V1 Dan's #495 build (2006 SS/SC)

[Joebob]

I vote polishing.

Joe

 

[jirwin]

View attachment 43418

I vote polishing.

Joe

Or if you're lazy like me, just hit it with Duplicolor Engine Enamel in Cast Coat Aluminum:

 

[escapepilot]

I cleaned mine w/ Dawn Power Wash to degrease then used Lume Bright to remove the aluminum oxidation. You will need some form of protection to keep it from oxidizing again. I used Sharkhide.

 

[TheAnesthetist]

I cleaned mine w/ Dawn Power Wash to degrease then used Lume Bright to remove the aluminum oxidation. You will need some form of protection to keep it from oxidizing again. I used Sharkhide.

I sprayed the whole engine bay with purple power and got pretty good results. I'll do a much more thorough cleaning when the powertrain is free of its cobalt prison

 

[ah.b.normal]

My wiring life is as messed up as anyone building a Goblin. All I can say is wiring by the vids is time consuming BUT has the advantage of cadaver clinic; you will be very well acquainted with the the remaining electrical systems composing your Goblin. Wiring is not for everyone! It can be quite boring and tedious, not to mention messy. The upside is that counting only a few wiring service "complaints" on this forum I believe this service is worth the time and the effort saved for those builders. I can't dismiss those that buy the wiring service any more than I could dismiss those that don't rebuild their own engine! My friend whom I stepped in and helped him finish his Goblin realized he was out of "band with" in his life, he said it wasn't low, he was OUT of bandwidth. He figured he could quit and sell or he would finish in 2026 or "call out for a tech" to lead him through and out to completion. Yeah!, he coulda done it all himself but life doesn't always allow us to dot all the T's and cross all the EYES's personally. Josh09 is very happy with his build, I hope you will be too! This build a car stuff is supposed to be fun, not drudgery. Stay Frosty!

 

[TheAnesthetist]

Had a productive weekend. Got the front suspension out without a ton of drama. One of the axle nuts was pretty stuck but it was no match for PB blaster and a 6' breaker bar. Stripped most of the interior, got the fuse box out, and started on the dash. Next up will be the subframe.

I bought a couple of these tackle boxes from harbor freight to keep my fasteners organized. Already gone through a roll of label-maker tape.

 

[Desert Sasqwatch]

Great progress! Getting the donor stripped is a big first milestone.

 

[ah.b.normal]

Had a productive weekend. Got the front suspension out without a ton of drama. One of the axle nuts was pretty stuck but it was no match for PB blaster and a 6' breaker bar. Stripped most of the interior, got the fuse box out, and started on the dash. Next up will be the subframe.

I bought a couple of these tackle boxes from harbor freight to keep my fasteners organized. Already gone through a roll of label-maker tape.

I'm not sure there is a problem with too much organization! Too little though is common. A few thoughts for the builder, there IS a fixed number of fasteners that make up these donors, though it may seem like that number is beyond a billion, rest assured it probably barely crests 40,000. Fortunately I imagine each lost bolt has about a 50-50 chance of being needed! There are plenty you will not use! and others you will use all or most of the stash! That is why i offer to find those missing bits for a reasonable price. It's not a Money Maker for me but gives extra worth to my junk yard visits.

 

[TheAnesthetist]

I bought the Corbeau seats from DF. Will they accept the sliders from the factory seats? I'm making a pile of donor parts to sell but didnt want to let the sliders go if I can reuse them. My wife is much longer-legged than I am so adjustable seats are a must.

 

[Markm]

I bought the Corbeau seats from DF. Will they accept the sliders from the factory seats? I'm making a pile of donor parts to sell but didnt want to let the sliders go if I can reuse them. My wife is much longer-legged than I am so adjustable seats are a must.

With ingenuity and some metal I’m sure there’s a way to put sliders on those seats

 

[TheAnesthetist]

With ingenuity and some metal I’m sure there’s a way to put sliders on those seats

Maybe for someone with a welder and some fab skills, sure. I have neither. Nor do I want to make my welding debut on a critical safety element. Corbeau sells a slider kit for their seats so if it the cobalt sliders dont bolt on, I'll just go that route. I'm not looking to spend a fortune on this build, but also not willing to cut corners to save a buck either.

 

[Robinjo]

Planted Racing also makes a baseplate to mount sliders to. A little pricey but designed to fit well. If you watch the Cobalt The Facebook forums they pop up from time to time. I'm planning to run the PR brackets/sliders for the drivers side to allow movement but going to use the DF kit for the passenger side. It doesn't need to move. I think one end has to be shimmed a little for the Goblin but that can be done with washers or aluminum/steel hollow rod material.

https://www.plantedtechnology.com/collections/chevrolet?filter.p.m.custom.seat_bracket_application=Chevrolet+Cobalt+%282005-2010%29

 

[Sebnuts]

Corbeau has baseplates with sliders included, cheaper than the planted tech ones, but also require a little shenanigans to make them mount solid.

I was eyeballing these because they're really cheap for the pair, but not sure about quality or fitment.

 

[Robinjo]

Corbeau has baseplates with sliders included, cheaper than the planted tech ones, but also require a little shenanigans to make them mount solid.

I was eyeballing these because they're really cheap for the pair, but not sure about quality or fitment.

Any pictures of these mounted into a Goblin frame? The one down side of the PR baseplates is that's more height upward, well that and they are $185 a side (plus sliders). I'm not going to be fabing up stuff for the seats because I do not trust my skills for something so critical.

 

[escapepilot]

Maybe for someone with a welder and some fab skills, sure. I have neither. Nor do I want to make my welding debut on a critical safety element. Corbeau sells a slider kit for their seats so if it the cobalt sliders dont bolt on, I'll just go that route. I'm not looking to spend a fortune on this build, but also not willing to cut corners to save a buck either.

It is possible to remove the slider portion from the factory seats and it is possible to make them work with other seats, but you do need some fabrication/problem solving skill. If I were going to do it again, I'd remove the factory sliders and us a piece of flat steel plate to adapt them to another seat's bolt pattern.

 

[Robinjo]

Corbeau also offers these: https://corbeau.com/chevrolet-cobalt-04-seat-brackets/

 

[TheAnesthetist]

Corbeau also offers these: https://corbeau.com/chevrolet-cobalt-04-seat-brackets/

I think this is the route I'll end up going. For now, I'll just hang on to the factory seats and see what it would take to make the sliders work once my kit arrives.

 

[Goblinfanclub1234]

I have Corbeau seat sliders and seats, they fit nice. I had to source some stainless steel spacers to get my seats at the right height, and to make sure the hooks on the seat mounts fit tight against the bottom of the square tube in the goblin floor.

 

[TheAnesthetist]

Subframe and engine are out. One of the rear subframe bolts was rust-welded to the LCA bushing so I had to destroy both the get it out. I'll order the Moog replacement bushings and have a machine shop press them in for me. Engine came out with no trouble but I haven't been able to free the shift cables from their bracket on the trans. Looks like they should slide right out but they're on there really tight. Soaked them with wd40 overnight so hopefully that will help.

 

[Robinjo]

Subframe and engine are out. One of the rear subframe bolts was rust-welded to the LCA bushing so I had to destroy both the get it out.

That's pretty much standard for these vehicles. I think the passenger side through the arm bolt was the one I had to cut out.

You don't reuse the shift cables so those can be cut off (unless your trying to sell them). Just be sure not to damage the shift arms on the transmission though, you DO need that! I think mine were super tight so I had to essentially pry them off with a long screwdriver.