How long did it take from start to finish?

[Moark Willy]

I just found out about these kits a few days ago. I admit I am fascinated if not obsessed.
I have spent a lot of time looking for Cobalts online and am trying to figure out the logistics after I pull the trigger.
I will have to park my new truck outside for the duration of the build, find a spot for the Cobalt and figure out what to do with a pile of unused parts afterwards.
About that duration......
From the time you started your build to the time it was "finished".....how many hours do you think you have into it?
I will be doing most of the build myself. I am retired for the most part and have the time, but life goes on outside of the build.
There are always "honey do's" to consider of course.
What do you think?

 

[ctuinstra]

A good general rule of thumb is around a 100 hours. That question is often asked and I asked it myself. But in reality it's really hard to measure because most don't actually keep track. Also there are a lot of hours not directly associated with the build such as the research you have already started. See, you have a least an hour into it and haven't even started.

Once all the parts are ready, clean, and painted, you can assemble it in two weekends if you push and don't run into issues. We took two months of lazy time here and there and had it running. But six month of prep work again just here and there and on weekends. We didn't push hard and just enjoyed it. And we customized along the way, that can make a huge difference in the build time. There are some that are going on two years!

If you are retired, you will have it done in no time.

 

[ctuinstra]

And our second build was super quick with even more customization. I guess that goes without saying,

 

[Ross]

I bought a Cobalt in November, ordered my kit and had it by January. Barely worked on the car in the winter, but had it licensed and driving in June.
It probably will never be done, as the changes are what makes it fun for me.

 

[Ark :D]

Started the project in April 2019, just finished in September 2020. We all encounter different complications with the build, and we all work at our own pace.

 

[OptimizePrime]

12 Months end to end

Donor purchase to receiving frame: 2 Months
First Build: 2 Months without paint/wrap
Second Build: 3 Months - Mainly due to shipping and stock outs (thanks Covid)
Getting Street Legal: 5 Months - there were some unmotivated days / weeks on my part built into this, but mostly due to incompetence at the DMV.

 

[Vwsaabvt]

A long time when you just let it sit on the lift in your garage while working one everyone else's stuff instead of your own. I've had my kit in my posession for 15 months now.

 

[comegetjoe]

A long time when you just let it sit on the lift in your garage while working one everyone else's stuff instead of your own. I've had my kit in my posession for 15 months now.

Sounds like you need some ME time.

 

[JBINTX]

2 weeks to start.
1 more week till driving it.
And every day since enjoying it and dreaming about what else could be added /upgraded.....
To be fair to others, retirement and Covid allowed working on it every day, all day. And parts were all prepped and ready to go.

 

[k.rollin]

I purchased my donor car and placed my deposit for Stage 1 in May 2017. Stage 1 arrived September 5, 2017. I didn't order Stage 2 until April 5, 2018. My first drive was August 8, 2020 and it was registered August 24th. Build at your pace; some go real quick and then there's me at over three years.

 

[benjy]

Started in late April 2020, registered in September 2020. Most of the time I worked on it was before work, 5am-630am. I worked on it 2 weekends as well when a budddy came to lend a hand.

 

[Torchandregdoc]

It completely depends on how clean you want your build and how much of the build you're paying others to do. I'm in a wheelchair and built the car with my 17 year old son. I also stole time from older kids, family, friends, delivery people and anyone else that would help for 10 minutes. Best guess. 400 hours or so.

I paid to have my wiring done. Best guess, that probably saved 40 hours. We coated every part ourselves, either powder or paint. It took about 20 hours to learn to powdercoat. We painted the frame. 10 man hours with prep and $100 on paint.

Frame delivery 8/23/19
Donor car purchase 9/20/19
Prep work until 6/1/20
First start 6/13/20
First drive 7/9/20

Oh, and we used an HHR SS as a donor, probably 50 hours in decisions and fab in that change. A huge amount of time think about how to do custom stuff.

We bought a Harbor Freight tent to store everything. Space is still a probelm. We are still doing little projects on the car so it is still front and center in the shop.

