# Basic SQ Install | 2005 VZ Holden Commodore SV6



## justdofit (Aug 13, 2010)

*Basic SQ Install, '05 Holden Commodore, Mosconi, Scan-speak, DLS, Image Dynamics*

Hi Guys, a long time listener first time caller here...

Being a huge fan of the build logs section on DIYMA, I thought it was about time to put together a short summary of my build thread on our local (Australian) car audio forum.

This car has been through many revisions so to keep it brief I've compiled images that make up the majority of the current install.

Firstly, the car is a Holden Commodore VZ SV6. This is the 4 door & 6 cylinder version of the 2006'ish Pontiac GTO in the states.

*The Car*
A huge thanks to Marty from Involve imagery for taking these shots at one of our local Car Audio Competition rounds:









































*The System*
Below is a basic system diagram of the current setup:









*Sound Deadening*
I'll keep the deadening photos to a minimum, as they're basically the same as any other car, last count there was about 3 bulk packs of Dynamat and 3 rolls of Dynaliner as well as some other bits and pieces in there...

The usual 100% covering of the outter door panel:









Doors service holes all sealed up:









Some deadening on the inner door panel:









Some focal plain chant behind the speakers:









Total coverage with dynaliner on the inner door panel:









The whole floor was treated with Dynamat and Dynaliner, continuing right up the rear firewall:









And onto the rear shelf:


















*Power Setup*
I used a Fullriver HC65 under the bonnet to replace the stock battery:









All ring terminals used were of the "industrial" variety, crimped with a 12t hydraulic press.. Here's a comparison with a regular car audio terminal:









Double walled and glue lined heatshrink to keep it all neat and tidy:









Nothing fancy under the bonnet really, just the basic Big 3 upgrade. With a 200A breaker for the positive run to the amp distros and another fuse for the alternator charge upgrade. Just split loomed and taped like the factory wiring:

















*Head Unit*
To handle media and dsp I threw in a Pioneer P88RSii.









As per usual, all the unwanted pins and wires were removed from the harness:









And neatened up ready for install:









P88 in the dash:









I used Mini blade fuse holder to organise all the wiring for the deck and accessories (SWI, iPod, Turn on Relays).









Luckily the iPod fits perfectly in the center console:


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## justdofit (Aug 13, 2010)

*Front stage*

Last years competition season I changed up the front stage install a little, moving the tweeters from the sails up onto the pillars.

Before:









After:









Just some quick photos of the DLS Scandinavia midwoofers used. I absolutely love these things even though they're beasts:

























Holden were kind enough to leave enough room to run 12awg wire into the doors with ease:









To get these massive speakers into the car (the doors are exactly the same as a Pontiac GTO), some large baffles were required (the rings pictured are 3/4"):

















I used a series of locking plates and plenty of fasteners to hold it all together and make things easily removable for serving etc - I love stainless allen key bolts:









To pretty up the baffles some pods were required to fill in the gaps and blend with the factory door card, this was a good afternoons work:









































































Then the shape was tidied up:

































Test fitted:

















And ready for paint:

























And later painted again:

























And finally re-installed in the car:


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## justdofit (Aug 13, 2010)

*Front stage (Cont...)*

Next on the list was an a-pillar build, these pictures are self explanatory:

























Unfortunately not much depth to work with:

















Time to play with angles:

















Then time for a beer or 6 and some auditioning:

















Luckily I was able to con one of my boys into helping me, the official plastic drilling supervisor:









After a few inspections these were up to spec:









A bit of fabric stretching and CA Glue later:

















Time for a milkshake:









And final test fit:









All trimmed and ready for install:

























Mandatory allen key fasteners in:


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## justdofit (Aug 13, 2010)

*Sub stage*
I have always been a fan of Image Dynamics subs. After some time with the beautiful Morel Ultimo 12, I managed to score a Chrome 12" IDMAX v3:

















Of course it needed a much deeper box, but I didn't want to give up my whole boot. So some kerfing was required to make this interesting shaped enclosure / amp rack:

































