Need Help: Same Frame Cars
 

I've got a few strange questions for all the true motor heads out there who have a wide knowledge of ALL cars, and all car's workings...

We all know that different car manufacturers are not always as "different" as they'd like the general public to believe (Toyota = Lexus = Scion, Honda = Acura, Nissan = Infinity, Pontiac = Chevy = Saturn = GM, Ford = Mercury, and so on)

We also know that these "different" manufacturers will release 2 cars that built on the same frame, with near identical engines, near identical interiors, and slightly different body panels (Solstice = Sky, G6 = Cobalt, Crown Victoria = Grand Marquis, and so on)



So, here are my questions:
1) Is there a website / database anywhere that has a detailed list of what cars share what parts? In other words, is there a place I could go to find out how many cars were fitted with the same shitty transmission that was used in Pontiac Sunfires?

2) How often is it that parts from one car will fit onto one of their carbon-copy counterparts? For example, could someone pull the suspension off of an Acura and swap them with the suspension on their Accord?



And for those of you that just like to cut to the chase, and want to know exactly what it is I'm after:

My friend Has a 2002 Buick Regal GS. It's got a mean supercharged V6, and handles damn good for the massive boat that it is. He wants it to be a bit more nimble and bit less granny-car-ish, but I can't find suspension upgrades for Regals, so I'm trying to find a sportier carbon-copy car that does offer suspension upgrades.




Any and all help is appreciated!

The platform was shared with the Grand Prix, Intrigue, and Impala. That doesn't mean that part are interchangable between the cars though. I doubt there is much available for the Regal, but if someone is going to have suspension upgrades for that car I'd check out KYB.

Buick Regal's suck and are slow... I would never be.... caught..... in..... Oh shit, I own one...

Buick Regal=Pontiac Grand Prix=Pontiac Bonneville=Chevrolet Monte Carlo=Chevrolet Impala=Buick Century=Park Avenue Ultra=Oldmobile Intrique

I am sure there are some that I missed too.

As for suspension there is all kinds of stuff that he can do. The new Pontiac GXP actually come with Bilstein's that are supposed to be awesome. Other than that a lot of people run the AGX's with Vogtland lower springs. GM actually offers "stock" upgraded sway bars, engine braces, strut tower bars, and trailing arms (the police package Impala had these upgrades and you can buy them directly from GM).

Tell him to check out:

http://www.regalgs.org

All the guys on there are down to earth and we would be more than willing to help him figure things out.

Hopefully I get this turbo bolted on my car soon and can put down some 12 sec 1/4 mile times. It is great to whoop up on someone while driving a "grandpa car":)

You are TOTALLY wrong. Basically everything drivetrain and suspension wise will swap from one to the other. They are all the W-body frame/platform. The police package Impala 12" brake upgrade bolts right up. The Regal GS Strut tower bar can be bolted onto the front strut tower like it came stock or you can buy brackets so that you do not have to drill holes. The front strut tower bar can be used on the rear of the car as well (for easy installation you can again buy brackets). The police package Impala thicker sway bars are a direct bolt on to any W-body. And even though the new Grand Prix is no longer a W-body, the better struts/suspension components from it can also be swapped to the older Grand Prixs/Montes/Impalas/Regals/etc.

Links to vendors with parts for Regals/Grand Prix's:

http://www.zzperformance.com
http://www.pfyc.com
http://www.3800performance.com
http://www.stattama.com
http://www.intense-racing.com
http://www.prjperformance.com
http://www.wbodystore.com
http://www.thrashercharged.com
http://www.hptuners.com

Dude, you must own a really crappy one.

Slow? It's a supercharged V6! Despite how much it weighs it pulls away from my 8 until about 70mph.

And for a bigass, heavy, FWD, "granny" car, the thing is nimble as all hell. It's no 8, but it puts most mid-size and compacts to shame!





Thanks for all the links and help. I still have some questions, but I'll look around a little bit more (and maybe introduce myself to the regal forums) before bugging you guys for more. Thanks again!

I was being sarcastic... Mine ran a 14.1 with only $500 worth of mods. I have owned two Grand Prix GTP's and with the same mods ran a 13.7 in one and a 13.9 in the other. My 14.1 run in the Regal was on a humid 90* in August during the Indy Import and Truck Bash. I will be hitting 12's with my car and have been told with my mods if I upgrade the fuel system that 11's are within reach.

Minor nitpick: G5=Cobalt, G6=Malibu

I never said they wouldn't work, I was simply pointing out that simply because they share the same platform does not mean all parts are interchangable.

While I agree that the same platform does not mean all parts are interchangable, in this case virutally everything is. Trust me, my car is a bastard child of the W-body fleet (parts from about every W-body you can imagine, and even some non-W-body parts as well). Some parts on my car:


1. Monte Carlo Engine Braces
2. '06 Grand Prix GT (supercharged) short block
3. Impala 12" brake rotors
4. Aussie V6 Intake Manifold
5. Century Non-ABS Master Cylinder
6. L36 (non-supercharged) Grand Prix Heads
7. Grand Prix Driverside Exhaust Hanger (to convert my car to dual exhaust)
8. LS1 (Camaro/Trans Am) Front Brake Calipers
9. BMW E46 Fog Lights (gonna have to remove to put IC piping in)
10. LT1 Mass Air Flow

I am sure there are some that I have missed as well.

What about platform sharing of the crossfire? :rolleyes:

Saturn Ion = Chevy Cobalt = Pontiac G5

VW Passats from 98-01 and Audi A4s from 97-01 are nearly identical from a structural standpoint. Same 1.8L turbo (20 valve) I4 or 2.8L (30 valve) V6, same transmissions, same AWD, same front suspension geometries, the PCM/ECU were the same (I even used a chipped ECU from an A4 in my Passat, extra boost baby!). The springs and shocks were different as the A4s were a bit heavier and supposed to be sportier.