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Project Silverback is UNDERWAY

47K views 261 replies 72 participants last post by  MuhThugga 
#1 ·
Firstly, a HUGE THANKS to everyone who has helped me with this project. It couldn't be done without you guys, and I will never be able to repay your generosity. I am eternally grateful for all the hard work you guys have put into this project. This really goes to prove that when we are called the "GTO Community," it isn't just another moniker.

Back in October 2011, my GTO was totaled. It was a warm day, but by the time the Phillies game was over, the night was too cold for the summer tires. A little too much gas around the corner, and that was it. A complete 360* over a curb and into a telephone pole.

Personally, I blame the Phillies. They had just lost the series. I'm sure as I was spinning around, I was screaming, "SMURFING PHILLLLIIIEEEESSSSSS. AHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!"

Anyways, after the insurance company decided to total the car, I just couldn't let it go. I couldn't just buy another one, either. That is MY car. My GTO. Thus, Project Silverback was born.

What is Project Silverback? Quite simply, I have purchased the black 2004 roller that TrakDay was selling, which is Doc's old GTO, and am in the process of transferring everything out of my 2005 into the black 04.

This project has made everyone involved very, very familiar with these cars inside and out.

Since there are more pictures than it would ever be practical to upload to this thread, here is a link to this project's album:

http://photobucket.com/projectsilverback
 
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#2 ·
Some of the damage:




The new body:


 
#3 · (Edited)
Saturday, May 20, 2012:

What a productive day. Most of the interior was transferred into the black car, and the silver car was completely stripped down to a shell. Most of the interior is out of the silver car minus the dash. The suspension and drivetrain have been completely removed.

Due to the damage to the driver side wheel (only held on by a brake line and strut mount), it made it rather difficult to get the silver car into the shop from the yard. However, we did it.








The plan was to strip out the entire undercarriage and lay the body onto a trailer and haul it out. Here's the video of us lifting the body off the front subframe:


Once again, this couldn't be done without the help of everyone involved. You guys know who you are. I can never feel as though I have expressed my complete gratitude.
 
#4 · (Edited)
How the interior now looks in the black car:




Installing the gas tank:



 
#5 ·
Getting the motor ready to be removed from the car...or the car be removed from the motor:





Jackstands to support the subframe:


Rear Subframe out:


Front subframe out:




Getting the motor ready for the engine stand, where it will get some new goodies before going in to the new body:
 
#6 ·












 
#7 ·
Lowering the body onto the trailer:











 
#11 ·
Yeah, man. Red Lobster will get you.

We are trying to decide on what to do with the silver body. The easiest would be to remove the glass and other spare parts and ship it to the scrap yard.

There have been talks of a tube-chassis dragster, though.
 
#13 ·
Just so you can see how badly smurfed that front left wheel was...

 
#16 ·
You should retitle this and repost it in the Exhaust Section ""Header install how-to".
:gr_jest:
 
#21 ·
:gr_jest:

Step 1: Remove car.

Step 2: Install headers.
 
#17 ·
I love projects such as these and really love seeing the progress. How are your headers holding up wrapped like that? I have seen so many pictures of them just cooking under that wrap and would love to see what you thought about yours.

When you are finished I can't even imagine the sense of accomplisment you are going to have and totally applaud you for keeping your Goats spirit alive!
 
#19 ·
I'll have the headers unwrapped tomorrow. I'm actually going to coat them this time around for the looks.

I have no problem with the wrap other than they did need to be redone after 5 years, but that really isn't a problem in my book. They did their job and protected everything from the heat. Hell, I could run the motor and still touch the primaries without worry.
 
#20 ·
looking good! I'm glad my old shell is going to good use! It is in great shape!!!
 
#25 ·
Exhaust tips are not for sale, but the black hood will be, along with other goodies.





Subed

You will know this car inside out for sure.
No doubt. The interior pieces of these cars are stupid easy to take apart and put together. I was rather surprised.

