I have a 09 tc cobalt with a dp no cat, 2.5in exsuast to the 3in tip, and a gm stage 1 tune so pushing 22 pounds on the turbo. Everything els is stock and I was looking to spend 7-8k to build it up for the streets. Just looking for some suggestions on what would give it the most hp for the money. Thanks!

 

What's your goal hp wise?

 

call Ryan D at ZZP. Tell him his cousin Moesha sent you. He will hook you up. Seriously though call him.

 

That will get very well built ldk engine.

 

building a fwd car for the streets to me doesnt make sense. i personally would base my build off of a rwd or awd platform. but if the cobalt is your thing, f40 trans, twin disk clutch, efr (or zfr might be better) turbo setup, fmic w/ hard pipes, 3" exhaust, race gas and a nice tune would be a good start.

 

Is it your daily?

If so just enjoy it the way it is.

 

Are you looking to build it yourself or have a shop do it

 

why doesn't it make sense?

 

Because rwd/awd or nothing

 

They all have their problems. Fwd, traction and torque steer, rwd, the ass likes to come out with to much power , fun but more dangerous. Awd- needs a lot more done to make the power to the ground. Fwd is still fun and works if done right. Living where I live with winter is take fwd or awd over rwd any day

 

Yeah I agree with this^ I've been sideways several times in my past rwd cars at speed with the potential to roll pretty quick. I've never even had torque steer in my cobalt even with power where it's at now. Only thing I don't like about fwd is 0-60 can be hard to get traction in, and if you are running slicks with not much air pressure, steering can suck.

 

I drive a rwd truck. Iv been sideways and in 360s so many times this winter lol but that's what you get for trying to drift every turn you take.

 

If there were an advantage to fwd then F1 cars would have it.

The old saying is tires can do one thing well; either steer or accelerate/brake. When you ask them to do both it gets difficult.

 

no one said there is any advantage, you just wont loose control in show as easily as you will with rwd. you gotta do something pretty stupid to loose control in snow with fwd, with rwd, all u have to do is blip the throttle a little on hard snow or ice.

 

Im going to have a shop do the work. And no it is not my daily anymore, and I'm looking for the most hp possible basically

 

Where are you located

 

the aftermarket support is there, but its not huge like it is with mustangs, ls cars, Hondas...

starting with a fwd car for street use makes launching hard. at the track it's hard enough to get out of the hole decently, then add unprepped pavement and it gets even harder.

once you get above certain limits, to upgrade is so much more expensive because aftermarket vendors aren't moving as many parts so they have to cover r&d by jacking up prices.

fueling for DI engines is limited. after a certain point you're adding more injectors versus port injection has umpteen thousand different injectors to choose from. carb cars just need a rejetting.

im not saying it's wrong. it'll just be a more expensive route to go for the return you get. but you do what youre into.


fast, cheap, reliable... pick 2. I'd build up the driveline first. having a shop do the work i think will limit you to either a turbo upgrade kit or a trans & clutch upgrade but you wont be able to do both. so, f40 trans, clutch, fmic kit w/pipes, and tune. you might be able to get a k04r on there too and cams.

 

He lives in Redding, CA (I assume CA) so all this snow talk is pretty moot

 

Oh I understand all that. True but I'd refuse to get a mustang cause it's a mustang. Wish gm made an awd sport compact

 

the 7-8k won't get to far to be honest. Let's say you go zfr that's 2k plus labor. You go f40 swap that's 3k plus labor. You still need tires, suspension, intercooler, tune etc plus you haven't even touched the engine yet.

Makes me look how much I've spend on my car lol

 

They made the Typhoon and Cyclone. just did a quick length check and they're shorter than the new STi. lol.

 

Perspective sucks doesn't it? I try not to look back and think about the money I have into cars, its too depressing.

OP, is there a reason your planning to get a shop to do it? That $7-8k will go farther if you do the work yourself! If your not so mechanically inclined, friends can be helpful, and you'll never learn without getting your hands dirty.

 

I don't like to think about it cause rough estimate gives me a minor heart attack lol

 

I dont like we to think about it either but just happened to notice what I was saying is what I have done to my car plus more

 

This. I have done several partial builds at a shop that charges extremely fair rates (not to say dirt cheap) and each and everyone of them was at least $5K in total (parts + labor).

Being a finance guy, I have an anally detailed Excel spreadsheet that lists every penny I ever spent on my car, categorized every which way possible. Given that I bought my car brand new, it is needless to say I'm at the point where I could've bought a very nice used Porsche by now...
One example: I spent just under 8 grand (or $0.16 per mile) on brakes and tires alone