I'm building a 96 Cavalier for a half mile high bank dirt track. It was a 2.2 5spd. There's no motor but still has the trans. Will the 2.2 be enough? Really don't want to get another trans for the 2.4. As my junkyard as like no 5spd cars. Will the quad 4 bolt to the 2.2 trans? Anyone have any suggestion on what would be best?
The bell housings between the quad and 2.2 are different. The 2.2 may be alright since its 5speed. There are a couple guys at the track with 2.2/5speed setup that do really well. Just may take some money invested to make your engine keep up with a quad and the neon guys. Good luck man. Hope it works out
what should i do to the 2.2? First 4 banger fwd im really messing with for the track. Use to the latemodels and modfieds on asphalt.
So being 4cyl and fwd on dirt i dont know where to start as far a motor wise. Any help would be great
Im by no means an expert on the 2.2 but if you can raise your compression and do some porting and polishing in the head and a custom cam grind for starters. There is a ton of info on this site but you will have to search to find everything. Best place to start is performance forum.
If your track rules say to remain stock its gonna be hard to due much. If its unlimited you can put the newer 2200 pistons in it for a nice compression boost. I believe you have to swap to a 97 computer to be able to tune it. The main thing is to try and find the right tire to get proper gearing in 3rd gear. We have both a small 3/8 track and an almost 1/2 mile track here. The 2.2 do ok on the small track but seem to run out of steam on the big track. The 2.3 Dohc Grand Ams or similar or Saturns Dohc are other gms to look into if you can't find a twin cam. If you do find a twin cam an oil pump upgrade is advisable, theres lots of info on this site just search
I'm still on the fence of what to do. Stay with a 2.2? Or quad 4 or the 2.4 twin came. My junk yard has lots of 2.2 and 2.4. And a few quad 4. How hard is it to find a bell housing for 2.3 or 2.4? And what motor would work better quad4 or 2.4 twin cam?
