Buying Cobalt Donor Condition Suggestions on

[GAB]

Hello all, my names Glenn I’m new to the forum. I’m located in NY and I’ve been having a rough time finding a good donor.

I’m looking for an 2008 - 2010 Cobalt SS.
The prices for these model years with lower mileage has been kind of high. I want to be able to drive the car for a couple months before I buy the kit and start building.

Does it matter if the car has been heavily or lightly modded/tuned?
What are the things I should look out for or stay away from?
I’ve been aiming for under 100k miles and no mods if possible as I’m newer to cars but still mechanically inclined.

Any suggestions would be appreciated!
Thanks in advance
-GB

 

[Rauq]

Lots of mods- intercooler, exhaust, intake- don't transfer over well to a Goblin, if at all. A tune on the motor in the Cobalt doesn't go as far as a tune on the motor in the Goblin; decent chance you'll want to get someone to turn off check engine lights for nonexistent systems in the Goblin like AC, which is a convenient time to tune for the engine in the new chassis. Hardly any suspension mods on a Cobalt transfer over.

In my opinion, engine health is more important than mods. My donor was stock and clapped out but the motor was in great shape. I've seen others in great cosmetic shape with lots of work done to them that leak like sieves and don't idle well. It's all about what you're comfortable with. I would guess if you're looking at an SS/TC donor that you're aiming for an easy and relatively reliable low-to-mid 300s whp? Unfortunately you'll may pay a premium on the donor for the Brembos and improved suspension that made a difference in the Cobalt and that doesn't carry over in a Goblin.

I think donor selection should be driven by:

• How patient you're willing to be
• What's available to you
• How much you're willing to spend
• How much power you want to make
• How much work you're willing to put into your donor parts

If you share your general thoughts on the above, I'd enjoy tailoring recommendations a bit further.

 

[Gtstorey]

Low mileage at 13+ years old drivable and cheap is not something you are likely to find. Low mileage and drivable are getting hard to find at any cost.You might get lucky and find a low mileage wreck at a decent price, but they are getting hard to find also. These are not cars that were bought by people that would only drive them on weekends.

 

[Mahkoi]

The relatively clean under 08-10 100k SS car prices have gone really high the last couple of years. So I went the risky route. If you take the risky approach like I did and buy a bad front end wreck keep in mind that new parts like knuckles and cradles are getting hard to find. Good news is that I believe the base model cradles are the same as the SS except for the sway bar attachments. I lucked out and just needed a cradle and control arms and the motor was good and fired up in the goblin. I got my 08ss 85k donor for $700 and had to put about another $1k in for missing/ damaged parts (it was already going through the process of part out when I got it) It can work out if you go this route but proceed with caution if you go after the wrecked non running donor. I got super lucky. Good luck with the donor hunt hopefully you find what you are looking for.

 

[Ross]

Being selective in your donor car requires a lot of patience and luck. I started with your requirements, but after a month or two of looking, I widened my criteria to include the 2005-2007 LSJ supercharged cars too. They can be turboed and can handle high power too.

 

[GAB]

Thank you all for the responses, they help so much haha..
Honestly, I should've asked sooner Jeez!

So, my budget is between $6-7k maximum. I am in no rush to find the donor but I have come across about 2-3 good ones.
I have links to them, can I pm some of them to you?
I've seen from other threads that the stock SS/TC is already kind of overkill, but I was aiming for 350-400hp.

I'm definitely up for the challenge and willing to learn as much as possible throughout this journey.
I've taken a couple of Autocad classes so I'm pretty excited to put that to work as well!

But my experience searching for a donor aligns with what all of you have said.. some of the things I'm looking for may be a bit unrealistic in the price category or even in general but I have high hopes! (FYI I've only seen one completely stock SS.. throws in towel!!)

Copart has had some interesting deals on exactly what I'm looking for and most of them were rear ends, but I kind of got spooked by the salvage title.
If anyone can clear the air there id appreciate it!

I've actually seen SO MANY GREAT 05-07 Supercharged Cobalts, I'll start looking into them more, thanks!

 

[Rauq]

Feel free to post the donors you're looking at or PM them, fine by me either way!

I wouldn't shy away from modified Cobalts, but I wouldn't necessarily search them out, either. I did try to buy an SS/SC donor with a TVS blower on it, which in my opinion is about the only Cobalt bolt-on that's really worth having in a Goblin.

If you said you wanted to stop at 350whp, I'd say an SS/TC isn't a bad idea, but above that, an SS/SC may make about as much sense. I don't think an SS/TC can do 400whp on a stock turbo, and if you're buying a bolt-on turbo, or a turbo and manifold (potentially comparable price-wise), then you're not really coming out ahead by starting with a turbo motor. It's cheaper and easier to get more fuel into an SS/SC with port fuel injection than an SS/TC with direct injection, but DI + VVT can also make for a quicker spooling setup, albeit one harder to tune. Then again, the SS/SC computer has it's own quirks...