The entire inside was re-enforced with fiberglass matt & resin and then milkshaked, finally the kerf cuts were filled with poly resin also:

















The baffle was trimmed in factory carpet:

















*Amplifiers*
The box and amp rack was wired up for the 2 mosconi amps, the spare points in the distro blocks provide power and ground to 8awg cable runs to the front of the car for the head unit and anything stereo related:

























The mosconis were test fitted either side of the kerfed section:









Front stage amp provides 4 x 100W to the active midwoofer / tweeter setup:









Sub stage amp provides 480W to each voicecoil of the IDMAX:









Once installed it was time to tidy things up with a beauty panel:

















And then all trimmed in factory carpet:

















Now that this stage of the install is complete, I have a few things laying around to change it up a bit if required 




























Thanks for reading


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## Big_Valven (Aug 20, 2008)

Great to see you on here!

As you well know, I'm a massive fan of this build. Especially with the latest run of amplification in here.


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## sinister-kustoms (Jul 22, 2009)

Super clean work man! I bet it sounds pretty good! How do you like the IDMax compared to the Ultimo?


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## sydmonster (Oct 5, 2009)

THIS! This is one of my favourite builds, and this is about the 3rd or 4th version of it too!
Justdofit is a real DIY'r who has learned and expanded his car as has his skills and knowledge set. Impressive to say the least!


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## justdofit (Aug 13, 2010)

Big_Valven said:


> Great to see you on here!
> 
> As you well know, I'm a massive fan of this build. Especially with the latest run of amplification in here.


Cheers mate, I'm absolutely loving the Mosconis or the Mosexies as I affectionately call them


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## justdofit (Aug 13, 2010)

sinister-kustoms said:


> Super clean work man! I bet it sounds pretty good! How do you like the IDMax compared to the Ultimo?


Thanks man, I'm pretty happy with the sound - there's always room for improvement, but for a daily this goes alright 

The IDMax and the Ultimo would have to be 2 of my all time favourite subs. The Ultimo is a beautiful SQ sub, I would describe the IDMax as SQ capable but with more potential for fun and shenanigans - you know it's there if you want to. The Ultimo on the other hand is all business and totally transparent... I love them both, but in a daily driver sometimes you want to turn the wick up and shake the ground a little - in my experience, the Max plays very accurately and with authority at any volume from whisper quiet to windows flexing - I couldn't ask for any more


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## justdofit (Aug 13, 2010)

sydmonster said:


> THIS! This is one of my favourite builds, and this is about the 3rd or 4th version of it too!
> Justdofit is a real DIY'r who has learned and expanded his car as has his skills and knowledge set. Impressive to say the least!


Thanks Mang that means allot. Hope to see you at the comp in Feb


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## Coppertone (Oct 4, 2011)

Bravo, and what a wonderful read build wise. You have done extremely well and it shows both in your choice of equipment, and in your build. Keep sharing, and I will surely keep reading and admiring.


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## sirbOOm (Jan 24, 2013)

What is the fabric you used on your pillars called?


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## rmchevelle (Jul 22, 2008)

justdofit said:


> I thought it was about time to put together a short summary of my build thread on our local (Australian) car audio forum.


Can you post a link? Thanks.


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## justdofit (Aug 13, 2010)

Coppertone said:


> Bravo, and what a wonderful read build wise. You have done extremely well and it shows both in your choice of equipment, and in your build. Keep sharing, and I will surely keep reading and admiring.


Thanks mate, it's been a bit of a journey to get it to this point. I'll be sure to keep this thread up to date with future changes. I'm hoping to move to a 4-way active setup sometime this year so lot's of research and experimentation required.


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## justdofit (Aug 13, 2010)

sirbOOm said:


> What is the fabric you used on your pillars called?


The fabric is just the standard roof lining material that ships with the Holden Commodores - it's foam backed and is nice and soft.

If you're after something easy to get hold of that has the same look, the Stinger Grill Cloth is almost an identical match (the sails pictured in the first post are trimmed in the Black Stinger Cloth), the main difference is the lack of foam backing.


