Kevin's PA Goblin Build - 2007 SS/SC

[kevbo423]

Greetings, everyone.

I'm excited to announce that I've taken the first step towards building my Goblin. Yesterday I purchased a 2007 Chevrolet Cobalt SS Supercharged with 61,749 miles from Copart. It cost me $1,313 total (I could have saved $229 on delivery, but my friend with the truck/trailer wasn't available). My current plan is to start by stripping the donor and completing all of the prep work (thinning/configuring the wiring harness, cleaning/painting the engine, cleaning/painting the suspension components and sub-frame, etc.). Once I have all of that done, I then need to find a location where I can build the Goblin. Currently, I don't have access to a garage or any large space that I could use, but I'm on the lookout and am hopeful something will come up soon.

Before I begin the process of stripping my donor, I wanted to check in with the community to see if anyone has any tips/tricks that may help me down the road. I plan to bag and label all of the nuts/bolts that I take off as well as label each electrical connector as it is unplugged. Anything special I should be on the lookout for? Additionally, I wanted to check and see if anyone had an updated comprehensive list of all of the components/pieces/parts that are needed from a Supercharged donor. I searched around the forums, but didn't come across anything definitive.

Thanks in advance!

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[Ross]

Nice donor, low miles and low cost. That Ecotec LSJ with its forged crank and connecting rods is a beast.

 

[kevbo423]

Nice donor, low miles and low cost. That Ecotec LSJ with its forged crank and connecting rods is a beast.

Thanks! That's what I'm hoping for. So does the Turbocharged equivalent of this engine not have forged internals? Also, do you know of any good reading materials for familiarizing myself with the engine?

 

[Ross]

The turbo engine (LNF) has direct injection instead of port injection, which is a lot higher pressure of a fuel system. I don't know if it has forged internals, maybe this document will tell us:

GM SPORT COMPACT Performance Build Book -- 3rd Edition.pdf

docs.google.com

 

[Tinkles]

Where in PA are you at? I'm in the Scranton/Wilkesbarre area. I am hopefully going to be able to put mine together this year(it's at a fabrication shop now getting a "few" things changed.

 

[Karter2026]

Where in PA are you at? I'm in the Scranton/Wilkesbarre area. I am hopefully going to be able to put mine together this year(it's at a fabrication shop now getting a "few" things changed.

Thats 5 or 6 in PA now! There are 3 in the Pittsburgh area of the state that I know of.

 

[Desert Sasqwatch]

Kevin, welcome to the forum and the Goblin family. Great donor, hopefully nothing on the drivers side of the engine/trans is damaged, that corner looks pretty well crunched in. You've already mentioned the bagging and tagging of parts, labeling electrical connections so you are good there. Please be sure to keep all brake lines and parts/clips, the hand brake system (I believe it is needed in PA), and determine if you will be using the donor seats (or not) to keep this hardware.

Hopefully you can find a suitable location to do you Goblin build. Keep in mind you will need room to store the parts before they are built - lots of box on shelves for most of us - and access to shop tools like a good floor jack and engine crane/cherry picker.

 

[kevbo423]

Where in PA are you at? I'm in the Scranton/Wilkesbarre area. I am hopefully going to be able to put mine together this year(it's at a fabrication shop now getting a "few" things changed.

I'm in the State College/Centre County area.

Kevin, welcome to the forum and the Goblin family. Great donor, hopefully nothing on the drivers side of the engine/trans is damaged, that corner looks pretty well crunched in.

Thanks! It appears that the lower control arm is bent and the axle is snapped off. I'm not sure if the sub-frame is usable or not, but I suspected all of this when I purchased the car. I figured I couldn't pass up an SS/SC engine with so few miles this close to me. I'll snag another control arm, axle, and sub-frame if I have to.

Please be sure to keep all brake lines and parts/clips, the hand brake system (I believe it is needed in PA), and determine if you will be using the donor seats (or not) to keep this hardware.

Hopefully you can find a suitable location to do you Goblin build. Keep in mind you will need room to store the parts before they are built - lots of box on shelves for most of us - and access to shop tools like a good floor jack and engine crane/cherry picker.

The seats are in pretty good shape so I think I'll hold onto them for now. My dad is letting me disassemble the car in his driveway and store the parts in his basement, so thankfully that is taken care of. I should already have all of the tools I need less the engine crane. I plan to pick one up from Harbor Freight for that.