For $6-7k, I'd think you could get a decent SS/SC, a kinda clapped out SS/TC, or you could even get a super clean 2.2 or 2.4 donor and put rods and pistons in the motor, if that's something you'd entertain.

 

[Robinjo]

I've actually seen SO MANY GREAT 05-07 Supercharged Cobalts, I'll start looking into them more, thanks!

I love mine! That supercharger whine makes me heavy in the pants. Yes, I'm kind of limited on powa but it's already wicked fast. Like hurt you if your not ready for it fast. Other downside is I don't have that BOV sound.

 

[Rauq]

I love mine! That supercharger whine makes me heavy in the pants. Yes, I'm kind of limited on powa but it's already wicked fast. Like hurt you if your not ready for it fast. Other downside is I don't have that BOV sound.

Honestly that's my only regret going twincharged. I can hardly hear the supercharger anymore. It was intoxicating.

 

[Chubbs]

Copart has had some interesting deals on exactly what I'm looking for and most of them were rear ends, but I kind of got spooked by the salvage title.
If anyone can clear the air there id appreciate it!

I'm not sure where you're from, but the salvage title shouldn't be an issue at all.

All you have to do is prove that the parts you used in your goblin build were legally bought and not stolen. If you have a salvage title, that proves you bought the car. it doesn't matter that it was wrecked. You bought it, you have a title for it, and that's good enough for the Highway Patrol (at least in Missouri). Even a bill of sale with no title should work, just make darn sure the VIN doesn't come up as stolen. If that happens, you're screwed.

 

[Scott #321]

High mileage 07 SC just came up for sale on facebook in Eldorado Ks, $1000. Not sure I would get into a 220K donor with no title listed as-is condition but its out there.

 

[Dale E]

Albeit not an SS/SC or TC, last week the local police impound here sold two 2.2 Cobalt's, one a coupe automatic and the other a sedan 5 spd. Both had no body damage and were sold at 650$ and 495$. Next week a wrecked Cobalt is up with starting bid 275$. So if you have police impound auctions close, it's another option for finding a potential donor.

 

[RGSkid70]

Hello all, my names Glenn I’m new to the forum. I’m located in NY and I’ve been having a rough time finding a good donor.

I’m looking for an 2008 - 2010 Cobalt SS.
The prices for these model years with lower mileage has been kind of high. I want to be able to drive the car for a couple months before I buy the kit and start building.

Does it matter if the car has been heavily or lightly modded/tuned?
What are the things I should look out for or stay away from?
I’ve been aiming for under 100k miles and no mods if possible as I’m newer to cars but still mechanically inclined.

Any suggestions would be appreciated!
Thanks in advance
-GB

If you're thinking of buying a standard Cobalt donor and adding aftermarket performance mods, you should avoid '05 and '06 2.2 donors. HP Tuners does not support those model years. You will be stuck with OEM tuning.

 

[Goblinfanclub1234]

I wish i would have spent twice as much on my donor car in the long run it would have saved a lot of time and money...but I am glad that my donor came from Texas so there was very little rust to deal with.

 

[GAB]

I’ll say I did pretty good fellas, 2010 SS/TC, 70k miles in stellar condition (bought from original owner). Thank you all for the advice!

Honestly I doubt I’m going to use this as my donor. It’s a little tooo clean haha…

Has anyone had a similar experience ?

 

[Rttoys]

You ain’t done nut’n until you have cut up a 4 door SS. It’s the holy grail of cobalts and will guarantee you’ll get burned at the stake for tearing it apart.

 

[comegetjoe]

Price?

 

[SmsDetroit]

You ain’t done nut’n until you have cut up a 4 door SS. It’s the holy grail of cobalts and will guarantee you’ll get burned at the stake for tearing it apart.

I’m in that club with you. Cut it into 5 pieces

 

[ah.b.normal]

I’ll say I did pretty good fellas, 2010 SS/TC, 70k miles in stellar condition (bought from original owner). Thank you all for the advice!

Honestly I doubt I’m going to use this as my donor. It’s a little tooo clean haha…

Has anyone had a similar experience ?

That is a pretty cool car as is! I wouldn't be surprised if you kept it and built your Goblin from a wreck. BUT The Ball is in your court, the only rule is Have FUN! Ask around, someone may be willing to swap a completed Goblin for that car and some $! Several builders have built 2 or more Goblins! I believe DF has built around 4 that I've heard of!, maybe more?, ask Adam. Wallace58, in FLA is building one for a customer, Jareth?, In FLA is on his second. There is one near Houston just now that is sooooo cheap I would buy it IF I wasn't "Garage-less".

 

[GAB]

Price?

I got it for $3600!