2017 LaCrosse Build thread (GS tribute)

[Ghosthawk]

I moved forward with ordering the C8 Vette steering wheel and I'll do a test fit before I pop for the airbag to finish to swap.

On that point, the C8 airbag is held on with two(2) 10mm bolts. I want to make sure I get the proper ones but the pages on gmpartsdirect.com don't show the bolts in the exploded view. Any one have a part number on these?

 

[Ghosthawk]

I got the 10mm bolts today from a Chevy dealer and when I told him about the swap I was doing his reply was a stunned "Are you F***ing serious?"

LOL why yes, I am!

The C8 wheel showed up last night and it's a thing of beauty!


Here is a comparison of the two pin plugs...as you can see the plug is identical and snaps right in. However I do still need the diagrams to make sure the pin wires are connecting to the proper equipment. I can see two different ones right off.

C8 pin plug

LaCrosse plug

All of these details aside, the wheel looks great on the car and I love the size of the paddle shifters

 

[TX_LaCrosse]

Wow that's incredible. Gotta love GM compatibility!

 

[Ghosthawk]

I got a 3 day subscription to ACDelco and was able to print the wiring legends I needed for both cars. The rewiring is not going to be as simple as I hoped but a friend referred me to a guy in NC that does this kind of thing. I emailed him my info this morning and he already replied saying he thinks its very doable.

I will still have to secure a matching C8 airbag...which won't be cheap I'm sure. I haven't found any used ones on eBay so going new will most certainly be pricey.

 

[richardnewton]

There were a few sold on corvetteforum.com this year. One guy has a for sale posting from August that might still be available. You can post a wanted part there too.

 

[Ghosthawk]

I kept the front bumper cover while the car is in the shop and today I removed the grille and fog lights. After checking out the factory fog light housings I'm not surprised the light output was so low. I'm looking to install some LED sealed beams which I'm sure will be much brighter. Attaching them will take a bit of fabrication but I'm sure I can utilize the factory brackets.

 

[Ghosthawk]

There were a few sold on corvetteforum.com this year. One guy has a for sale posting from August that might still be available. You can post a wanted part there too.

Thanks, I'll check that out for sure!

 

[EDSELRANGER]

Very impressive concepts and work Ghosthawk! Thanks for posting.

 

[richardnewton]

I kept the front bumper cover while the car is in the shop and today I removed the grille and fog lights. After checking out the factory fog light housings I'm not surprised the light output was so low. I'm looking to install some LED sealed beams which I'm sure will be much brighter. Attaching them will take a bit of fabrication but I'm sure I can utilize the factory brackets.

On some GM cars, the foglights have some canbus or digital scheme, so upgrading is not always plug and play like was with normal 12v switched lines. I don't have any idea about the LaCrosse wiring but suspect it is not the "easy way".

At least you have the fog light controls, wiring, and programming already set up.

 

[Ghosthawk]

On some GM cars, the foglights have some canbus or digital scheme, so upgrading is not always plug and play like was with normal 12v switched lines. I don't have any idea about the LaCrosse wiring but suspect it is not the "easy way".

At least you have the fog light controls, wiring, and programming already set up.

I ran into similar issues with CANBUS systems on the Chrysler convertible I traded for this car. Installing LED headlights resulted in periodic flickering because the system detected lower voltage and assumed a bulb was out. Before it could send a signal the current was there again so the light just winked. In most cases an inline resistor will solve the problem but on the Chrysler it just winked slower LOL

The replacement fog lights I'm going to use have eight LED chips inside so I'm not sure if that will solve the resistor problem but since I have to add pigtail plug ends anyway I'll look at some inline resistors. Thanks for pointing that out!

 

[Ghosthawk]

Got word from the body shop today the glass for passenger door has been delayed 10-12 days 🙄

This feels like its going to take forever to get fixed 😢

 

[Ghosthawk]

The front bumper cover is now disassembled and ready for the new carbon finish parts.


I would also like to add at this time my utter disdain and contempt for the automotive engineer(s) who invented and implemented the design and use of plastic clip-together parts that are obviously intended for single use only and not for removal and reinstallation. They are simply the most maddening things to deal with that break and snap under the slightest pressure. A plague on all your houses.

These are the new fog light assemblies I'll be installing. The halo rings will be useless since they'll be hidden by the bezel but the lights themselves should be much brighter. 😎

 

[Ghosthawk]

I removed the halo rings and mounted the new lights in the brackets then wired up the OEM style pigtails to mate with the factory harness 😎

 

[Ghosthawk]

Today I prepped the new carbon fiber finish grille, swapped the center badge, and fabricated a plastic plate to mount Sgaile’s first GS badge! 😎
(In other crappy news, the door glass for the passenger side repair has been delayed until Jan 6th)🤬

 

[Ghosthawk]

Merry Christmas one and all!

 

[Ghosthawk]

Bumper cover is re-assembled and ready to install...


I also installed the driver side fender port and pulled the chrome port on the other side to be repaired


The waiting is killing me but at least I'm getting something done

 

[Ghosthawk]

 

[Ghosthawk]

Today didn't go as planned. I started to re-installed the bumper cover but found my new fog lights did not work. I disconnected one and plugged in another bulb I had and that worked fine. SO, back to the drawing board on that project. I removed the bumper cover and I suppose it will stay there until the car comes back from the shop.
Undaunted, I removed the inner trunk lid liner and installed the carbon finish release button. I then proceeded to apply the matching GS decals to the trunk and driver door. Yes, the car is dirty but you get the idea.
Drivers door,

Trunk lid


I'm gonna leave the trunk liner off until I get the rear spoiler. Hopefully I'll have that by the time the car comes back from the body shop.

Looking forward to a great Buick Year!😎😍

 

[richardnewton]

I can't see the complete rear of the car so can't make a good judgement. But the yellow Buick sticker above the black logo might be too much; I might remove that yellow eagle. Otherwise looks awesome.

 

[Ghosthawk]

I can't see the complete rear of the car so can't make a good judgement. But the yellow Buick sticker above the black logo might be too much; I might remove that yellow eagle. Otherwise looks awesome.

Part of the plan of "blacking out" the trunk release was to down play the big tri-shield logo. I considered eliminating it altogether but couldn't decide what would go on the circle. I'll reserve final judgment until the rear spoiler is mounted but I'm pretty sure "Happy the Hawk" will stay. He goes with the mirrors and other elements of the gold accent trim.