New Member Looking At '06-'07 Monte SS's
08-06-2010, 07:42 AM
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New Member Looking At '06-'07 Monte SS's Hey all,
I'm a new member here, just looking to get some feedback on the LS4-powered Monte SS. I test-drove one a few weeks ago with my kids, and we all loved it. There's plenty of room for them in the back (they're 7 and 4) and it's easy enough to get in and out for them so I'd really like to unload my daily-driver Cherokee and get into a new Monte. I've been looking more at GM Certified cars with low milage, but they do come with a bit of a pricetag hike. How have these cars held up over the years? I know the W-body platform is pretty reliable (we've had a few W-bods over the years) but is there anything specific with the LS4 to watch out for? And since my driving is probably 90% city driving, what's the real-world fuel mileage? Does the DOD come into play around town, or only on the highway? I'm sure it's got to be at least as good as my Cherokee, probably better - the Jeep gets about 14mpg around town, and barely 20mpg on the highway.
As for me, I've been a long-time gearhead and am a decent driveway mechanic -I work on and modify pretty much anything I drive. . My first car when I got my license in 1990 was a rusty '76 Monte Carlo, and I've been hooked ever since. I've also owned a few G-body Monte SS's (two '85 SSs, and an '87 SS) and I still own an '88 SS. The '88 has a ton of mods, including a ZZ4-cammed 355 with a TPI on top, 5-speed conversion, 12" front disc brakes, lowered suspension, 17" wheels, etc. The suspension and motor/trans swap were done in my driveway with the help of my friends, and I built the motor in my garage. Here's a few pics -
Looking forward to your feedback about these awesome cars!
I'm a new member here, just looking to get some feedback on the LS4-powered Monte SS. I test-drove one a few weeks ago with my kids, and we all loved it. There's plenty of room for them in the back (they're 7 and 4) and it's easy enough to get in and out for them so I'd really like to unload my daily-driver Cherokee and get into a new Monte. I've been looking more at GM Certified cars with low milage, but they do come with a bit of a pricetag hike. How have these cars held up over the years? I know the W-body platform is pretty reliable (we've had a few W-bods over the years) but is there anything specific with the LS4 to watch out for? And since my driving is probably 90% city driving, what's the real-world fuel mileage? Does the DOD come into play around town, or only on the highway? I'm sure it's got to be at least as good as my Cherokee, probably better - the Jeep gets about 14mpg around town, and barely 20mpg on the highway.
As for me, I've been a long-time gearhead and am a decent driveway mechanic -I work on and modify pretty much anything I drive. . My first car when I got my license in 1990 was a rusty '76 Monte Carlo, and I've been hooked ever since. I've also owned a few G-body Monte SS's (two '85 SSs, and an '87 SS) and I still own an '88 SS. The '88 has a ton of mods, including a ZZ4-cammed 355 with a TPI on top, 5-speed conversion, 12" front disc brakes, lowered suspension, 17" wheels, etc. The suspension and motor/trans swap were done in my driveway with the help of my friends, and I built the motor in my garage. Here's a few pics -
Looking forward to your feedback about these awesome cars!
08-06-2010, 08:16 AM
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Your 88 is a work of art. Absolutely fantastic. As for the 06-07, I am currently on my second. Bought an 06 new and hit about 72k on the odometer before trading up to the 07. As much as I miss rear wheel drive, the FWD is just phenomenal for winter, the cars are quite sure footed. You are right as well, the W-body platform has always been one of GM's best. Never really had any sort of problems with the 06 and the 07 is starting off great as well. DOD is really more beneficial when you are highway cruising but, for actual mileage numbers, I've stopped paying attention to that a long time ago haha.
08-06-2010, 08:20 AM
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I too had an '85 - thought that was a great car. It was my favorite till I got this one, which I purchased brand new.
Reliability - 111,000 miles with no significant repairs
Gas mileage - 19.5 lifetime avg @ 50 / 50 now - I don't abuse this car
I would get another one if they still made them. The seats are amazingly comfortable, get the 8 speaker radio, power roof and I personally like the chrome wheels.
Reliability - 111,000 miles with no significant repairs
Gas mileage - 19.5 lifetime avg @ 50 / 50 now - I don't abuse this car
I would get another one if they still made them. The seats are amazingly comfortable, get the 8 speaker radio, power roof and I personally like the chrome wheels.
Last edited by Kazmaniac; 08-08-2010 at 01:35 AM.
08-06-2010, 08:30 AM
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welcome sir!!! nice monte!!! for you i would get an 07+ so you can get the warranty, get a tune and get rid of DoD, then throw in a big trans cooler, and you should be all set!!
08-06-2010, 02:07 PM
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DoD won't really be a factor for you since it's all city driving. But you might not see too much over 14.
