Engine Questions.

1. What engine would you recommend in terms of most horsepower that I could put in my Cavy without exceeding 2.5 L or major rearranging.

2. Being the newbie that I am, is it possible to swap an engine that was in a MT car into a AT car with a little work?

3. Slightly off topic, but what is an estimated cost for converting to RWD or even possibly AWD from FWD?

Thanks and much appreciated.

~ Crazzzyj

1. What engine would you recommend in terms of most horsepower that I could put in my Cavy without exceeding 2.5 L or major rearranging.

2. Being the newbie that I am, is it possible to swap an engine that was in a MT car into a AT car with a little work?

3. Slightly off topic, but what is an estimated cost for converting to RWD or even possibly AWD from FWD?

Thanks and much appreciated.

~ Crazzzyj
1 - Depends upon the route you're interested in taking. I'm a fan of the Twin Cam...probably b/c I own one. However, its the most horsepower put into a J-Body and does very well to various mods, including swapping in parts you can find out of older Quad4 motors laying around a junkyard. All around better for a non-forced induction application, but it does have the lovely GM Supercharger available.

The other option would be the Ecotec which is going to have lots of new stuff coming out for it for quite some time as opposed to the now-discontinued Twin Cam. From what I've read and seen, its an ideal motor for boosted applications.

2 - Of course, but you'll have to swap out trannys (naturally) and swap out the wiring/computer/etc from the donor vehicle. If you got an auto, just slap on a shift kit and call it a day, much cheaper and there won't be much of a difference between the auto and the standard.

3 - A lot more than your car is worth. I've personally never heard of an AWD cavalier, but I've seen some RWD conversions, exclusively on show cars. The cost to gains ratio makes it prohibitive for just about everyone.

What if we were to move outside of the 4 - cylinder range?

For instance, although a little heavy we could consider Nissan's RB26-DETT... or the somewhat lighter SR20-DET. Both produce considerably HP for V6's.

I'm not sure about any other brands of engines, for I'm not all too familiar with them. Perhaps it would be hard to find these? Or even harder to put one in my car?

I'm not quite sure I'd want to move into the V8 range, unless it was small enough to fit under a stock hood.

Thanks for the reply.

~Crazzzyj

(As a sidenote, the previously mentioned engines have 2.5 displacement or less.)

v6 = 3800 supercharged!

This is Ravens car off j-body.org.

http://memimage.cardomain.net/member_images/10/web/526000-526999/526752_126_full.jpg
http://memimage.cardomain.net/member_images/10/web/526000-526999/526752_123_full.jpg
http://memimage.cardomain.net/member_images/10/web/526000-526999/526752_223_full.jpg

What if we were to move outside of the 4 - cylinder range?

For instance, although a little heavy we could consider Nissan's RB26-DETT... or the somewhat lighter SR20-DET. Both produce considerably HP for V6's.

I'm not sure about any other brands of engines, for I'm not all too familiar with them. Perhaps it would be hard to find these? Or even harder to put one in my car?

I'm not quite sure I'd want to move into the V8 range, unless it was small enough to fit under a stock hood.

Thanks for the reply.

~Crazzzyj

(As a sidenote, the previously mentioned engines have 2.5 displacement or less.)
You'd be crossing into territory I've never seen a J-Body enter. While some parts from some manufacturers are interchangeable (Mopar injectors, for example) that kind of motor swap would be...well...insane to attempt. Those motors are RWD, to begin with, not to mention using totally different tech and setup from GM vehicles. The fabrication involved would be mind boggling and you'd have to be DAMN good at doing it.

I still say that if insanely high horsepower is your goal, pursue a very VERY well built ecotec. I mean, hell, fastest two FWD Drag cars are ecotec powered. As far as V8 swapping, you'd have to do a full RWD swap, b/c the only other motor you'd have as an option is the NorthStar, but, while the motor will fit, the transmission added to the motor will not fit between the strut towers.

Then again, I suppose anything is really possible if you have a very unlimited supply of funds...

Thanks for the input.

Now I found a 3800 Supercharged somewhere. Now, they boasted its 240 HP, but also said for an extra cost a turbo charger could be added.

Would that make much of a differences? Or is it just a basic money waster?

Also, the II Generation could be subbed for a III Generation. Whats that like?

Would this engine work with the original transmisson? Basically, could I keep the same 4 spd automatic in my car and still add this engine?

Bear with me, thanks.

~Crazzzyj

you could also go the route of a 2.2 ecotec and turbo it. I have seen some very impressive gains from the ecotec.

