# Looking To Buy New 05 Gto 6.0



## LITTLEELVISDAN (May 3, 2006)

I have a S2000 and love it. While at my friends dealership I saw a new 05 GTO on the lot. He says he can make me a great deal on it. By driving it I know it won't out handle my S2000 but it will out run it in a straight line. All the while drinking twice the gas. My question is, is the GTO worth it or am I going to be sorry I traded my S2000. How is the reliability and availability of after market parts? Can these things be modified easily to get more HP? Any feedback pos or neg is appreciated.


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## noz34me (Dec 15, 2005)

I don't think you'll need to modify the Goat to get more power, as you stated, you'll see the difference in the handling, and there are mods to improve that, from what I've read.

Both cars IMHO are fairly impracticle as daily drivers, but gas will hurt you more in the GTO. If having a very comfortable, but hard to get into rear seat turns you on, then I would say buy the Goat, or if you need to be the first one off the line at a stop light, buy the Goat. 

Otherwise, keep your money and enjoy what you have. The S2000 is a great car.


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## Wing_Nut (Mar 6, 2005)

My friend has an S2000. Sharp car. But.....noisy, poor ride quality, and zero torque.

As you mentioned, the GTO will beat an S2000 in a straight line but.....3,700 lbs is hard to overcome in a corner. On the other hand, the GTO is quieter, has better ride quality, and is easier to drive due to the massive low end torque.

My GTO is a daily driver (90 miles round trip) and it's very enjoyable. I wouldn't try the same thing with an S2000.


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## LITTLEELVISDAN (May 3, 2006)

I love the monster power of the GTO but love the handling of the S2000. Has any one gotten the handling of a GTO close to a S2000 with after market mods? If so then my decision is easy. With this much power I would like to track the GTO but not with the way it currently handles. I know what MPH I pulled in the straight at Raod Atlanta with my S2000 and know what a stock Z06 pulled and would love to see what a GTO can do it in.


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## Robertr2000 (Mar 25, 2006)

LITTLEELVISDAN said:


> I love the monster power of the GTO but love the handling of the S2000. Has any one gotten the handling of a GTO close to a S2000 with after market mods? If so then my decision is easy. With this much power I would like to track the GTO but not with the way it currently handles. I know what MPH I pulled in the straight at Raod Atlanta with my S2000 and know what a stock Z06 pulled and would love to see what a GTO can do it in.



I have ordered (and recieved) f/r Sway Bars & Full Bushing set. Next is 4 Koni skocks and a set of springs.

Once these are installed, I'm sure I'll give the S2000 a good run for the money :cool


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## LITTLEELVISDAN (May 3, 2006)

Robertr2000 said:


> I have ordered (and recieved) f/r Sway Bars & Full Bushing set. Next is 4 Koni skocks and a set of springs.
> 
> Once these are installed, I'm sure I'll give the S2000 a good run for the money :cool


Sweet. Do they make coil overs for the GTO yet? If you don't mind telling, what do the sway bars and bushing set cost for the GTO?


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## LITTLEELVISDAN (May 3, 2006)

Oh ya! The one he has left is a metalic light blue and it has chrome Foose 5 star 18' rims wrapped in Perelli tires along with throwing in the stock rims and tires to burn up on track days.


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## Robertr2000 (Mar 25, 2006)

LITTLEELVISDAN said:


> Sweet. Do they make coil overs for the GTO yet? If you don't mind telling, what do the sway bars and bushing set cost for the GTO?




Sway Bars and Bushing set is about $500


http://www.sfxperformance.com/parts/ENE318134R.htm
http://www.drivewire.com/PerformanceParts/eibach/pontiacgtoantirollkit.html


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## Jeffs386 (Nov 1, 2005)

are you kidding me?
your talking about a ZO6 and GTO then comparing them to a S2000 ?ROFLOL


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## LITTLEELVISDAN (May 3, 2006)

Jeffs386 said:


> are you kidding me?
> your talking about a ZO6 and GTO then comparing them to a S2000 ?ROFLOL


Actually Yes. The stock Z06 was very fast on the straights and long sweeping turns but in the tight twisties it was cumbersome and harder to manage. Actually there was a new viper in the group I was in at Road Atlanta. The viper was very fast in the straights and slow in the tight turns as well. We would catch him in the tight turns and he would pull away from us on the straights. The Z06 that was running in the same group was running 145mph in the straights and my stock S2000 was running 128mph. At those sppeds covering that must feet per second 17 mph is quite a difference. My original question is that I would like ot see what a GTO would in the same straight. I am guessing it would fall somewhere in between. Ps... the Z06 had to quit early because he was cooking his breaks.


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## Wing_Nut (Mar 6, 2005)

LITTLEELVISDAN said:


> I love the monster power of the GTO but love the handling of the S2000. Has any one gotten the handling of a GTO close to a S2000 with after market mods? If so then my decision is easy. With this much power I would like to track the GTO but not with the way it currently handles. I know what MPH I pulled in the straight at Raod Atlanta with my S2000 and know what a stock Z06 pulled and would love to see what a GTO can do it in.


Sounds like Groucho is very happy with the suspension mods he's put on an 04. I think he added front/rear sway bars & bushings, shocks/struts, and modified caster/camber. Glad to see someone else who cares about handling rather than just horsepower and 1/4 mile times. Let's see, a 1/4 mile run lasts 13 seconds. You can lap a track all day long. Much more enjoyment and challenge.

No matter what you do, you will not get a Grand Tourer like the GTO to feel like a lightweight short wheelbase spider. And that S2000 will never be as comfortable as a GTO.


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## LITTLEELVISDAN (May 3, 2006)

Wing_Nut said:


> Sounds like Groucho is very happy with the suspension mods he's put on an 04. I think he added front/rear sway bars & bushings, shocks/struts, and modified caster/camber. Glad to see someone else who cares about handling rather than just horsepower and 1/4 mile times. Let's see, a 1/4 mile run lasts 13 seconds. You can lap a track all day long. Much more enjoyment and challenge.
> 
> No matter what you do, you will not get a Grand Tourer like the GTO to feel like a lightweight short wheelbase spider. And that S2000 will never be as comfortable as a GTO.


Well put. The reason I am having so much trouble deciding this is because the wife wants me to keep the S2000 and pay it off so in a couple of years when the 06 427 Z06's are hiting he used market we can get one. Decisions, decisions. What to do...:willy: :willy: :willy:


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## Holden (Sep 10, 2005)

Dont care what you compare it too still not a HOLDEN!


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## Robertr2000 (Mar 25, 2006)

Holden said:


> Dont care what you compare it too still not a HOLDEN!



I know... Thank God!


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## LITTLEELVISDAN (May 3, 2006)

Holden said:


> Dont care what you compare it too still not a HOLDEN!


Um! I thought the Holden was a Catera initially. At least that what the articles I have read say.


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## LITTLEELVISDAN (May 3, 2006)

Don't get me wrong, I am still seriously considering buying the GTO I am driving. But keep in mind that you probably don't want to get to confident when racing a S2000. A lot of those guys have highly modified cars and take on the likes of 911 turbo's. If I don't end up buying this GTO then I will fall back to my original plans and have a Eaton Roots type blower put on my S2000. With that kit installed the S2000 will put out 350 RWHP (this kit has already been dyno'd) which equates to 400 HP at the crank, which is what the GTO puts out stock. And at 1500 pounds lighter than a GTO it puts the S2000 in 911 and Z06 territory. I am glad to see the GTO community is as loyal to the GTO as the S2000 owners are about theirs. If this deal works out, I look forward to joining your community. If not, then this ricer will be looking for some GTO's to smoke (after some necessary modifications)


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## Holden (Sep 10, 2005)

LITTLEELVISDAN said:


> Um! I thought the Holden was a Catera initially. At least that what the articles I have read say.


Catera is very similar to GTO same platform. Parts are much stronger on GTO and Goat has much more room under hood. Catera was built in Germany by Opel and has gas tank under car, if you ever want to see that setup or full size trunk. Strange to see same trim parts door handles and such. I work on a Catera with low Mi. very nice car, and work on one that’s worn out junk.6cyl is hard to work on.


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## enjracing (Jun 7, 2006)

twice the gas usage? the s200 only gets about 25 highway dude. thats the same as the goat. city is is worse, but not nearly as bad as you are thinking.


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## GOATGIRL (Feb 6, 2006)

I work at a Honda dealership and have driven a 2006 S2000.

The S2000 is a true roadster and is fun but if you are a performance nut, then you need to get the GTO....


Trying to compare the S2000 to a GTO is like comparing apples to oranges...they're both fruit but definitely not the same....

If you want something that handles great on the road and don't care if you sacrafice power, then stay with the S2000.


BUT....if you want soemthing with a "SET" then get the goat!!!!


