just a couple questions about this swap.... i know about the motor and wiring harness and so on and so on. but is the tranny different in the 2.2 ohv and the 2.4?? the axles??? anything else im missing here please let me know?? i cant decide between doing the swap or putting a turbo kit on the ohv. let me know something. thanks guys!
Different tranny bellhousing mounting, axles should be the same, not sure about motor or tranny mounts, Ecotec swap would be easier than swapping to a 2.4 in your case since your car is a 2k, and the Ecotec has a smoother power curve than the 2.4. 2.4 makes more horsepower, but the curve is rather sharp if I am not mistaken, the Ecotec has a longer curve so you get your power over a wider RPM range.
Oh, and the wiring of an Ecotec into a 2k+ Cav/'Fire is mostly plug and play, as long as you have the Ecotec harness/PCM from a Cav that came equipped with one of those engines. Still have to change the trans though, since only an Ecotec trans will bolt to an Ecotec. But axles in that case will DEFINITELY work, lower mount works, need an upper Eco mount, and the trans mounts MAY need to be flipped over. Theres an excellent writeup about an Eco swap into a 2k+ Cav in the 3rd gen forum.
Oh, forgot. Props to PJ for taking the time and effort to document his experience of swapping in the Eco and posting it up on JBO for us all to benefit from. Kudos man.
