Pontiac G8 2008-2010 - Trading my Trailblazer SS for G8 GT

Well my wife and i have had our 06 TBSS since 06 and im ready to get rid of her.We have been looking at the G8 Gt for some time now and i think its time to trade up.There are 3 in our area (all 2009's) White,grey and sport red so whatever color she likes i guess is the one well get.What is the best tune for it...can i just get a handheld or should i just get it dyno tuned?

Best tune is never a handheld, it is a professional custom tune IMO. A tune really wakes these engines and transmissions up...

If you want the most power out of your engine, put that thing on a dyno.

Trade it. I love ours. You will appreciate the increased fuel economy too.

I traded my TBSS for a G8GT and its a great improvement. more power, better tranny, fuel economy.

When I turned in my TBSS after 36 months, the computer said my average mileage over the life of the vehicle was 12.5 mpg. Did not miss it after I said goodbye.

I'm thinking about trading my cobalt sstc in on one. Just would like to hear some more pros and cons

Nicer in every respect unless you need the room, foul weather capability or to tow.

Does anybody have any number increase examples from bone stock to a tune?

I'm sure the feel speaks more than the numbers with the 6l80e tuned though

I had just a Roto fab cold air intake and a handheld super chips tune and the car made 303/333. never got to dyno the car stock.

Then installed headers and magnaflow cat back and made 343/353 with a dyno/ street tune.

Then added a Livernois stage 1c cam and made 383/372 .
All done on a mustang dyno.

Then added a d1 procharger, suspension, gauges, and other crap and made 577/540.

I enjoyed the car in all forms.
The interior grey trim peels very easily. Nothing some wrap or paint can't fix. Oil changes are expensive as the car takes 8.8 qts of oil.
Car has a few recalls and service bulletins that need to be taken care of. Examples are the trunk latch mechanism, Lcas, dod lifter failure, rear main seal, harsh shifting/ flare.

Not all of them have these issues.
Tranny temps get very high under spirited driving, so to have these transmissions last when making more power then stock, a tranny cooler is a must( 150$). Big brake upgrades are cheap( camaro ss brembos or cts v brembos) and rims are cheap as well. Sky is the limit with these cars.

Mods for the car are fairly expensive because they aren't produced in the USA anymore. But it's definitely worth it and the car is an amazing machine.

I had just a Roto fab cold air intake and a handheld super chips tune and the car made 303/333. never got to dyno the car stock.

Then installed headers and magnaflow cat back and made 343/353 with a dyno/ street tune.

Then added a Livernois stage 1c cam and made 383/372 .
All done on a mustang dyno.

Then added a d1 procharger, suspension, gauges, and other crap and made 577/540.

I enjoyed the car in all forms.
The interior grey trim peels very easily. Nothing some wrap or paint can't fix. Oil changes are expensive as the car takes 8.8 qts of oil.
Car has a few recalls and service bulletins that need to be taken care of. Examples are the trunk latch mechanism, Lcas, dod lifter failure, rear main seal, harsh shifting/ flare.

Not all of them have these issues.
Tranny temps get very high under spirited driving, so to have these transmissions last when making more power then stock, a tranny cooler is a must( 150$). Big brake upgrades are cheap( camaro ss brembos or cts v brembos) and rims are cheap as well. Sky is the limit with these cars.

Mods for the car are fairly expensive because they aren't produced in the USA anymore. But it's definitely worth it and the car is an amazing machine.
Thank you for the descriptive response as I myself am interested in a G8 GT as a fun, practical DD

All of the upgrades sound reasonable, the recalls are what would scare me off a bit but I guess that'd be an excuse to replace the factory LCA's with some aftermarket units

I kept my TBSS for my DD and winter ride as it was AWD when I got my G8

^^^^ same here. I do use the tbss for towing my formula to the track a few times a year but the wife uses it as her DD during the winter. With Having the choice to drive either, I choose the g8 just cause the car surprises me every time I get on it.

You're on the right track with wanting to do the tune intake and exhaust cause it woke the car up and made it much more fun to drive. Plus 28mpg on the highway is nothing to complain about compared to the TBSS @ 18mpg

I have the superchips hand held tuner and it's pretty decent. I have never had a dyno tune, but for the money, the hand held is pretty cool.

Let's you select different intakes as well as tranny options (shift points, TM, etc.)

Of course, if you go more than bolt on's, you're looking at a custom tune anyways.