I just bought 2009 LS 2.2L, 34K miles for my daughter. I've done the pink cosmetic stuff for her. I just started into trying to increase the HP. I've ported the throttle body and opened the stock air box some. I've smoothed the air transitions. Even though I only drove her HHR a few times, these few things seemed to really help. The air box still needs some work though.

I have HPTuners and I plan on tuning the car for her for 87 octane. I'm looking for feedback on what drivability issues that you don't like. For example, a dead spot around 3-4K RPM, slow to down shift, weak torque down low, slow throttle response, etc. Or, where did you notice an improvement with the Trifecta tune.

I plan to start tuning next weekend; I was just looking for feedback from people that drive the car every day.

A separate item: I notice some thumps from the front suspension when going over bumps. Is this normal for these cars or should I be looking at sway bar bushings/end links, motor mounts, etc.

 

Welcome to the forum. I have an 09 ls as well. I have the airaid intake and have removed the resonator and second cat. It really hauls from about 3000 to redline. The tune should help more on the low end. A good tuner can get you about 10-20 hp without any risk of harming the engine.

And the clunks. Its normal. Mine does it. It has 74k on it. The cause can be sway bar bushings, strut, etc.

Post of some pinks when you can!

 

Welcome , I have a '06 LT2 w/the 2.4 but some info still applies. I recommend the cold air mod myself and several others have done. Check out HHROrange's thread over on 2.4 performance.It's very simple and cost effective, largest expense is a K&N drop in filter, but that is optional (but recommended).

 

Just an update:

1) I replaced the front sway bar endlinks and bushings and the thumping is gone.

2) I added an additional cool air intake tube to the back of the air box similar to HHROrange's. I'm getting air from above the radiator in addition to the stock location.

3) I added a K&N filter and removed obstructions inside the air box.

4) I went through a few tune iterations with HPTuners. There was a lot of room for improvement. After the engine parameter tweaks, I altered the shift points to create a two phase shift trajectory. One mode helps with fuel economy and the other mode helps with improving acceleration.

I can honestly say that I noticed a big change in performance.

 

Belated welcome, I put a K&N intake and a trifecta tune on my panel, drives nice now.

 

ChevyHighpPerformance: I have added a second cold air intake tube and K&N filter to the stock box also. What changes did you do to improve flow inside the stock box ?
I have also added a 2.4 intake manifold, Trifecta Tune and Magnaflow muffer all have improved performance and gas mileage.

 

Glad everythings workin' out for ya. Keep us posted on how it's runnin...

 

I removed a bunch if ribs that seemed to block some flow especially in the airbox part that connects to the cold air tube. I don't know how much it actually helps; it's just good practice that I do with all of my airboxes. Just like smoothing transitions to not create turbulent flow. I still have to work on the outlet of the air box.

The throttle body needed a lot of work. I normally start with dremel sanding drums, but for mine I had to start with a metal cutting bit.

I think, at least for 2009, the 2.4L and the 2.2L use the same intake manifold.

Has anyone read in their Trifecta tune using HPTuners?

Has anyone tried just running without a muffler?

 

hey golf, where did u get the manifold from? 2.2 headers same as 2.4? cobalts the same?