2nd Gen Suspension/Performance Part swaps/upgrades

[NinEFivEFourOH]

Just picked up an 01 Aurora 4.0 to add to my collection. 161K miles, decent condition other than the obvious wreck damage, for $200.

It was a Copart car that was hit in the front right, off the cuff it needed new front right suspension, fender, and a door. When I got it home, I saw that the subframe was bent and the steering rack was broken, so I went to my local Pull-a-part and picked up all those parts for $200 or $300.

I figured while I'm replacing the sub-frame, I could maybe upgrade a lot of the suspension to some of the newer GM suspension parts.

Now, I know there is a pinned thread that mostly deals with Classic compatible parts... and honestly it's sort of convoluted and doesn't mention 2nd gen compatibility explicitly... I've read it numerous times and still can't quite wrap my head around what will and work definitely in a 2nd gen... lol.

So that being said, can someone tell me what mods will absolutely work on a 2nd gen?

I know that there are numerous brake upgrades out there (which is mainly what I'm interested in)... I just want to know what cars to grab the parts from for the best, pretty much straight swap for this particular car. Mostly, has someone written something up pertaining to 2nd gen cars?

Thanks in advance!

[NinEFivEFourOH]

Wow.

[aj]

Jul 20, 2018 15:59:25 GMT -6 NinEFivEFourOH said:

Just picked up an 01 Aurora 4.0 to add to my collection. 161K miles, decent condition other than the obvious wreck damage, for $200.

It was a Copart car that was hit in the front right, off the cuff it needed new front right suspension, fender, and a door. When I got it home, I saw that the subframe was bent and the steering rack was broken, so I went to my local Pull-a-part and picked up all those parts for $200 or $300.

I figured while I'm replacing the sub-frame, I could maybe upgrade a lot of the suspension to some of the newer GM suspension parts.

Now, I know there is a pinned thread that mostly deals with Classic compatible parts... and honestly it's sort of convoluted and doesn't mention 2nd gen compatibility explicitly... I've read it numerous times and still can't quite wrap my head around what will and work definitely in a 2nd gen... lol.

So that being said, can someone tell me what mods will absolutely work on a 2nd gen?

I know that there are numerous brake upgrades out there (which is mainly what I'm interested in)... I just want to know what cars to grab the parts from for the best, pretty much straight swap for this particular car. Mostly, has someone written something up pertaining to 2nd gen cars?

Thanks in advance!

Thats cool you have a another Aurora added to your feet and not bad for the price! You still have your 95' Aurora?

Now back on your topic, I guess theres really not a lot for mods besides maybe the bigger brakes and stuff like that. All I did on mine was add led lights for the interior, added a double din stereo with back up camera really, and I updated my onstar system and thats it. I was gonna add like side signal markers on the mirror, add more of the technology ouut there today like side blind alert, and like a wood grain steering wheel but just dont have the time or really know of any one to do that for me. And did wanted like the cool seats and since my interior is all gray I was wanting to do like the two tone interior but never got to that really either.

I just have too many vehicles in my fleet and my career that I just dont have the time for them any more really. I just take mine to the Olds car shows anymore and drive the Caddy's as my daily drivers.

[RCA1186]

If it's the brakes you are interested in gdouaire did the upgrade on his 2G and posted in that thread

Jul 11, 2015 15:49:22 GMT -6 gdouaire said:

I did the change: 17" buick lucerne calipers up front, 2002 Cadillac STS rear. Very neat setup. Stops very well... Never had a car with this much braking power. And looks good too.



FRONT:


REAR:

As goudaire has shown the lucerne and caddy brakes bolt onto the 2G (thanks gdouaire) and since those and the other brakes listed in that thread are all shown to bolt on the classic I would imagine any of the ones listed in that thread that bolt to the '98-99 would also work on the 2G as well, barring your rim size. I can't say it has definitely been proven, but it stands to reason this would be correct.

I actually just ordered the 16" Lucerne calipers for the front on my '98 yesterday so I'll be doing the upgrade as well.



As for suspension, Rockauto DOES show a Gabriel quick strut up front that lists date range from '98-03 for the Aurora...but it's anyone's guess if the parts are interchangeable between the 1G and 2G. I know the springs for the classic and 2g listed on rock auto are shown as different lengths. It may be a case where some of these things bolt up but aren't "quite" right as far as ride height etc.


Sorry I couldn't be more help.

[NinEFivEFourOH]

AJ, yep, still have my 95, figured I'd more or less "leave this one alone" for now, so that I can at least drive it lol.

RCA1186, thanks for the response, my thing was trying to figure out what parts are specifically needed for the rotor/caliper swap... I have 18" wheels for this car, so from what I read it seems that I can go with the largest brake upgrade, which was the Lucerne 13" rotors from what I deduced... So do I need to snag the steering knuckle w/ the hub or just get the calipers, pads and rotors?