It was a big project. A fun project. Frustrating at times. I had tremendous support from DF and from the good people on this forum. And... Not one time in the last month have I shut the lights off in the shop at bedtime and not had myself say it or Kenny say it, "Dude, we have a Goblin, that is the coolest looking and driving car in the world". It's been worth every minute


P. S.
My wife was getting pretty tired of it in about May. Her first ride erased all of her frustration.

 

[JBuild]

As for parking and space I had the donor stripped and gone within a weekend and it wasn't bad at all. I kept a pile of the could possible use/sell stuff but the shell was gone about 4 days after it arrived.

About 6 months from getting the donor to the first start/drive, that included splitting time with other projects and having major knee surgery.

My previous donor was loved hard and I ran into many issues along the way but between this forum and the cobalt forums I was able to find a solution to every one. Took about a year to get everything straightened out to the point where it was track ready, still working through the street legal aspect but that delay was more COVID related.

Looking back I'm confident someone could get it built and driving with 2 months of receiving the frame without much issue, the custom touches and add-on/mods really added to my timeline.

 

[Mayor West]

I'm in the final stretch, but have two young kids and not a lot of time so it's usually one day a week.

Here's my timeline:

1. Oct 10, 2017 Joined DF forums
2. Jun 24, 2019 Bought Donor
3. Jun 29, 2019 Received Donor
4. Feb 13, 2020 Ordered Kit
5. May 09, 2020 Received Kit
6. Jun 01, 2020 Powder Coated
7. Jun 05, 2020 Began Assembly
8. Sep 15, 2020 First Crank
   1. Fixed Clutch Pedal Sensor wiring gremlin
9. Oct 04, 2020 First Start & Idle
10. Nov 01, 2020 Maiden neighborhood voyage!

Cliff Notes & Fun Facts:

• It took me about 1 year and 8 months to pull the trigger on deciding to start the project.
• It took almost 5 months to order my kit after purchasing my donor.
• It took just over 12 weeks from kit order to delivery.
• It took 3.5 months to get first to my first crank.
  • Stage 2 was already done and I had a roller, but clutch pedal wiring gremlin plagued my donor from the start so I never got to crank it.
• It took just less than 6 months to go from kit received to first drive.

 

[SACTX]

I think I read 200 hours somewhere before. I think that's a good guess, end to end, for a build without a lot of custom stuff. Actual calendar time is going to vary a LOT based on how much time each person puts into it.

I purchased my kit in April and received my donor at the end of April. Had it stripped in a month or so.

My frame was picked up at the end of July and I didn't really get into it until the middle of August. Working on registration now and just about done. This is with some weekends off here and there and some nights after work. I work pretty slow as well....

 

[jennam]

I have roughly 125 person-hours in mine from start to street legal. They, like most projects, are never "finished". You'll find things you want to change, then things that you want to upgrade, and things you want to redo. That's part of the fun with a kit car. You start with something basic and make it your own.

 

[Brian74]

Decided on build May 2017. Picked up donor in Sept 2017 and stage 1 in Dec 2017. Several hundred hours in. Lots of additional custom fabrication and custom electrical. Kit fully acquired other than wheels, tires, & headlights.

Still not near finished. Was hoping around May but I have a very busy work schedule.

 

[Desert Sasqwatch]

Interested in the Goblin in December 2018, bought donor in March 2019, got kit in September 2019, and like Brian, I have been doing modifications and purchasing parts since then. Guessing I have too many hours into my build to admit to, but who's counting when I'm having fun. I'm guessing that I may have something close to driveable about this time next year, barring any unforeseen events. For me it's all about the build, before it becomes my favorite driving toy.

 

[ncgoblin]

I just found out about these kits a few days ago. I admit I am fascinated if not obsessed.
I have spent a lot of time looking for Cobalts online and am trying to figure out the logistics after I pull the trigger.
I will have to park my new truck outside for the duration of the build, find a spot for the Cobalt and figure out what to do with a pile of unused parts afterwards.
About that duration......
From the time you started your build to the time it was "finished".....how many hours do you think you have into it?
I will be doing most of the build myself. I am retired for the most part and have the time, but life goes on outside of the build.
There are always "honey do's" to consider of course.
What do you think?

Do it.

 

[Kenny123]

So we bought our frame a while ago and it was delivered around 2nd week in sept. I work full time and so does my girlfriend and were almost "finished" I don't have hours to speak of but I can say I have learned so much and gained so much confidence in my ability to work through issues. I'd say if you are considering this build just do it... it has been such a great experience and 100% well worth the money.