Hey!

First post and would just like to say there are some cool people on here. Met a bunch of them down at the Richmond Dragway last Friday and really opened my eyes up to Cobalt tubers. Hopefully this is the right place to post, i'll probably be doing most of my snooping in this section anyways.

I own a Saab 9-3 2.0T, running the same engine as you guys, the 2.0l ecotec, but in turbo form, same as the Solstice GXP one might say. Unfortunately, they don't make performance parts for my car, but they do for my engine, they are just for Cobalt's. At least GM decided to give this engine to a community of non-40 year old's who can't really do much of anything.

Just a quick designation, when you see a Saab and it say's 2.0t, it's not the same as my car, the 2.0T. My car runs the larger Mitsubishi TD04-14 turbo at 12.3psi stock, while the little t runs about 8.5 pounds with a Garett T3 turbo.

A question I do have is what is the CR of the Cobalt? and where would I be able to find lightweight engine parts, etc? I'm mainly looking for a set of lightweight forged pistons, as this thing rev's like a tank. My CR is 9.5:1.

I've only done some light modding and am currently experimenting with MBC's to squeeze more boost out (the turbo is good to ~25psi if not more, so is the engine).

 

Welcome man. Those Saab's are nice cars, good luck with it.

 

The cobalt 2.0 LSJ's compression ratio is 9.5:1 also. You might want to look for some 92mm pistons in the 8.8:1 or 8.0:1 range. I'll see if I can find the link I had and I'll post it up.

 

So it would actually be a better idea to go with lower compression pistons? Would that yield more power?

 

No, lower CR would yield less power. However, they would allow you to run more boost with decent timing and less chance of knock.

 

welcome to the nut house!

 

welcome

 

Oh yea, and welcome to .net! Have fun and hope someday you can pass on knowledge to the future newbies.

 

Lower compression and more boost is safer/better for hp than higher compression and less boost. Although in the mustang community (a certain magazine I won't mention) seems to go against the grain and tell you to build the engine like a very strong n/a motor and then add boost. I don't understand their logic as strong n/a motors like lots of compression and bottom of the page cams (too much overlap/tight lsa/single pattern duration are not ideal for boost). So I would stick with the lower compression

EDIT: Besides the turbo, looks like you saab guys also got lucky and got a return fuel system too Damn cobalts!

 

 

What times did you run at the track?

 

Run 8:1 pistons and turn the boost up to 18-20psi. You'll be very happy.

 

By that statement I meant that there is hardly any aftermarket Saab community. Just the basics. Anyhow, I think I should fill people in on my situation -

There isn't much of any non pre-programmed ECU tuning that I can do, unless I go full blown NIRA i3+ engine managment. So I have to get the best performance I can out of the car, without throwing CEL's (we have a feature called limp home mode, which cuts the power to about a third). So I can adjust the boost with an MBC, but I have no way to add more fuel to compensate for the added boost, which means i'll run lean and yield no performance increase.

I would say I think Cobalt tuners have a much easier time then us Saabers. I could always drop 900 dollars on a pre programmed stage 1 ECU and run 22psi with lots more fuel all on the stock engine. But then it only yields about 40+ more horsepower.

Unless there is another way to add more fuel after adding more boost without messing with T8? (our EM, trionic 8, the hate of all tuners.)

 

if its basically the same engine... can't he get HPTuned?

 

Actually, a friend of mine added fuel and timing to his Saab. I believe there is a company in North Carolina....I'll see if I can get some info from him, he's in Virginia too (Portsmouth).

 

You share the same displacement but you do not have the same engine

You have a LK9, the SS/SC has a LSJ

Also, you do NOT share anything with the LNF engine (in the Solstice GXP/Sky Redline)

They have direct injection as well as Variable Valve Timing (Cam Phasing).

They also use a Borg Warner Turbocharger, not a Mitsubishi turbo like yours.

Sorry but they are all different.

 

I think it was implied that he was running the same block. He doesn't have the eaton so it isn't the same designation, much like the LNF is the same block with a turbo.

 

So is there any way to get forged/lighter pistons that will essentially be the same as the stock ones, just much lighter? New valves?

 

um, maybe not

 

How is the LNF the same block when it has direct injection?

They do share the same bore and stroke but...

The LNF block is 319 Alluminum
The LK9 block is Lost Foam Alluminum

It's not the same block...

It's not about them being lighter but more about them being less resistant to crack from extreme heat (which is why they forge) and also the strength of them. They usually have a indent on middle of the piston head to keep the ignition in the center of the piston and not spread out across the top of the piston so easily.

 

They are 2.0l ecotec blocks.

 

Doesn't mean they are the same though...

They share a couple characteristics...but they are not the same.

 

so um shouldn't we possibly be looking at the 9-3 fueling system? Looks like the same rail the cavalier uses and what not.