I'm also trying to upgrade my rear brakes as well... I saw that you can use either 05 Bonneville GXP or 04 STS parts... where apparently the GXP brakes are easier to install, but the STS brakes are "better"? I looked through the "Definitive Parts Swap" List, but that bit of info is a bit cloudy...

Anyhow, this is what I have compiled so far, all 05-08 GXP parts, seems to be everything I need barring the knuckles and hubs (if that's required for 01-03 Auroras...):

Front Calipers w/brackets
www.ebay.com/itm/253690959705
www.ebay.com/itm/253690956694

Front Rotors and pads
www.ebay.com/itm/371031786079

Rear Calipers w/brackets
www.ebay.com/itm/172401000337

Rear Rotors and pads
www.ebay.com/itm/371035612138

[NinEFivEFourOH]

...

[RCA1186]

I think you only need to swap the knuckle if you were to put the parts on your '95, 2G should be ok. Sounds like new hubs would only be required if going with lucerne rear brakes. I'm only assume that 98-99 upgrades would work on a 2G, according to RockAuto part numbers both generations share the same hub with the 01-05 Bonneville.


Also, here's a quote taken from the part swap thread

By the way the buick lucrene (07 aurora) uses the exact same knuckles all 98-99 classics, and all second gen rora do. that being said 90% of all lucrene suspension parts will bolt on to second gens, and about 70% will fit 98-99 classics. The same figure applies to 95-97 classics with minor modifications.

So sounds like if going to swap to GXP brakes you would need caliper, bracket and rotors. Can't say for sure as I have never tried so take that with a grain of salt.

[tigger]

You'll probably need the banjo bolt for whatever caliper as well...

[RCA1186]

Aug 1, 2018 16:53:14 GMT -6 tigger said:

You'll probably need the banjo bolt for whatever caliper as well...

Rockauto says no haha. But you had me worried for a second, I'm installing Lucerne calipers tomorrow..




Gotta love that extreme level of consistency from GM haha. Probably the absolute cheapest they could get for the last 40 years


Said for front or rear in the notes for the bolt.

[AmunRoo]

I'm actually going to be upgrading my brakes to the Grand Prix GXP brakes. they are the twin piston ALUMINUM calipers. I already have two pairs of them. One for each of my Rora's. I also went KYB rear air shocks and front KYB SR4090 loaded struts (complete Strut). I also have the Bonneville GXP front strut tower bar. Here's my mod list so far

2001 4.0 = Bonneville Strut Tower bar, poly end link bushings, Grand Prix GXP Calipers, brackets, rotors, brake lines. Drilled thermostat, KYB suspension all around, resonator removed, 20X8.5 Borghini B24 wheels, 255/35/20 Pirelli PzeroNero tires.

2003 4.0 = K&N panel filter, Bonneville Strut Tower bar, poly end link bushings, Grand Prix GXP Calipers, brackets, rotors, brake lines. Drilled thermostat, KYB suspension all around, mufflers removed, 20X9.5 wheels, 265/40/20 Pirelli PzeroNero tires.

[tigger]

Aug 2, 2018 6:19:31 GMT -6 RCA1186 said:

Rockauto says no haha. But you had me worried for a second, I'm installing Lucerne calipers tomorrow.

Haha, I hope I am wrong, for your sake. But take a look at this excerpt from Kersh's thread Installing GXP brakes on Aurora.

Jul 23, 2013 11:30:29 GMT -6 Kersh said:

Installing GXP Brakes on an ’01-’03 Aurora

(I would assume that the Gen 1 cars are the same as long as you have the new enough suspension that you have the aluminum control arms)

Parts needed from the ’04-’05 Bonneville GXP donor car:

1) Calipers (Left and Right)
2) Caliper Brackets (w/sliders and pad notch trays)
If you need to replace the sliders, Dorman offers a kit: HW14904 (1 kit needed per side. Includes new caliper bolts. Does NOT include rubber components, must reuse originals)
3) Rotors
4) Brake hoses (Left and Right) Dorman #’s H620837 and H620836
5) M10x1.0 Banjo bolts (Quantity 2) (Aurora uses M10x1.5, and won’t cross over) Dorman # 13912 (single/2 needed) (does not come with washers)
6) Brake pads

I know that the GXPs are aluminum, and the DTS/Lucernes are iron. Maybe that's the difference...

Anyway, good luck with the install! Take pictures, haha...

[AmunRoo]

I'm only waiting on the stupid passenger side brake line... I already painted the calipers and they're ready to go. I'll try to post pics. Banjo Bolts? I pulled the calipers and brackets from the bone yard. I cut the lines so I have the banjo bolts from the GXP still on the caliper.

