If this is a 2006 you need an EVAP vent valve with the extra pigtail.

 

It’s noted in the thread title, it’s a 2011 2.2

 

Holy cow, that is significant. Also likely significant is that you have an ‘09 Cobalt 2.2 motor, which was the LAP which is not “”Flex Fuel” but the the 2011 HHR is.

I also just went through having to hold the peddle down to get my 2011 2.2 to start. This usually means it’s too rich and/or flooded. Do you by any chance smell fuel when this happens? Get a little smoke when it finally starts?

Any chance you’ve seen a P0402 or P0401 code? Any chance you ever pump E85?

The implications of an ECM from a “Flex Fuel” car trying to run a non- “Flex Fuel” motor are over my head. Perhaps you mechanic dealt with it appropriately. At minimum, I would think the injectors are different.

But the first thing I would do is scan for what the ECM thinks the ethanol % is, assuming it’s the original ECU. In my case the ECM somehow had gotten confused into thinking the it had a lot of alcohol in the fuel when it really only had 10%. This caused the ECM to call for too much fuel on startup, hence the flooding. The fix was manually resetting the alcohol content. Dealer with Tech II reset it to 0%. I don’t know if they could has reset it to 10%.

It seems exhaust leaks and fuel line leaks can cause this car to get confused about fuel alcohol content.

Sorry if this was already covered but P0442 could be a leak in the the evap system, possibly just a bad or loose gas cap. Is would stand to reason that this could also cause the ECU misconstruing the ethanol content.

 

PulpFiction, if you check the 2009 and the 2011 have the same part number for the fuel injectors for the HHR 2.2 litre.
the Cobalt 2009 2.2 does have a different part number, so I wonder if in fact the HHR injectors will fit, they appear to be the same diameter

 

No I had to get different injectors. Part # FJ10630. I had to contact the place I bought the engine to find out because we couldn't find them anywhere and the guy at Auto Zone wouldn't let us physically look at them to compare them. Finally they sent me the VIN for the donor vehicle - 1G1AS18H197194324. I'm trying to look it up again on the site because I just realized that there's no W in this VIN and that was the biggest deciding factor in the VIN. 8th character had to be a W. My VIN is 3GNBAAFW8BS552615.

I've only ever used regular 87 gas in it and I bought it brand new off the lot at Heinrich's in 2011. So I'm its only owner and I don't think the dealers run them with E85. So that shouldn't be an issue.

The vent valve that I purchased does have the extra pigtail. My cousin said I may or may not need it.

I'll update as soon as we get the plugs done.

Thanks,
Jessica

 

Did you go shopping for "a 2.2L chevy engine" or did a junkyard tell you that was a direct replacement? Did it come with the donor ECM?
I would expect a lot of codes to pop up. One of which would be alcohol content related. Don't ever put E85 in it!
That is a LAP (the H) engine, should be LE8 (the W).

 

This is where I bought the engine from... https://enginespro.com/store/chevrol...6675&seq_num=1

I selected one that was listed with 21,000 miles. I don't believe it came with the ECM. I didn't see it before it was installed. I had it shipped straight to the shop.

Thanks,
Jessica

 

Evidently, you missed the eighth digit W in the ad. Or they sold you a different engine.

 

That should only matter in the case of E85, so it isn’t a flex fuel engine.

 

The old motor had in injectors and the new motor had injectors, right? If the new motor had the wrong injectors, why not swap? What information is missing?

The reason I brought up injectors is because to run E85 the engine needs to inject more fuel. I noodled around in parts supplier sites and came up with 12625029 for '09 Cobalt and 12613163 for '11 HHR, but those might not be the only ones - it seems maybe the injector depends on other things too, like maybe California smog? Other stuff could be different too, like cams & VVT actuators because E85 really goes wild with spark advance and that surely means different valve timing. Maybe different intake manifold, too, but maybe the mechanic did the homework and got it right. Just things that would need to be checked out.

I'm kind of thinking maybe the original ECM is in place and the LAP has been turned into a LE8, perhaps completely, perhaps not. If that's the case, I would want to get a scanner that can read the ethanol content the ECM thinks it has in the tank.

Like I said, over my head, but it's clear to me than when you replace an engine you might learn the difference between knowing what you're doing and thinking you do.

I keep learning more stuff I didn't know I didn't know.