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## justdofit (Aug 13, 2010)

rmchevelle said:


> Can you post a link? Thanks.


No worries mate, the AUS build thread is a little long winded as it's been going on since 2011. But there's a few more sub enclosures, amp setups and different drivers / subs in there, from the build in it's various states:

http://www.caraudio.com.au/forums/index.php/topic/561626-vz-sv6-daily-driver-install/


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## REGULARCAB (Sep 26, 2013)

Nice clean work. Love all the pics of the door work. Turned out sweet.


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## justdofit (Aug 13, 2010)

REGULARCAB said:


> Nice clean work. Love all the pics of the door work. Turned out sweet.


Cheers, the stock front speaker grills in these cars are pretty terrible - so good excuse to build up something solid.


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## REGULARCAB (Sep 26, 2013)

justdofit said:


> Cheers, the stock front speaker grills in these cars are pretty terrible - so good excuse to build up something solid.


It was the same in my silverado, it didn't have the nicer door panels like most of the GM trucks. Had to make a REALLY thick baffle. I cut my door as little as possible but yours look nice. Makes me want to get out the air saw and fit some 8's in mine.


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## justdofit (Aug 13, 2010)

REGULARCAB said:


> It was the same in my silverado, it didn't have the nicer door panels like most of the GM trucks. Had to make a REALLY thick baffle. I cut my door as little as possible but yours look nice. Makes me want to get out the air saw and fit some 8's in mine.


If I had bigger doors 8's would definitely be on the cards - this time I took the easy way out and kept everything within the confines of the factory plastic grill and map pocket. As soon as you venture over into the vinyl section the work required to keep the aesthetics under control increases dramatically 

A mate of mine over here is an extremely talented DIY installer and has a crazy tidy wagon the same model as my sedan. There's Elate 9s in his doors, so it can be done but most definitely allot more work and skill required than I possess at this stage!


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## REGULARCAB (Sep 26, 2013)

justdofit said:


> If I had bigger doors 8's would definitely be on the cards - this time I took the easy way out and kept everything within the confines of the factory plastic grill and map pocket. As soon as you venture over into the vinyl section the work required to keep the aesthetics under control increases dramatically
> 
> A mate of mine over here is an extremely talented DIY installer and has a crazy tidy wagon the same model as my sedan. There's Elate 9s in his doors, so it can be done but most definitely allot more work and skill required than I possess at this stage!


I kept it simple for the same reason. I was lucky enough that the hole i cut was the exact size i needed for the p660c's any other driver and it may look like hell.

So is this car basically a pontiac GTO in the states?


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## justdofit (Aug 13, 2010)

REGULARCAB said:


> I kept it simple for the same reason. I was lucky enough that the hole i cut was the exact size i needed for the p660c's any other driver and it may look like hell.
> 
> So is this car basically a pontiac GTO in the states?


Can't go wrong with the KISS method!

This car is the 4 door version of the GTO you see in the states, I'm not sure if you get a V6 motor with the GTO? but this car is the High Output 3.6L V6.

The GTO as it's known in the states is called a Monaro and is a bit of a national icon here. Very cool car!

I previously had the Ute variant in SS trim with the LS1 5.7L V8. That car was loads of fun, but marriage and the arrival children meant it was time to trade that toy in, in exchange for both the Sedan and Wagon version of the same car 

Being a domestic Australian car, they're quite cheap and parts are readily available.

The coupe is the only variant I know of in this series that reached the states, but the next line (VE Holden Commodore) was exported as the Pontiac G8 I believe?

Here's some photos of the different shapes of the car, firstly the Monaro Coupe (Pontiac GTO):

























My current car is the SV6 sedan (with trim almost upgraded to Calais spec):

















I also have the wagon:

















And previously had the V8 ute:


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## win1 (Sep 27, 2008)

Sub'd


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## REGULARCAB (Sep 26, 2013)

Thanks for the info. They are good lookin cars.


