So basically, I have been saving up money to upgrade my 2010 Cobalt SS. I have around $2000 to spend.

I am in no way educated about what is best, or what is needed, I am simply looking for opinions on where to buy, and what to buy.

I have zero interest in non-performance mods.

I am looking to upgrade my inter-cooler, charge pipes, get a BOV, and any other necessary parts.

My car already has the GM Stage 1 Kit. The RPD Reads 278 HP, and 312 FT Lbs Trq if that matters.

I realize that this is not much to go on, but I am more of a driver than a modder. My father is the auto-mechanic, I just drive the cars lol.

Thanks for any and all help!

 

id say do the intercooler and pipes. NO to the bov, nothing but problems there. get a forge bpv instead. K&N intake, that will give u that bov sound ur looking for. trust me ur bpv is load enough. lol A good hp tune. will net u like 315whp and closer to 400wtq. also ull want a catless downpipe if u don't need to worry bout emissions. that should spend ur money and give u a dang good fast little beast.

btw zzp website, do ur shopping there. all their stuff is awesome. and they would have everything ur looking for, except the tune. that ud either have to get hptuners and get someone on here to tune u, or find someone with hptuners and get someone on here to tune u. don't get trifecta.

 

K&N short ram intake
Upper and lower charge pipes with larger intercooler (everyone loves zzp setup)
downpipe (I would buy used. Its just steel)
Tune (either go to ZZP or get someone on here who knows what they are doing and using HP tuners for the best)
transmission mounts for less wheel hop on hole shots (Powell has good reviews)
Might need some new MAP sensors. Idk if they come with the GMS1. heard they do though
Better tires (personal preference)

Should put you right around $2k. Depends if you buy new or used. Also depends if you get tuned for 93 octane or e85 as 85 gets you more power. be right around 320whp and 360qtq Prolly run high 12's with a good launch.

Ask someone else the order of install of parts cause I honestly dont know what the best way would be. Tune last though for sure. Otherwise you should tune after every mod

 

If I were you, Id look for the best bang for the buck.

I think you should get the following items in order of importance:

#1. 3" downpipe. you can get a highflow catted or catless one. they both make the car sound more aggressive and will free up some more power with an HPtune.

#2. K&N intake. Makes fun boost and blowoff sounds. Allows you to make more power with a HPtune.

#3. HPtune. Nothing better than getting a solid performing HPtune. I havent had any issues with boosting to 24psi so Id say a goal might be get a tune between 22-24psi. You will make more power than GMS1.

(Optional) #4 Not really going to increase your power noticeably but I know that the factory upper charge pipe and the intercooler can break leaving you with a massive boost leak and possibly stranded somewhere. Id replace them with a quailty charge pipe and intercooler. ZZP is good now that they have that smaller intercooler version of their front mount. Dont get an oversize intercooler. Its not going to increase performance for a factory turbo.



The other route:

Keep saving your money, buy a ZZP ZFR turbo, and get tuned for low boost. ~18psi. You wouldnt need much more money since the ZFR is like $1850 or something like that. This option will net you good power and the future prospect of upgrading down the road for bigger gains. You would probably need a new clutch and a transmission to really max the ZFR turbo down the road.

I beleive whether you upgrade with a more agressive tune and performance bolt-ons or go for the bigger turbo, you will net around the same power gains. maybe alittle more for the turbo swap, Id guess 330whp and 380trq @ 15 - 18psi.
Also note that if you go for the bolt-ons. The ZFR turbo is a direct bolt-on. All the other bolt-ons that mount to the turbo (downpipe, charge piping, intake) will fit the ZFR turbo.

 

Basically OP you just gotta ask urself how fast do I wanna go and how much money do I wanna spend? Then choose the route accordingly

 

That's kind of what I've learned from growing up with my dad and his muscle cars lol.

But thanks for the help everyone. I've been searching around and starting to buy parts right now. I've decided to go with the bolt-ons for now, and then work towards the better turbo in the near future.

 

So I have ordered a K&N Short Ram Intake, and plan to get a 3inch downpipe within the near future. My car is away in storage for the winter, so I plan to just do the installations for now and do the real testing when the snow disappears.

A few questions though.

Would it be bad to install just the K&N Intake first? Would it be bad/pointless to install it and not tune the car for it?

The car is tuned for the GMS1 Kit that is has on it.

Just want to see if it would be a pointless idea to get the intake, and not tune the car right away, since I know nothing about tuning, nor if there is anyone around my area (London, Ontario) that I could pay to tune it for me..

Thanks!

 

Install mods then tune. Those 2 mods wont really hurt your car but they will benefit from a tune. You wont gain any hp without one because of the learn down feature.

 

Ok, is there a potential to lose power?

 

He has gms1 the learn down feature is not there


Op you will definitely notice gains from the downpipe. There will be no loss in power

 

If you want the biggest bang for your buck just get the car tuned on hptuners by someone who has done lnf cobalts before. There are a few guys here on the forum that are very good at what they do. Even without any mods and just a tune the car will feel much better

 

Alright sounds good! Appreciate the help!

On a side note.... who wants to tune my car? xD Willing to drive rather big distance

 

look up sskev. He's in Brampton and one of the best tuners from what I've been hearing.

For the intake place the metal rib on the filter at the 11 o'clock position. It's sounds silly, but that's how the car likes it.

 

Alright will do, thanks!