The weak link has been the trans as pointed out. A TEP for sure if you're doing higher hp, but just for driving purposes get a big aftermarket cooler and you should be just fine.
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08-06-2010, 04:57 PM
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12-14 is fair for MPG around town. It really depends on how heavy your left foot is. I mean anyone can get up on the highway and cruise control and get good mileage, but when the roar of a modded v8 is three inches away under your right foot, it take some restraint not to get on a little.
Oh, and nice monte in the OP. I love the 80's g body styles. They look business.
Oh, and nice monte in the OP. I love the 80's g body styles. They look business.
08-08-2010, 06:50 AM
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Your 88 is a work of art. Absolutely fantastic. As for the 06-07, I am currently on my second. Bought an 06 new and hit about 72k on the odometer before trading up to the 07. As much as I miss rear wheel drive, the FWD is just phenomenal for winter, the cars are quite sure footed. You are right as well, the W-body platform has always been one of GM's best. Never really had any sort of problems with the 06 and the 07 is starting off great as well. DOD is really more beneficial when you are highway cruising but, for actual mileage numbers, I've stopped paying attention to that a long time ago haha.
Indeed it is! What a world of difference, going from the auto to the 5-speed. The car felt like it picked up 20hp and is tons more fun in the curves now since you can really hang on to the gears.
Great, thanks for the advice! Has anyone seen a real difference in mileage by getting rid of the DOD?
08-09-2010, 08:32 PM
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welcome and very nice looking Monte!!! I'm somewhat new here as well and have heard about the weak tranny in these cars. I drive a '08 Impala SS and love it! This is my 4th straight w-body I've owned and only initially had trouble with my '88 Regal(2.8). My '95 Cutlass SL(3100) was excellent as well as my '02 Grand Prix GT(3800 II). The LS4 isn't the fastest car on the road, but it sure feels great having those extra pony's while passing!
08-10-2010, 01:57 PM
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Beautiful Monte Carlo. I have a soft spot for the mid 80's G-Bodies, and yours is a fantastic example.
I considered swapping a 5-speed into my '87 Grand National. Which trans did you use? What type of car donated the clutch linkage and stuff? I'm really interested in learning more about this!
As for the current W-Bodies, I have mixed feelings. We bought our 2006 Impala SS with 30,000 miles on the clock, and fortunately, we have the 5/100,000 GM Certified Used warranty. In the first month, we had to get the following things fixed, as we bought the car with these issues:
Tire Pressure Monitoring System sensors and radio board replaced: Was getting false readings and warnings for no pressure sometimes.
Replaced power window regulators: All 4 windows made clicking sounds when lowering.
Driver's side power seat motor replaced. Felt like a paint shaker!
Intermediate Steering Shaft replaced. Car had the infamous "clunk" when turning the wheel.
After these things were fixed, the car was very reliable until the transmission began to fail at 58,000 miles. This was rebuilt under warranty, too.
A lot of people with umodded LS4s have experienced transmission issues, and most are caused by the converter failing, with debris getting into the fluid and wiping out the clutches. Now there are some cars that are well over 100k miles on the stock tranny with no problems. It seems to be very hit-and-miss. If you get one of these cars, I recommend installing the biggest trans cooler you can find, even if you don't mod the car in any other way. It won't prevent your converter from failing, but it will reduce the risk of burned fluid.
On the other hand, I'm pretty sure 90% of these cars will or have had he Intermediate Steering Shaft "clunk". The best fix for this, if you have to do it yourself, is to buy a new one and load the **** out of it with grease. Most of the people who have done that have not seen the problem come back.
Other common problems that I've heard of but not had personally are:
Hub wear and replacement.
Abnormal wear of the insides of the rear tires due to a recurring alignment issue. This is fixed with a camber bolt kit that the dealer won't provide under warranty.
Lifter noise.
The car serves our needs, as it gets 1000 miles a week of highway driving. We average around 26 MPG in these conditions, and we've seen as high as 30 MPG on a 430 mile trip from LA to Phoenix.
Would we buy the car again? Given our circumstances, probably not. If we lived closer to work (my wife's commute is 94 miles EACH WAY right now), then probably. The biggest stress is worrying if our trans is going to die again in the middle of the drive to/from work. We did buy a low-mileage "spare" trans to have on-hand if/when this one dies, but that's pretty ridiculous when you think about it!
Anyway, just my .02.
I considered swapping a 5-speed into my '87 Grand National. Which trans did you use? What type of car donated the clutch linkage and stuff? I'm really interested in learning more about this!