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## rockin (Sep 13, 2012)

justdofit said:


> If I had bigger doors 8's would definitely be on the cards - this time I took the easy way out and kept everything within the confines of the factory plastic grill and map pocket. As soon as you venture over into the vinyl section the work required to keep the aesthetics under control increases dramatically
> 
> A mate of mine over here is an extremely talented DIY installer and has a crazy tidy wagon the same model as my sedan. There's Elate 9s in his doors, so it can be done but most definitely allot more work and skill required than I possess at this stage!


The whole install is nice, but the doors steal the show. At first glance through your pics I thought it was just factory. That's a compliment man. That might be the best door MB install I've EVER seen. Excellent job. U get your black belt now! LOL.


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## justdofit (Aug 13, 2010)

rockin said:


> The whole install is nice, but the doors steal the show. At first glance through your pics I thought it was just factory. That's a compliment man. That might be the best door MB install I've EVER seen. Excellent job.


Thank you, the factory look is definitely what I strive for. To me that certainly is the highest compliment 



rockin said:


> U get your black belt now! LOL.


 OSU!


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## NealfromNZ (Sep 3, 2013)

Awesome build and lots attention to detail. Best Commodore build I've seen. Love the way you built the sub into the car. Basic sq install ? ...... modestly comes to mind.


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## justdofit (Aug 13, 2010)

NealfromNZ said:


> Awesome build and lots attention to detail. Best Commodore build I've seen. Love the way you built the sub into the car. Basic sq install ? ...... modestly comes to mind.


Cheers mate, there's a deliberate lack of sick'by'ninez in my car compared to the usual commondore arrangement


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## Deathjunior (Aug 2, 2011)

Well I've managed to get my hands on a Pontiac GTO, Though mine is affectively a 2 door version of your car. Where did you get the sail panel cloth material to match the factory? I plan on building pillars for mine as well but I'm not sure where to find it and I'm not up for use alcantara just yet. I'm not sure between an 8 and a 6.5 just because I'm still debating between inconspicuous and pure SQ. Assuming I go the 8 inch route, did you belt sand the bottom part of those baffles to get an angle on them or is that just how it looks in the picture?


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## littlemissGTO (May 23, 2013)

I'd like to know where I can find the net for the trunk and matching carpet for the trunk.


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## Deathjunior (Aug 2, 2011)

From the looks of the trunk the carpet is just the standard black box carpet which you can pick up at almost any car audio shop or order online. Box carpet also accepts vinyl dye really well and you shouldn't have a problem dyeing it for a perfect color match. Luckily black when it comes to carpet it fairly hard to get wrong. I also wasn't aware that the american GTO or the commodore vz / vauxhall manaro coupe had an option for a trunk net. I have dismantled one and taken the trunk apart of another and I don't see where it would mount though I haven't memorized it all.


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## GTOhaas07 (Mar 20, 2011)

As a former GTO owner, I approve of this. Your trunk is now the same size as the US GTOs were from the factory, the idiots at GM decided to put the gas tank in there. I loved the GTO, quality that is still light years ahead of what the rest of GM is offering. As far as drivetrain options, 04 got you a 5.7 LS1 and either a 4 speed auto or 6 speed manual. 05-06 came with the 6.0 LS2, same tranny choices, better brakes and some appearance upgrades. 

Great build, I'll be following this one!


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## justdofit (Aug 13, 2010)

Deathjunior said:


> Well I've managed to get my hands on a Pontiac GTO, Though mine is affectively a 2 door version of your car. Where did you get the sail panel cloth material to match the factory? I plan on building pillars for mine as well but I'm not sure where to find it and I'm not up for use alcantara just yet. I'm not sure between an 8 and a 6.5 just because I'm still debating between inconspicuous and pure SQ. Assuming I go the 8 inch route, did you belt sand the bottom part of those baffles to get an angle on them or is that just how it looks in the picture?


Nice choice in car!

The material I used on the sails was Stinger's black grille cloth - it's basically a perfect match to the factory black roof liner. The pillars I built later on were trimmed in factory black roof liner material which was foam backed. The factory pillars (black ones) are trimmed in non-foam backed material so if you don't want the padding I would shoot for the Stinger grill cloth.

You should be able to squeeze 8s (my mate has 9s in his Commodore) in the doors but be prepared to re-model the whole lower half of the door & perhaps loose the map pocket. A large 6 (like the HAT L6) would be as big as I think you could go while still remaining in the factory "grill" area


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## justdofit (Aug 13, 2010)

littlemissGTO said:


> I'd like to know where I can find the net for the trunk and matching carpet for the trunk.


The trunk (boot ) net is a genuine Holden item. It comes standard on the Calais - it's also used on the new VE Commodore (Pontiac G8) so you may still be able to pick one up in the states. It's a kit that comes with the net and 4 hooks that replace the fasteners that hold the rear most plastic trim on the car.

The part number is: LUGGAGE NET 92168897

It fits in like this:




























Also, the carpet was a royal pain to match. It's a very dark charcoal, even though the cars are made here I still had trouble finding a perfect match (I'm a Graphic Artist by trade so very picky on colour). If I did it again I'd go the route of either re-trimming the whole boot in a readily available colour - or - just grab a charcoal and dye it to match


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## justdofit (Aug 13, 2010)

Deathjunior said:


> From the looks of the trunk the carpet is just the standard black box carpet which you can pick up at almost any car audio shop or order online. Box carpet also accepts vinyl dye really well and you shouldn't have a problem dyeing it for a perfect color match. Luckily black when it comes to carpet it fairly hard to get wrong. I also wasn't aware that the american GTO or the commodore vz / vauxhall manaro coupe had an option for a trunk net. I have dismantled one and taken the trunk apart of another and I don't see where it would mount though I haven't memorized it all.


Vinyl dye is the way to go for an easy match to this carpet. Tonal differences in greys (warmth etc...) stick out like dogs balls.

The net option is for the Calais model - which I don't think made it to the states or the UK in this series. But... the net is also used for newer vehicles under the part number posted above so it may be attainable in the states?

With the fasters there's 4 hooks. but 2 different styles, 2 of them are female threaded (about M5 in size) and 2 are like large self tapper threads (plastic).


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## justdofit (Aug 13, 2010)

GTOhaas07 said:


> As a former GTO owner, I approve of this. Your trunk is now the same size as the US GTOs were from the factory, the idiots at GM decided to put the gas tank in there. I loved the GTO, quality that is still light years ahead of what the rest of GM is offering. As far as drivetrain options, 04 got you a 5.7 LS1 and either a 4 speed auto or 6 speed manual. 05-06 came with the 6.0 LS2, same tranny choices, better brakes and some appearance upgrades.
> 
> Great build, I'll be following this one!


I love the GTO, it's known as the Monaro over here and is a bit of an aussie icon. The later model Monaro also has the fuel tank behind the rear firewall.

I've got a soft spot for the 5.7L LS1 having had one in a fully optioned VZ SS ute. Which I sold for obvious reasons shortly after my wife and I started a family.





































It's a shame you guys didn't get the ute over there. They're an absolute blast to drive with so much power and such a lite rear end


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## justdofit (Aug 13, 2010)

I must add I have since sold this car and replaced it with something smaller and more economical.

I am currently in the early stages of the new build 

But here's a quick system diagram of what's going in.










I will put up a new build thread in good time but until then I'm just posting locally on the Australian Car Audio forums 
http://www.caraudio.com.au/forums/index.php/topic/571457-cruze-sri-v-daily-driver-install/


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## ccapil (Jun 1, 2013)

Nice build and gear! I'm in NZ and got my new chrome idmax just over a week ago. Should be in next week! Beautiful driver. Do you plan on starting a new build thread with the new car? What car is it by the way?