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## Clueless (Mar 2, 2006)

I'm sure a supercharged S2000 would be a killer roadster. But comparing an SC S2000 to a stock GTO isn't quite fair. Not only are they two different car types, but a stock compared to a modded car is generally not a fair comparison, though it can be a reasonable comparison when Car A + Mods > Car B (in performance) AND Car A + Mods < Car B (in price). But in this case, the S2000 cost the same or a tad more than the GTO. Put a supercharger on the GTO and you have a better comparison with the SC S2000 for drag times. 

Either way, you can take an S2000 and try modding the engine to make it faster, or a GTO and mod the suspension to make it handle better. They are still different cars in the end.


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## kerno (Apr 6, 2006)

I've had a lot of performance cars in my garage. Some stick around and some leave fairly quickly. It think what makes the difference is how many compromises they represent - or how much the vibration, noise and harshness gets on your nerves. If you have a chance to hit the local SCCA course once a month, the S2000 will do it month after months without modification or breaking anything. The GTO outweighs the Z06 by at leat 500 pounds, although it doesn't feel like it when you drive it. The Z06 seems much larger in traffic than the GTO. My 06 GTO has continued to be my first choice for daily driving after 3 months. That (in my life) is a good sign. Not only is it a pleasure to dirve, but it also has a trunk, a back seat and you can lock the doors and walk away and be pretty sure it will be there when you get back. There's no sunroof or annoying GM electronics to fail. Why, oh why, did they decide that the Corvette need electronic doors? The heads up display is great, but the Delco group needs to rethink their role in life. We did get a speed sensitive radio in the GTO, but that's about the only electronic babystting device in the car other than the ill concieved "skipshift". It is there for fuel economy ratings. I bypassed mine and my mileage never noticed the change. 
The price to technology ratio in the GTO makes it a bargain in the marketplace and a car I'll own for a while. As you know, the only real options on the car are the automatic or manual, 17 or 18" wheels. An aftermarket shifter (the GMM ripshifter) makes the manual tolerable, becaue the stock shifter is so vague that even GM admits the auto is a tenth quicker through the quarter than the manual. The stock shifter makes the manual annoying.
Your post says you're looking at a new 05. If so, the market says it should sell for about $5,000 less than an equivalent 06. The target price on an 06 is about $29k so the 05 should be no more than $24k.


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## flatinfifth (Jun 25, 2006)

*hey*

I'm interested in a GTO, don't know too much about them but have learned some by reading some of your guy's posts. I'm just wondering about reliability and if it's worth to get because i'm worried about buying one and getting less gas mileage than someone else who has the same car? any suggestions and are there any other downsides to the car? Thank you...

- Clark


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## [email protected] (Mar 20, 2006)

Your post says you're looking at a new 05. If so, the market says it should sell for about $5,000 less than an equivalent 06. The target price on an 06 is about $29k so the 05 should be no more than $24k.[/QUOTE]


no way you're getting a deal that good on a new 06' and if you ask someone to sell you a new 05 for 24000 they're gonna laugh at you. Was at 4 diff dealers today and the lowest price i was offered and had to do much bickering to even get it was 30,994. But you may be talking about with rebates before the 0% came out.


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## aggie88 (Aug 13, 2005)

Holden said:


> Catera is very similar to GTO same platform. Parts are much stronger on GTO and Goat has much more room under hood. Catera was built in Germany by Opel and has gas tank under car, if you ever want to see that setup or full size trunk. Strange to see same trim parts door handles and such. I work on a Catera with low Mi. very nice car, and work on one that’s worn out junk.6cyl is hard to work on.


I think I found the right man. I was considering buying a Catera, these cars are buttocks cheap. Would you know if the new Goat suspension parts fit on these cars? Rear axle, springs, struts, shocks, sways? I found a Catera with 83k miles that overheats and the owner says its a radiator & hose problem. Your experience? Thanks!


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## Mean Goat (Aug 18, 2005)

aggie88 said:


> I found a Catera with 83k miles that overheats and the owner says its a radiator & hose problem.


Yeah, right.....

If the owner knows what's causing the overheating problem, why doesn't he/she get the problem fixed so the problem doesn't come up with potential buyers?

I suspect the problem may be more than that, and the seller doesn't know what it is or isn't saying.

Reminds me of ads that say something like "car won't start.....needs new battery".


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## aggie88 (Aug 13, 2005)

Mean Goat said:


> Yeah, right.....
> 
> If the owner knows what's causing the overheating problem, why doesn't he/she get the problem fixed so the problem doesn't come up with potential buyers?
> 
> ...


Yeah, I have sold and bought used cars and know all the tales. Wanted your opinion since you have experience with these cars. 

What about the suspension parts? Anything that can interchange with the GTO?


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