I've ever had now that I think about it haha but I have really taken a liking to this color, esp with the metallic! Shines beautifully in the sun

Sharp car!! I'm interested to see how your undercoating goes.

Thanks! I'm saving up for that and the rust protection right now since I get a little better deal if I do both with them at once. I will post an update on this thread when its done. Im going to try and sweet talk them into taking some before and after pics of it on the lift so I can share here and show the difference.

The new tint laws make the installer responsible as well.

50% is plenty fine though, and its really not worth the hassle to break license plate and window tint laws anyways.

The rust below the fuel door starts behind it, so unless they cut out and replace panels it will keep coming back.

Where in the cities are you from?

If I could get 50% tint to look like your BMW I'd be all over that haha. What about license plate laws are you referring to?

Thats what I'm told. It will be going to a body shop to have a new piece or panel welded in. I already talked to harofreak and can get a panel at a decent price. Not sure if the body shop will want the panel or will just weld in a small piece of sheet metal, I'm not real familiar with the process. I just hope once its done there's a way I can protect it from ever showing its ugly face again!

I'm originally from up by St. Cloud but I live downtown Minneapolis now and work in New Brighton. I'm basically right above the lowry tunnel haha.

My car isn't dark, it looks that way in my sig just how the lighting hits it. It might be 50% on, and the door windows need to be replaced (one is even missing since I bought it!). I will be getting some new shots once I get my grills sorted out again.

I was merely referring to how a lot of car guys run super dark tint, no front plate, and keep paying or fighting tickets all the time for what really doesn't change much of the look.

Looks like a good car! Do you have indoor parking? I live just across the river from MOA in Eagan, been considering a spring meet sometime but there's a wedding I'm in, in a month that's taking up some free time.

I think 20% and under is plain irresponsible. I understand law enforcment wanting to be able to see inside the vehicles for their own safety. 35% still allows that, sets off the car, and honestly does lower eye fatigue in bright conditions. I will continue to lobby for the law to be changed. Whether or not I get tint during that time has yet to be seen. As far as a front plate, fine the heck out of em, the law is the law. Although the plastic front plate inserts for these cars are quite sharp. I don't see it being violated as much as I used to.

Thanks! Hoping it treats me well, couldn't be happier thus far. I am fortunate enough for indoor parking! There is a heated underground ramp accross the street from where I live that the city owns. The rates are hard to beat and I get a nice key card to come and go when I please, makes me feel classy lol. I used to just park there in the winter months to avoid the snow emergencies and cold weather hassles but since I got the Bonnie I think I'm going to keep it year round...she deserves it! I would be more that down for a meet! Would be good to meet some of you guys in person, definately keep me in mind if you plan or see something in state!

Now that I think about it I know exactly where you are now. I worked on some houses around there when I did landscaping so I'm familiar with the area. We're probably only 20mins or so apart. Nice area down there.

If there's a meet, it better be posted!!!!!

That is one sharp SSEi! I have really been liking that color a lot lately. For the headlights check this out http://www.pontiacbonnevilleclub.com/fo ... =headlight

Thanks for the tip, looks like an amazing yet affordable method, especially if it lasts for 2+ years!

I used that method and am very pleased with the outcome. Pics of mine are on P.2. I actually just did the same to my fogs too.

Been awhile since I did an update. I am saving up for undercoating and rust protection yet. I called a body shop in St. Cloud today and got a quote to fix the gas cap rust. He knew exactly what I was talking about and said it is a very common issue on these cars. He explained how the foam to hold the body panels together catches water and that’s what causes it. Being it is by the gas cap he said they glue the new piece of sheet metal in rather than weld it? He quoted me $400 to fix and could turn it around in 3 days…woohoo! My dad went to high school with the guy, not sure if that helped or not but I was happy to hear his number.

Got chrome lug nuts waiting to go on next oil change when I rotate the tires. I am also looking for a set of the chrome center caps with the red Pontiac badge, a user said they had some here but I never can get ahold of him so idk what the deal is. If anyone has a set they want to part with here please let me know.

Also made an order with ZZP today for a few items including 180 deg thermostat, I opted for the non drilled one after reading into it on their site. Also got a set of aluminum coolant elbows, magnetic oil drain plug, high flow fuel filter, and a bottle of GM fuel injector cleaner, as well as a set of plasmaglow xenon headlight bulbs. If they look a lot whiter I will have to find a set of fog light bulbs to match too. I am going to sand and refinish my headlight lenses if the weather is as nice as they say it is gonna be this wknd. Maybe I can squeeze in a hand wash and quick interior detail as well. I really need to condition my leather seats.

Lastly I got a new set of carbon fiber vent covers in…they look great! Special thanks to Ryan in MI for hooking me up with a set. Were a PITA to put in but I managed through the process without breaking anything. I will post a couple pics. Will be doing door handles and window switches soon hopefully. And maybe some brushed aluminum GXP handles eventually a little further down the road.

Gina is coming together slowly but surely! I will be sure to keep updates coming here.





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My chrome center caps are plain all across. Not aware of any with the red logo, but touch-up paint is cheap, and would probably work really nice.

With the 180* Thermostat, you'll want to drill a small hole in it to get it to bleed out properly. A 1/16" hole won't affect warm-up at all. Make sure you clock it to the highest spot in the manifold as well.

I've joked about getting my cousin who's a doctor to get me a "prescription" for window tint darker than 50% (For people who get really bad migraines, etc). We'll see on my next vehicle if I can talk him into it...

Here is what was on the ZZP site that put me on the fence about drilling a hole:

Cooler engine temps reduce KR and promote cooler intake air temps. Our thermostats feature openings 20% larger than stock for increased flow.

A non-drilled 180 stat is recommended for the 2004+ GPs, 2000+ Bonnevilles, Monte Carlos, Impalas and Regals or an engine code can be set. If you want to run a drilled or a 160 degree thermostat you may need to run our ZZP pcm because we have the ability to delete the 0128 code.

The drilled thermostat will cause the engine to take longer to warm up, this is only beneficial in a situation when your car is sitting, not running, and is started up to race before the engine gets to temperature. For example, when in the staging lanes at the race track. Plus it flows a little bit of water even when the car is not to running temp. The thermostat is still closed, so it frees up the parasitic loss of the water pump turning without the ability to move water. Since a drilled thermostat will take longer for your engine to warm up, your gas mileage will also be reduced.

A 180 is the coldest generally recommended for the N/A 3800. Using a 160, the PCM could command too rich of a fuel mixture.

I guess it won’t be a big deal to drill one once I get it. As far as the center caps, your car is the only one I’ve seen that doesn’t have the badge red lol. I guess I will have to keep watch on ebay, most only have 1 cap to offer which adds up to a lot of shipping coming from all parts of the country.

I may have a legit case for window tint now actually. Since starting the new job a year and a half ago and staring at a computer screen for 8 hrs a day my eyes have become a lot more sensitive to light and I get headaches a lot more often. We will see! I think 10% tint looks too out of place on a car so I will try and keep it sensible haha.