The only thing that sucks is the carpet has to be cut out. They lay the carpet and then install the dash during assembly apparently. Not a big deal at all. Also, this 04 will have a dead pedal. I pulled the carpet out of the 05 and the dead pedal is built into it. It is just a thick piece of foam.
Asphalt


Sent from my DROID2 using AutoGuide.Com Free App
 
#28 ·
See, stuff like this makes me so happy, to see a totalled goat given new life. Good job man, that car must have meant a lot to you.
 
#29 ·
You have no idea. Buying another Goat just wouldn't have been the same. I worked hard for that one. I was not about to let her get dumped in a junk yard.
 
#30 ·
Jeff I was sad to hear what happened to your GTO so I'm super stoked to see you doing this. Wish I was still on the EC to help but I do have a couple of projects there about to kick off so I'll try to stop by. Great job, not only does it keep your local crew tight but it also inspires us all to see how much other people love these "bastard" GTOs we have in our garages.

Sent using middle finger
 
#32 ·
Glad to see you didn't throw in the towel and stuck with it. Looks like coming along great. Old GTO body=Car bed.... lol
 
#33 ·
Well, this weekend wasn't nearly as productive as last weekend. Much of it was spent cleaning the shop, stripping down the K-member and organizing parts between junk and not junk.

The interior is 98% complete. I relocated the PCM to inside the cabin. The 04 computer is drastically bigger than the 05/06 PCM, so coupled with the fact that this 04 has the 2005 carpet with a dead pedal, some trimming had to be done for the computer to fit behind the kick panel. Since the dead pedal is foam, this wasn't such a daunting task.

So, here is the interior as she sits right now:



I just need to wait for when the battery is installed so that I can move the front seats to get to the other bolt holes to fully anchor them down. You can also see the difference between the 05 and 04 pedals. The clutch pedal is 2005 and the brake pedal is 2004. The tapered ends are on different locations.

Obviously, the steering column isn't completed. Why? Well, I hit a snag there. When I took the steering wheel off, I noticed that the clock spring was gone. So, I grabbed the clock spring out of my 2005. (One of the easiest clock springs to remove, ever.)
Well, there is a bit of a difference between the 05 and 04 clock springs.

05 Steering column:


04 Steering column:


If you look on the bottom, the "fangs" are in different locations. The 05 clock spring has a piece of plastic that runs along the bottom, which interferes with proper fit.


Not a big deal, right? Normally, no. Unfortunately, the connectors are completely different. So, I'm at a standstill with that until I find a 2004 clock spring.
 
#258 ·
Well, this weekend wasn't nearly as productive as last weekend. Much of it was spent cleaning the shop, stripping down the K-member and organizing parts between junk and not junk.

The interior is 98% complete. I relocated the PCM to inside the cabin. The 04 computer is drastically bigger than the 05/06 PCM, so coupled with the fact that this 04 has the 2005 carpet with a dead pedal, some trimming had to be done for the computer to fit behind the kick panel. Since the dead pedal is foam, this wasn't such a daunting task.

So, here is the interior as she sits right now:



I just need to wait for when the battery is installed so that I can move the front seats to get to the other bolt holes to fully anchor them down. You can also see the difference between the 05 and 04 pedals. The clutch pedal is 2005 and the brake pedal is 2004. The tapered ends are on different locations.

Obviously, the steering column isn't completed. Why? Well, I hit a snag there. When I took the steering wheel off, I noticed that the clock spring was gone. So, I grabbed the clock spring out of my 2005. (One of the easiest clock springs to remove, ever.)
Well, there is a bit of a difference between the 05 and 04 clock springs.

05 Steering column:


04 Steering column:


If you look on the bottom, the "fangs" are in different locations. The 05 clock spring has a piece of plastic that runs along the bottom, which interferes with proper fit.


Not a big deal, right? Normally, no. Unfortunately, the connectors are completely different. So, I'm at a standstill with that until I find a 2004 clock spring.
 
#34 ·
Jeff if you need an extra set of hands on the weekends let me know. Next weekend I'll be on the outer banks for a week or so, but after that I'm free.
 
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