I think I've found an engine that would be perfect formy car. But my questions are: Would the parts be interchangeable, when will this engine be out on the market, and the cost.

The engine is: 2.0 Turbocharged Ecotec.

It can be found at this site:

http://www.j-body.org./gallery/article.php?eid=519&aid=102

I like it being a bit smaller than the GM 3800 Supercharged, and even produces a little more HP.

Cheers.

~Crazzzyj

The 2.0 turbo charged or supercharged motor produces around 205 hp great motor. it can be found in the cobalt ss. I can get it as a crate motor direct import from GM. as far as combatability wise the most you will have to upgrade would be your wiring harness, brain,trans and maybe your motor mounts..

The 2.0 turbo charged or supercharged motor produces around 205 hp great motor. it can be found in the cobalt ss. I can get it as a crate motor direct import from GM. as far as combatability wise the most you will have to upgrade would be your wiring harness, brain,trans and maybe your motor mounts..
You do know that turbocharging and supercharging are two different things, right? Because you just made a huge mistake in what you said. The 2.0 Supercharged Ecotec somes out of a Cobalt SS Supercharged, not a Cobalt SS which has a 2.4L Ecotec. You could also scout out a Saturn Ion Redline. A turbocharged motor is not available on a Cobalt.

The 2.0 Supercharged is slightly underrated at 205HP while the 2.0 Turbocharged that you cited out of a Soltice GXP (that's not out yet, thus not crate motor) sits at a nice 260HP.

For the original poster - Look into drivetrain compatibility, this will be FAR from a bolt in. The Solstice is a RWD platform and so the drivetrain is designed accordingly. You, however, are FWD. The most compatible of the Forced Induction Ecotec's for you would be the Supercharged...but even thats a bit much.

You do know that turbocharging and supercharging are two different things, right? Because you just made a huge mistake in what you said. The 2.0 Supercharged Ecotec somes out of a Cobalt SS Supercharged, not a Cobalt SS which has a 2.4L Ecotec. You could also scout out a Saturn Ion Redline. A turbocharged motor is not available on a Cobalt.

The 2.0 Supercharged is slightly underrated at 205HP while the 2.0 Turbocharged that you cited out of a Soltice GXP (that's not out yet, thus not crate motor) sits at a nice 260HP.

For the original poster - Look into drivetrain compatibility, this will be FAR from a bolt in. The Solstice is a RWD platform and so the drivetrain is designed accordingly. You, however, are FWD. The most compatible of the Forced Induction Ecotec's for you would be the Supercharged...but even thats a bit much.

And you are right for I didnt realize the mistake as to what i type untill its to late I carry the 2.0 supercharged 205 HP crate motor.Also I cant wait till the new turbo charged version makes its way into the new cobalts for it will give dodge a great run for its money. The Cobalt ss is only a 2.0 supercharged not a 2.4 but would be nice.

The reason that I know that the supercharged cobalt carries a 2.0 cause I looked into purchasing one... even test drove one. God it was nice! 18" rims, sport suspension, stiff clutch, short throw shifter, ran around 1.5 pounds of boost according to the boost guage..

it was messed up then. they are supposed to be at 10psi after break in period. I think they start off at like 7 or 8 psi

yea the guage only said 0.5 1.0 1.5 2.0 2.5 I think it could mean i.o stands for 10 psi...not sure though

And you are right for I didnt realize the mistake as to what i type untill its to late I carry the 2.0 supercharged 205 HP crate motor.Also I cant wait till the new turbo charged version makes its way into the new cobalts for it will give dodge a great run for its money. The Cobalt ss is only a 2.0 supercharged not a 2.4 but would be nice.
Uh...dude...check the damn chevy website or something. Cobalt SS comes in 2 flavors, a 2.4 Ecotec for a "Cobalt SS" and 2.0 supercharged Ecotec for the "Cobalt SS Supercharged" The first is naturally aspirated, the latter is forced induction.

They must like trying to confuse us with their fancy names.

~Crazzzyj

^^^most people dont know about the n/a SS yet.

An acquaintance pointed me in the direction of this useful site. In there, it provides info on tweaking your Ecotec engine from stock to 250 HP and even up to 1400 HP. Also includes various information on GM's FWD Racing.

http://www.gm.com/company/gmtunersource/html/race_shop_build_book.htm

I wonder how easy it would be to just upgrade to the 250. :tongue: Sounds fun.

~Crazzzyj

Thanks.. that link is very very informitive..