Newbie

Hi all!

I'm 16, new to these forums, and own a 1997 2.2L automatic tranny 4-doorCavalier.
I'm wanting to buy a couple of parts to make my cavy sound and perform a little better.
It's not like I will be taking it to the drag strip or anything like that I would just like it to have a little more power for my own enjoiment.
I've done a little research and I have found that I will probably just buy a cold air intake and an exhaust system.
Could anyone make any suggestions for what to buy?
I was also wondering if I would be able to drive in the rain w/ a cold air intake being as this is my only form a transportation and I do live in a rather rainy state.

Thanx for all of your help everyone!

welcome to the forums. this should be easy to help you b/c i have the exact same car, 97' cavi 4dr. well if you're just looking to knock of half a second off your time, yea just add cold air intake from either aem(when it comes out...), injen, rsm racing, or rksport. also a 59mm throttle body spacer from one of the companies above^, this allows more air from the intake to enter the engine. exhaust of course, full cat back and muffler from rksport/magnaflow (same), rsm racing, or borla. and headers from pacesetters. that should be enough power for wut you're prolly looking for. but if u want more h/p, write back and i'll continue.

Thanx for replying,
would those make a noticable amout of extra hp?
Oh and what about this air intake http://www.hypertuned.com/product_info.php?products_id=255 ?
Could you tell me about how long it would take to install these products.
I would likely be doing these alone .
Sorry I forgot, what about the rain?

air intakes take about 1-2 hours, do-it-yourself thing. sry bout the water thing, but for that u can get an air bypass filter, but i doubt u'll need it unless u expect the intake to be completely supmerged under water. u can find that at www.aem.com. these mods would add some h/p, slightly noticeable, might take u from a 16.1sec 1/4 mile (stock) to maybe mid/high 15's.

one more thing, is ur car auto or manual? b/c there's a interceptor conection for auto tranny's that makes shifting better. i think that www.rksport.com has one.

its an auto tranny
thanx for info.
I still have a couple of questions for ya tho:icon16:
1 Would i need an air bypass filter if I got a ram air hood?
2 Could I possibly install an exhaust without header pipe if I had a friend helping me or would I need it installed for me?

1. no, u wouldn't need a bypass for ram air intakes, but you'd be getting less h/p than w/ cold air intake. u could prolly get by w/ a CAI w/out the bypass, unless you're expecting it to be completely submerged...

2. yes, u can do that. from the engine, exhaust flows thru the headers, down the downpipe, thru the catylic converter, thru the cat pipe and out the muffler. headers usually come w/ the headers and the downpipe. and the cat back setup up is from the cat piping to the mufflers, so u can just wield the new piping to the exsisting catylic. and u can still replace the headers whenever u want, just cut and wield.

hi i got the rksport catback exhaust...its took me about 11am-4pm to do it and i also replaced the cat. with juststrait pipes for more hp...but its not legal. The most time consuming thing is taking the old pipes off atleast for me the bolts get really rusted and on most of the you just end up breaking them they are so rusted. As for installing the Header all the way back your looking maybe whole day...its very simple stuff its just all bolt on.

OK here I go again... :bloated:
Will there be any welding of any kind? If so I will let someone that knows what they are doing install it.
And the next question, are there any places where I can order a full system ready to install (including header, cat, and the rest)?
Would a different hood make any difference in performance or are they just for pretty?

Thanx for all of your comments, I am learning from all of this. :wink:

i have seen some ppl tack weld some of their exhaust system together to add strength but u shouldn't need to unless u wanna go rallying or sumthing...

if the right parts are ordered you shouldnt need to weld anything....if the part is for 95-99 or whatever 2.2l it will work. buy your catback from rksport.com and header from pacesetter. that should be all you need if you are in the middle of it and need something cut and welded jsut measure it and take it to usually any salvage yard or car repair place and they will most likely weld it for you for around $10-15

like they said above ^, u SHOULDN'T need to weld anything. www.rksport.com is where u can by a cat back, which is everything beyond the catylic converter (strait pipe, muffler). u can by a performance catylic converter if u wanna stay legal from rksport too.

now for the headers, pacesetters is the best, but i don't know off the top of my head where to get some. that includes the downpipe that connects the header and catylic.

hood scoops r just mainly for looks. might be some aerodynamic plus. if u get a ram air hood that actually opens into the engine bay, it kinda forces air through the scoop and into the ram air intake, if u have one.

Would this one work?
http://www.autotrucktoys.com/stores/showdetl.cfm?&DID=56&Product_ID=21911&CATID=454
Because it is a lot cheaper.

truthfully i wouldnt because when you get greedy with money towards car parts your not just paying for names but for quality. You ever here the hondas or things like that with the fart cannons on the back that sound like crap yeah thats because they are cheap....trust me paying more will get you better quality. I think www.Nopi.com has pacesetter headers or www.pacesetter.com

Does anyone have any exp. w/ akimoto or injen intakes?
I'm having a hard time deciding which one looks better.

Hey I'm wanting to get an exhaust and I was wondering if someone could explain everything...like what is a Full Cat Back exhaust? What's the catalytic converter? The exhaust I'm looking at is the Veilside Tear Drop Titanium. Let me know what ya'll think about it.


Don't forget, I am TRYING to learn. Everyone has to start somewhere

injen looks better IMO...

catalytic converter is a device in the exhaust system which treats the exhaust before it leaves the car and removes a lot of the pollution.
http://auto.howstuffworks.com/catalytic-converter.htm


Cat Back exhaust is the entire exhaust system after the catalytic converter. It includes the pipes, muffler, etc...

Is the Veilside TearDrop Titanium just a muffler or an exhaust system?

Still a couple more questions..
Is an exhaust header really going to make much a difference?
Will this thing http://www.highrevmotorsports.com/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=27_30&products_id=59
work as good as it says?

yes, headers r important. it's like an air intake to induce more air into the engine, it's just as important to remove the exhaust from the engine as fast as possible.

and the venom thing, yea, that's an ecu add on. u might have heard ppl saying they need a 'chip upgrade' to go alone w/ all the engine work they've done. it's kinda the same w/ computers - u add in alot of software, but now u need a processor to handle all the added on stuff.
might not be the best thing to buy first, just something u might need down the road.

So you're saying that the extra money would be better spent on a header?OK
I'v pretty much narrowed down my list of mods I will buy for my car:
RKSport Dual Stainless Cat-Back System,Injen Air Intake System for the Cavalier ,Ichibahn Billet Aluminum Pedal Kit for Auto Transmission Cavalier,Willpak Smoked Hood Deflector for the 95-02 Cavalier,Pacesetter 2.2L Ceramic Header,Catco High-Flow Cat,Casper O2 Simulator,and a Sony MP3/cd player.

Does this seem like a good list of things to buy?
Any opinions would be helpful.
And probably my last questions...
Is a high flow cat hard to install or does it just take time like most of the other things?
Should I get my exhaust installed by a proffesional or should i save the money and do it my self?

Thanx for the help everyone!
I have learned bundles these last few days.

that's an excellent list. to install how flow cat is like installing the rest of the eshaust system, just cutting out the old original parts and bolting the new one in, yea it'll take some time. whether a pro should do it is up to you, r u willing or wanting to take the time and effort to do it yourself?

Yes I'm pretty sure I will install everything myself with some help.
The only thing I am worried about would be a bolt breaking when I take off the old exhaust. Other than that I am pretty confident.
Thank you every one for all of your help . It is greatly appreciated.:wink: