Is the GM Ecotech any darn good?

Does anyone have any opinions on the Ecotech engine? I've heard that they can make a lot of power and can be surprisingly reliable. Is that true?

 

Yeah-my opinion is if gas gets more expensive, I might be dropping one under the hood

 

1400+ horsepower?!?!?!


I think they're alright.

download the build book:

http://www.gm.com/company/gmtunersource/html/race_shop_build_book.htm

 

Several of the guys in my other world (rockcrawling) are using them. Some with some serious boost! Seem to be holding up pretty well. I am suprised at the power the have. I know of one that has locked up due to oil issues....
Check out the forum at www.pirate4x4.com and search for ecotec, there sould be a lot of info. I know a lot of the sand car guys use them too. Turnkey supplies complete ready to run versions, but $$$$.

 

WOW. Thanks, Jason, for that build book. That's simply awesome.

 

Dude, all of the SoCal Speed Shop vehicles at Bonneville Speed Week were running the ECO Tech motor. The Cobalt went 264, I haven't heard what the HHR did. The Belly Tanker from last year did a 200mph pass and the Eco Fire streamliner hit 304! This motor is pretty amazing to see/hear in person as it goes by at 200-plus.

 

Here are some links to the Eco Tech program on the salt...

http://www.landracing.com/news/gmhhr.htm

http://www.landracing.com/news/gmcobalt.htm

http://www.landracing.com/news/gmlakester.htm

 

I guess if you want a cheap on gas economy car/enine it is the way to go. Why are you wanting to know?

 

One reason is that it's able to produce so much horsepower for 2.0 liter classes, like in SCTA racing.

The lakester the GM made used a Hewland transmission/transaxle. Could something more affordable be mated up to the Ecotec for a traditional front engine, rear wheel drive configuration? Like a T-5?

 

If you can get So Cal to give up there secrets they might have an awnser to that. Tey used it in the HHR they took to Bonneville, I think they set it up as a rwd.

 

I read several months ago about an ecotec powered cavalier dusting a Buick GS455 in the 1/4 at one of the hot rod magazine events.

I mean, the ecotec cars are no Lancer Evos & STI's, but they're still impressive

Chevy talks about it like it's the next 350 or something.

 

Hell yes. My new daily is a Cavalier with that motor. It has plenty of power stock. I'd like to put one in a little modified.

 

What tranny would you use?

 

I believe the Pontiac Solstice and (coming soon) Saturn Skye are both Ecotec engines. They're front-engine, rear-drive with a 5-speed (close-ratio and positraction optional). They're pretty cool little cars. I think a dark-blue Solstice with Salt Flat Special unpolished mags would make a great daily driver. They're factory optional with up to 260 horsepower (turbo'd) with lots of bolt-ons available from the factory (aimed at the boy-racer crowd with Cobalts, but definitely applicable to us).

 

Hey Deuce,
I'll trade ya straight up, just find me a 32 5 window or roadster, I'm not picky and I'll give you my 2003 Ion with 25,000 miles.

Everything I've read makes it seem like a pretty good little engine, I can't complain about mine, 300 miles on $20 in today fuel prices (used to be $12 )

 

Plate adapter to GM bellhousing
www.keislerauto.com

 

Solstice GXP for 2007 has a supercharged ECOTECH and makes 270 hp with a 6 speed. Man, the possibilities......

 

I maight be biased, but as one of the owners of the Haas Racing So-cal 34 roadster, I think it is an awesome motor. We DROVE the car from Pomona to Bonneville in October 2004. Full cage, chute etc. Then went 209 on my first pass. Ended the week with a new G/BFR record of 210.881. Im a believer.

 

Very cool, Todd, and congratulations on your record!
What transmission did you use?

 

Thought I,d add some pics.

 

Lot's of power for a banger motor. But, watch out for the class that you will be running in. The big money boys are getting into it. Oh yea, and they are building alot of speed parts for the Eco's now. I wish that I had an extra "GM" book that I picked up from SO-Cal this past year, because I would mail it to you. I bet if you called them up and showed interest they would send you one. It is a pretty interesting "how to" book.

Chris Nelson
Kansas

 

Like the Quad four and 2.4 twincam that proceded them, Ecotechs are great power makers. Unlike the earlier engines, they don't spew head gaskets till you build them right. There is a growing supply of performance parts available for them,

 

btt

 

Wasn't the Ecotec first used in the Saturns? Or was it the Ur-anus?

Salvage yards are full of them, both single and dual overhead cams.......

 

Cost for this build is approx. $40k.

 

If that's the case, it reflects GM's outsourcing of many aftermarket parts and marking them up. GM Performace Parts can be expensive. Back in 1999 I bought their catalog and then called a southern California dealer to get the price for a set of big block LS-6/LS-7 rods. The price for the GM rods (presumably made with tooling that they had made thirty years earlier) was very close to the cost of a set of Carrillo rods. You can price those GM rods for yourself. They're on this page:
http://www.gmgoodwrench.com/perfpartsjsp/partlist.jsp?cat=9350&section=ep

The Ecotech is a neat piece of engineering. It's good that GM is finally using some of the technology that we saw in Japanese motorcycle engines in the 1980s.

Put an Ecotech in your hot rod, and it will have about as much soul as if you dropped in an engine out of a Kawasaki.

I wonder how many of the people who are putting these exotic Ecotech engines in their race cars actually pay for them.

Are we correct in assuming that GM gives engines to So-Cal, and pays them to build race cars with them?

Dave
http://www.roadsters.com/

 

I would LOVE to see them!

 

I believe that's correct. When I first saw that these engines were capable of 1,000+ hp, I toyed with the idea of putting one in a Bonneville car. But then I found out what the motor cost and that was the end of it. A couple of other things about these race motors is they run really high boost levels, and they have a very narrow powerband, almost like a two stroke.