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06 Impala - Mostmint #37

Posted: Mon Sep 07, 2015 10:57 pm
by MostMint
So faced with driving the SS over the winter, and the future prospect of two teenage drivers, I bought another car. It's a 2006 Impala LS. High miles - 181k but looks pretty clean underneath. For $1800 it feels like a low risk investment.

Re: 06 Impala - Mostmint #37

Posted: Mon Dec 28, 2015 6:41 pm
by MostMint
The car - the day I brought it home:
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So far I did a front toe alignment, put Blizzaks on it, added a hubcap, fabricated a hinge for the center console, got some floor mats and a jack, and changed out the rack.

The seat is 6 way power when new. This part was seized up. Turns out it was not the electric motor but the gears. This part raises and lowers the front part of the seat. I had Kurt weld a nut to the end (off camera left) and now I can adjust it with a socket
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The jack I bought for $5 - came with the styrofoam which I needed:
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You have to lower the subframe to get the rack out.
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The replacement rack was $60 shipped to the house. It is off an 01 Monte Carlo with 117k and came from Illinois. Pullapart was at $55 + tax and u have to remove. No thanks.
06 steering rack swap.jpg
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Re: 06 Impala - Mostmint #37

Posted: Sat Jan 02, 2016 1:24 am
by TireSmoker
Do me a slight favor.. add another reply and re-attach your pictures, as board attachments, just like you did the first time (not using the "add image to post" link right under the reply window. I added some code in to auto-resize them and you get to be my guinea pig :-) (already tested, it should work well).

-Dave

Re: 06 Impala - Mostmint #37

Posted: Sat Jan 02, 2016 11:57 am
by MostMint
Dave - here is a reload of the pics. I assume you're setting it up to host the pics.
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06 steering rack swap 2.jpg
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Re: 06 Impala - Mostmint #37

Posted: Wed Dec 28, 2016 11:17 pm
by MostMint
Due for updates here too. From this spring:

I was going to get some steelies for summer tires, but Kurt wanted aluminum rims so we got some from an 05 at Pull-a-Part. They were not much more and a couple of them had good tires so it saved buying a new set of tires.
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He also wanted the car to sound like a car. I got a set of mufflers from a co-worker:
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Found some exhaust tips at the junkyard
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We figured out we could cut open the resonator and tune the tone with that. It took a few tries so we taped the resonator back together for the short tests
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Looks like these Seville exhaust tips can look like Corvette exhaust. No mufflers is going to allow this to work
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Re: 06 Impala - Mostmint #37

Posted: Thu Dec 29, 2016 4:53 pm
by Basement Paul
I would clean up that trunk by pulling the IMPALA LS badges off. Would look cooler with that badass exhaust. Maybe black out the bowtie too. Didn't you put the lowering springs on it also? I love that Kurt is into hot rodding his Impala.

-BP

Re: 06 Impala - Mostmint #37

Posted: Thu Dec 29, 2016 8:42 pm
by MostMint
Some video of the exhaust sounds during the project: https://youtu.be/UkhgtuDONKA

Since the car has over 180k and it looked/rode like the original struts, I told him I would buy him the struts if he put them in the car. Earlier this year when we went to MN I took the SS and decided I did not want to ride in a buckboard for 16 hours each way, so I put other springs in it. This created the opportunity to put my lowering springs in the car.
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There has also been a custom cold air intake and we have a turbo off a 1.8 liter Jetta. There has been a little preliminary work and some learning there but no parts installed yet.

Re: 06 Impala - Mostmint #37

Posted: Thu Dec 29, 2016 10:06 pm
by Racin'Jacin
Cuttin' the resonator to tune the exhaust!! That's awesome - I LOVE IT !!!!!


Jacin

Re: 06 Impala - Mostmint #37

Posted: Thu Feb 02, 2017 9:44 pm
by MostMint
Found this at pull-a-part a couple weeks back
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Now it is on Kurt's car. Got to love finding color matching parts at the junkyard.
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This parts car had a 3.9 we'll see if he wants to go get the trans for his:
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Re: 06 Impala - Mostmint #37

Posted: Sun Mar 26, 2017 8:25 pm
by MostMint
Kurt's Christmas and birthday presents are on his car:
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Re: 06 Impala - Mostmint #37

Posted: Mon Mar 27, 2017 4:58 pm
by Basement Paul
With the lowered suspension, those look sweet. Way better than I thought. Nice!

-BP

Re: 06 Impala - Mostmint #37

Posted: Wed Jul 26, 2017 2:01 pm
by MostMint
The Impala and Kurt went out for track day. Everything went pretty well except the car had an encounter with the tire barrier. It was all cosmetic
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I don't have good update pics but the black marks from the tires all came out with buffing compound - it really could use a new RF fender but we'll wait for a white one to show up at pull-a-part

Then Kurt started the engine swap process. The LS has a 3.5 and well the 3.9 has more displacement and the trans has better gearing.

3.9 coming out at pull-a-part
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I like this one you can see the reflection of the engine/hoist in the windshield while I was capturing the VIN
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3.5 coming out at home
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Last night the swap was completed far enough for a test drive. So far so good! I would like a carfax on the donor car to get a guess how many miles were on it but so far I'm not willing to pony up the $40

Re: 06 Impala - Mostmint #37

Posted: Wed Jul 26, 2017 3:23 pm
by Basement Paul
Missed this post... cool!

-BP

Re: 06 Impala - Mostmint #37

Posted: Wed Jul 26, 2017 3:30 pm
by MostMint
Since the car already ran 15.49 with the 2.91 gear and the 3.5 we're thinking with the 3.9 and the 3.29 gear along with the free flow exhaust and cold air intake it should hit 14's. We shall see.

Re: 06 Impala - Mostmint #37

Posted: Wed Jul 26, 2017 11:33 pm
by Fred32v
Great job Kurt!!! Bet you can't wait to see what it turns.

I'd bet a hot dog, that "OH YEAH" is still a little bit faster. (2 out of 3)