 

[Desert Sasqwatch]

2 ton was $189 a couple weeks ago, picked one up then. The 1 ton is on sale now at $149. I got the 2 ton because I have other heavy items that my crane will be used for. The 1 ton would work for a Cobalt engine/trans if you don't need the extra lifting margin.

 

[Ross]

Thanks! That's what I'm hoping for. So does the Turbocharged equivalent of this engine not have forged internals? Also, do you know of any good reading materials for familiarizing myself with the engine?

The LNF (turbo) and the LSJ (supercharged) engines both have a forged crank. (according to page 83 of the GM SPORT COMPACT Performance Build Book)
Both the LNF and LSJ connecting rods are recommended to replace after the 400 hp mark (according to page 86)

 

[Ark :D]

I'm surprised I missed this thread. Welcome, from one PA builder to another!

 

[kevbo423]

A little update on the build. I've started stripping the interior and labeling the wiring harness. I also got the engine started and verified all of the gears worked without issue. The weather hasn't been great the last month, but I'm hoping I'll be able to move a little faster now that we've moved into Spring. Still no luck with finding a garage to rent or a house with a garage to purchase.

 

[JBINTX]

Great start! I am amazed at how many builders do so much with so little. Keep it up!

 

[kevbo423]

I made a lot of progress on the build. A couple friends came over to help and made the process a whole lot easier. Got a majority of the donor ripped apart and parts stored in the basement. Still have a couple little things to do before I can sell off the shell and I have a few questions at the bottom.

Questions:

1. Do I need any of the following?
   • Hard brake lines or the ABS module
   • Rear Struts/Shocks
   • Any fuel lines leading from the rear to the front
   • In-Door wiring harnesses
2. I used fogging oil on the engine to help prevent corrosion while in storage. Is it safe to use on the supercharger as well? I wasn't able to find much online.
3. Are the sub-frame and control arms the same across all models of Cobalt? I'm going to need a driver side control arm and a sub-frame.
4. In order to sell off the shell, do I need to hand over the Certificate of Salvage or am I able to hold onto that?

Thanks!

 

[Desert Sasqwatch]

Keep the hard brake lines that attach to the rubber and the fuel lines.
Ditch the ABS module, the door wiring, and rear shocks.
Fogging all the internal rotating parts is okay as long as you don't 'puddle' the oil.
The the subframes are all the same with the exception of the SS having a pair of bolts for each sway bar bushing mount versus a clip in bracket with a single bolt. There are steel control arms and aluminum control arms.
The ball joints are different for the SS/TC that have larger ball joint stubs that mate to SS/TC specific uprights.
Junking the donor shell is dependent upon state and local requirements, check with the scrapper first to see what they require.
Great progress!

 

[JBINTX]

The motor looks good!
Some of the suspension components - ouchy!
Good to get extra hands to help you.
And - what Tim said above.
And - welcome (a little late)

 

[Parson Green]

I made a lot of progress on the build. A couple friends came over to help and made the process a whole lot easier. Got a majority of the donor ripped apart and parts stored in the basement. Still have a couple little things to do before I can sell off the shell and I have a few questions at the bottom.

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Questions:

1. Do I need any of the following?
   • Hard brake lines or the ABS module
   • Rear Struts/Shocks
   • Any fuel lines leading from the rear to the front
   • In-Door wiring harnesses
2. I used fogging oil on the engine to help prevent corrosion while in storage. Is it safe to use on the supercharger as well? I wasn't able to find much online.
3. Are the sub-frame and control arms the same across all models of Cobalt? I'm going to need a driver side control arm and a sub-frame.
4. In order to sell off the shell, do I need to hand over the Certificate of Salvage or am I able to hold onto that?

Thanks!

...
Our donor was also a 2007 LSJ except it had about 10K additional miles. Great donor! If your motor has, like ours had, excellent compression and near-zero oil consumption then you're set to go. No performance mods needed and you'll have acceleration like you won't believe.

Recommend you purchase all new hubs. Ditto for control arms. Ditto for this thing (unless your donor has the rare one that telescopes easily).

https://www.ebay.com/itm/INTERMEDIATE-STEERING-SHAFT-FITS-CHEVROLET-COBALT-SATURN-ION-G5-2004-2007-4CYL/152980247851?fits=Model:Cobalt|Make:Chevrolet&epid=15019372257&hash=item239e55552b:g:M04AAOSwIrVbQBfK

Recommend you gut your ac compressor. Direct quote from George/Brad (a goblin guru) "You can not find a better bearing than the one that holds the a/c compressor pulley."

Happy motoring!