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## Deathjunior (Aug 2, 2011)

Guess I'll be using stinger grill cloth then. I'll likely be using Daytons new RS225P Paper cone 8's and Lpg na26 tweeters. So I should be able to basically replicate your door woofer build. My trunk build is different I'll be using three linear power amplifiers which are pretty huge and since I can't do a good wall without killing depth I'll be building a 3 inch subfloor. Another issue caused by trunk fuel tank is the subs so I'm putting in 4 RE audio 8's in the rear side panels. This is going to have a lot of glass work in it lol. Right now though I have to get the GTO in my name and return the old pontiac to stock and sell it and all its components. Then I can get to work on the goat. Ohh one more question the third ring on your ring stacks for the baffle is belt sanded down to an angle correct? Is it just that ring or are others sanded to an angle as well. I'd rather have it ready to go so I can just start cutting and building lol.


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## justdofit (Aug 13, 2010)

ccapil said:


> Nice build and gear! I'm in NZ and got my new chrome idmax just over a week ago. Should be in next week! Beautiful driver. Do you plan on starting a new build thread with the new car? What car is it by the way?


Thanks mate. I love my chrome idmax. Nice choice!

I've got a build thread over on caraudio.com.au for now - I will take the best from that and put something together over here eventually.

Don't laugh, but it's actually a Holden Cruze SRI-V - the 1.4L turbo model with factory nav and leather. I didn't think I'd like it, but it suits my needs perfectly and it's fun to start a new build from scratch, and squeezing more gear into a smaller car


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## justdofit (Aug 13, 2010)

Deathjunior said:


> Guess I'll be using stinger grill cloth then. I'll likely be using Daytons new RS225P Paper cone 8's and Lpg na26 tweeters. So I should be able to basically replicate your door woofer build. My trunk build is different I'll be using three linear power amplifiers which are pretty huge and since I can't do a good wall without killing depth I'll be building a 3 inch subfloor. Another issue caused by trunk fuel tank is the subs so I'm putting in 4 RE audio 8's in the rear side panels. This is going to have a lot of glass work in it lol. Right now though I have to get the GTO in my name and return the old pontiac to stock and sell it and all its components. Then I can get to work on the goat


Sweet, I'll be keen to see your build when it get rolling. The door woofer build in this car was very easy and literally only took an afternoon.

Nothing wrong with a bit of glass work, it's good for the skin


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## Deathjunior (Aug 2, 2011)

Yea I'm no stranger to fiberglass. Though I really hate the powder that comes from cutting it. On the ring stacks for the woofer is it just the third one that was belt sanded to an angle, or were there others?

Who knows by the way I might have the american chevy cruze version of your holden to work on eventually. A certain girl in my life happens to have a 2013 model. Though hers will be very simple if we do anything.


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## justdofit (Aug 13, 2010)

Deathjunior said:


> Yea I'm no stranger to fiberglass. Though I really hate the powder that comes from cutting it. On the ring stacks for the woofer is it just the third one that was belt sanded to an angle, or were there others?
> 
> Who knows by the way I might have the american chevy cruze version of your holden to work on eventually. A certain girl in my life happens to have a 2013 model. Though hers will be very simple if we do anything.


Good stuff.

You could just belt sand 1 sheet down on an angle. A friend of mine is a wood machinist - 3 of those sheets were laminated together and he made up an angle jig and passed the sheets through an industrial sized planer. Thinking back at how hard it was to cut the rings out of 54mm thick MDF it would definitely have been easier to laminate them after the angle was planed and the rings were cut lol

Oh cool! the little Cruze looks to be a fine platform for an SQ build.


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## littlemissGTO (May 23, 2013)

justdofit said:


> The trunk (boot ) net is a genuine Holden item. It comes standard on the Calais - it's also used on the new VE Commodore (Pontiac G8) so you may still be able to pick one up in the states. It's a kit that comes with the net and 4 hooks that replace the fasteners that hold the rear most plastic trim on the car.
> 
> The part number is: LUGGAGE NET 92168897
> 
> ...


Thank you for posting this information. I'm sick of stuff sliding around in the trunk of my GTO.


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