As for the current W-Bodies, I have mixed feelings. We bought our 2006 Impala SS with 30,000 miles on the clock, and fortunately, we have the 5/100,000 GM Certified Used warranty. In the first month, we had to get the following things fixed, as we bought the car with these issues:
Tire Pressure Monitoring System sensors and radio board replaced: Was getting false readings and warnings for no pressure sometimes.
Replaced power window regulators: All 4 windows made clicking sounds when lowering.
Driver's side power seat motor replaced. Felt like a paint shaker!
Intermediate Steering Shaft replaced. Car had the infamous "clunk" when turning the wheel.
After these things were fixed, the car was very reliable until the transmission began to fail at 58,000 miles. This was rebuilt under warranty, too.
A lot of people with umodded LS4s have experienced transmission issues, and most are caused by the converter failing, with debris getting into the fluid and wiping out the clutches. Now there are some cars that are well over 100k miles on the stock tranny with no problems. It seems to be very hit-and-miss. If you get one of these cars, I recommend installing the biggest trans cooler you can find, even if you don't mod the car in any other way. It won't prevent your converter from failing, but it will reduce the risk of burned fluid.
On the other hand, I'm pretty sure 90% of these cars will or have had he Intermediate Steering Shaft "clunk". The best fix for this, if you have to do it yourself, is to buy a new one and load the **** out of it with grease. Most of the people who have done that have not seen the problem come back.
Other common problems that I've heard of but not had personally are:
Hub wear and replacement.
Abnormal wear of the insides of the rear tires due to a recurring alignment issue. This is fixed with a camber bolt kit that the dealer won't provide under warranty.
Lifter noise.
The car serves our needs, as it gets 1000 miles a week of highway driving. We average around 26 MPG in these conditions, and we've seen as high as 30 MPG on a 430 mile trip from LA to Phoenix.
Would we buy the car again? Given our circumstances, probably not. If we lived closer to work (my wife's commute is 94 miles EACH WAY right now), then probably. The biggest stress is worrying if our trans is going to die again in the middle of the drive to/from work. We did buy a low-mileage "spare" trans to have on-hand if/when this one dies, but that's pretty ridiculous when you think about it!
Anyway, just my .02.
08-10-2010, 09:26 PM
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Thanks for the info and compliment LS1 Racing! Sounds like you've had some issues with your Impala, good thing it's under warranty. That's really why I've been looking to buy one that's GM Certified, in case crazy stuff like that goes wrong.
As for my Monte, we swapped in a World Class T5 that was rebuilt with Hanlon Motorsports parts. The flywheel is a GM 16lb. nodular flywheel for 1-piece RMS motors. The bellhousing is from an '84 Camaro (the only year they had a T5 with mechanical linkage) and the clutch/brake pedals and Z-bar/linkage/frame mount are from an '81 El Camino. Those parts are a bolt-in, so the only real issue was the crossmember. I have a friend that's a welder, so he cut the trans mount and welded on a piece of plate steel after we moved the crossmember up in the frame, since the T5 mount is about 7" away from where the 200-4R trans mount sits. Once the trans was in, I just needed to cut the hole in the floor for the shifter and have the driveshaft shortened/balanced.
Hope that helps, and thanks again for the compliment!
As for my Monte, we swapped in a World Class T5 that was rebuilt with Hanlon Motorsports parts. The flywheel is a GM 16lb. nodular flywheel for 1-piece RMS motors. The bellhousing is from an '84 Camaro (the only year they had a T5 with mechanical linkage) and the clutch/brake pedals and Z-bar/linkage/frame mount are from an '81 El Camino. Those parts are a bolt-in, so the only real issue was the crossmember. I have a friend that's a welder, so he cut the trans mount and welded on a piece of plate steel after we moved the crossmember up in the frame, since the T5 mount is about 7" away from where the 200-4R trans mount sits. Once the trans was in, I just needed to cut the hole in the floor for the shifter and have the driveshaft shortened/balanced.
Hope that helps, and thanks again for the compliment!
08-11-2010, 10:21 AM
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A cooler is great insurance to keep your fluid in good shape and unburned, and that's important on these cars because of all the heat caused by the exhaust running near the trans. It won't prevent your converter from coming apart but its the best easy thing to do.
08-11-2010, 11:36 AM
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Doing a fluid and filter change is always a good idea, however, I've heard bad things about how flushing can stir up contaminants that can cause problems in the trans.
A cooler is great insurance to keep your fluid in good shape and unburned, and that's important on these cars because of all the heat caused by the exhaust running near the trans. It won't prevent your converter from coming apart but its the best easy thing to do.
A cooler is great insurance to keep your fluid in good shape and unburned, and that's important on these cars because of all the heat caused by the exhaust running near the trans. It won't prevent your converter from coming apart but its the best easy thing to do.
Is there a link someone can give me for these tranny coolers?