[NinEFivEFourOH]

Thanks for the helpful responses guys. So, I can't tell if the calipers I ordered have the banjo bolts in them already or not, but if they don't, I'll just order some from Rock Auto.

As for the Banjo bolts, I found that Dorman 13912 part listing on RockAuto, but the GXP isn't listed as a compatible car for that part...? In fact there is no banjo bolt listed for the GXP, at least under the Brake category...

So, I'm assuming that banjo bolt is the same on all 4 calipers? So that, should mean that I need the 4 banjo bolts (as well as 2 washers per bolt?), caliper bolts for all the calipers, and new hydraulic hoses for each caliper as well..? Can someone confirm that that is the complete parts list? (Outside of the calipers, brackets, pads, rotors, etc.) Just ordered the main components online, hopefully have those in a week or so!

Now I'll just need some tires, once I get the new sub frame and rack mounted I'll have this car on the road finally!

These were the wheels I got for the car:

www.ebay.com/itm/2-18X8-20-5X115-VOXX-MGA-SILVER-WHEELS-RIMS-18-INCH-78029/361403838683?epid=683486626&hash=item542558f0db%3Ag%3ACdIAAOSw-VtbCD1h&_sacat=0&_nkw=voxx+mga&_from=R40&rt=nc&_trksid=p2322090.m570.l1313.TR10.TRC0.A0.H0.Xvoxx+mga.TRS0.TSS0

[tigger]

GOOD LAWD! Looks like I opened a BIG can of worms with that banjo bolt comment, huh? lol!


From what I gather, (YES, that's a disclaimer!)

ONLY THE ALUMINUM GXP CALIPERS REQUIRE THE M10X1.0 (FINE THREAD) BANJO BOLT!


So...

Rob, you're good. Lucernes are iron...

Roo, you're good. You salvaged what you need...

FourOH, you may need to go to the parts store...


Have a good weekend guys! And I do seriously want to see some pictures, haha!

[NinEFivEFourOH]

Awesome, well we'll see when the parts get here for sure! Tigger, where at you located in SC? I'm in Aiken.

[tigger]

Aug 3, 2018 9:45:28 GMT -6 NinEFivEFourOH said:

Tigger, where at you located in SC? I'm in Aiken.

I'm in Columbia.

[NinEFivEFourOH]

Nice, we'll have to get up sometime or something, any other local members you know of?

[RCA1186]

Can confirm did not need banjo bolts for 16" Lucerne calipers





I wonder if I should replace the brake hose though. It bolts up but I'd guess it's moved about an inch further (as far as where it mounts to the caliper) it bolts up fine but it was noticeable that there was a bit less slack than stock. I gave the bracket on the strut a slight bend to where I felt comfortable although I figured it was fine either way.

[tigger]

Nice work Rob!

I would think the hoses will be fine. The strut is fully extended in the pics, right?

[tigger]

Aug 3, 2018 17:50:08 GMT -6 NinEFivEFourOH said:

Nice, we'll have to get up sometime or something, any other local members you know of?

Haha, depends on your definition of local. I think buck91 is from SC, maybe N Augusta? There are a few members scattered throughout NC, GA, and FL as well.

[NinEFivEFourOH]

North Augusta's right down the road from me.

RCA, did you need the caliper bolts or could you use the original Aurora bolts? Hopefully the same goes for the GXP 17" (12.71") brakes.

[RCA1186]

Aug 6, 2018 14:50:39 GMT -6 tigger said:

Nice work Rob!

I would think the hoses will be fine. The strut is fully extended in the pics, right?

Yes it is, good point!

Aug 6, 2018 18:52:08 GMT -6 NinEFivEFourOH said:

North Augusta's right down the road from me.

RCA, did you need the caliper bolts or could you use the original Aurora bolts? Hopefully the same goes for the GXP 17" (12.71") brakes.

Was able to use all original hardware from the Aurora; banjo bolts, caliper mounting bracket bolts. Caliper pins were from the lucerne as they came with the caliper.

[AmunRoo]

Almost done with the Engine bay...

[AmunRoo]

These are two of the next upgrades still pending... should be on and done by next weekend.

[NinEFivEFourOH]

Cool thread hi-jack bro

[AmunRoo]

Not a high jack lol. It's about performance mods. I was show casing the Bonneville strut tower bar, the brake and the exhaust upgrades...

[tigger]

Roo, is that DayGlo Orange?

[AmunRoo]

On the Caliper? nope, it's the stock red from the factory that comes on these Grand Prix GXP calipers. That picture is before sanding. The bracket is getting painted a silver/chrome color and the caliper will be Dark Cherry to match the car. On the 03, same setup but but the caliper will be a steel blue to match the paint. still waiting on stupid brake lines for some reason