So, for those who may not know yet, ZZP has decided to manufacture their own shorty headers once again, which is great news if you have had a negative experience with the BADMAB headers. They are very close in price, and with ZZP I know it's a much better quality deal. Now begs the questions if I should save and get the midlength&downpipe combo which they recommend, or would I be fine with the shorty header?
So I own a 2006 chevy cobalt 2.2L LS. I have had a custom exhaust shop into town build me a catback for my car, but I still have stock headers/down pipe. Question is, would the gains be fairly close enough that I can just get the shorty headers then get a down pipe later on?
My concern is that I live in Alaska where shipping is horrendous, and the muffler shop would have to remodify the catback in order to fit the longer mid&dp combo, which I estimate to be close to a $600 investment all together. So, anybody think that the shorty headers will work just as well? I only have a N/A cobalt, so it's not like I'm trying to make 300hp or anything; it's just for fun.

Thanks guys!
-Daniel

 

Id say package deal. They shouldnt have to modify the catback at all if they put a flange and didnt weld it to the stock DP.

I have midlength and DP combo.

 

Thanks for the response! If that's the case then I will save up for the combo if people are getting the best results for the 2.2l. I know that if I had to modifying catback they would charge me at least somewhere over $100 to do it. But if it bolt up just as the stock down pipe/headers do then I should be fine.

 

Dude as long as they left the exhaust flange in the stock location for the exit on the cat any header down pipe combo will bolt up.
That said, having had a shorty header and three different downpipes, then going to the zzp longtube, that's the best option. I got the longtube, catted, with the 2.5 exit and it was by far the most impressive gains I've got from any mod on the car.

 

Thanks man. Now the question is, which muffler should I get? As my car sits right now, I don't have a muffler. I have a resonator but it's just a straight pipe from there. The stock header/downpipe keeps it pretty muffled, but if I got the zzp mid length/downpipe combo I can imagine that will be pretty f'in loud.

 

I can promise that while you may not, everyone else thinks your NA 2.2 sounds like ****, is loud, and obnoxious with a straight pipe...

 

Well I disagree with that the way my car sits right now. I've had many compliments on my car and anyone who's rode in it said it sounds great. But, that's only because it still has the stock header
/down pipe which muffles the noise. However, I do agree that if I were to swap it all out then I would need a muffler.

I wish I could upgrade to an SS and be a little more legit, actually I was in the process of getting one at a dealership but it failed their inspection which they said the car was in really bad shape. So, I'm stuck with my NA for now, SS is far and few in between in Alaska.

 

I have a base model G5 and its faster than a lot of cars.

 

I've seen a few G5's up here and they are pretty sweet, but also rare in Alaska unfortunately lol. Right now I just like building on my Cobalt because it's a good stress reliever and a hobby. The thing I like best about my Balt is its so easy to work on and learn from.
I'm kinda hoping that Dodge will introduce an SRT Dart sometime in the future, I wouldn't mind looking into one of those.

 

I built my motor after bending 2 rods. That was a learning experience.

 

Honestly man, if you want a decent gaining exhaust, go with a shorty header, find a ss/sc cat pipe and get at least a 2 inch cat back, with a muffler and resonator. Even if it's custom it'll make power over stock whatever you get thrown together, don't let the muffler shop move or delete your exhaust flange. As long as that flange is there you will not have any problems farther down the road if you wanna go from a shorty header to a mid or longtube option.

 

Than must of been a pretty challenging build but I bet the pay off was worth it!

Thanks BLKLS, I will keep an eye out for spare SS parts. I'll more than likely have to find it out of state. I think I might end up getting the ZZP shorty header for now, maybe I'll be the guinea pig and I can let others with a NA engine know how it goes. The exhaust flange will remain the same so I can swap it out later.