2.4L aftermarket parts

[BPizzleMalibu08]

Hi everyone. I've asked a few people that own cobalts with the 2.4L ecotec engine tell me their performance aftermarket parts will fit my 2008 malibu's 2.4L ecotec engine. Is this true? Any help would be welcome..Thanks everyone!!

[OnDaGround]

Engine part perhaps. Not like an exhaust system. The car doesn't sit on the same chasis.

[cavalier2000]

header should be the same. but what parts are you looking for

[BPizzleMalibu08]

i was looking at their cold air intake from Injen so far..and if it is swappable then I'm going to go in it further with the mods...

[cavalier2000]

intake should swap i believe. i was looking into it but didn't have the time to look further

[31tysonw]

Has anyone tried using the cobalt 2.4 headers and down pipe from the zzp performance site?

Also has anyone used their 3" high flow intake tube? instead of a CAI which i have been reading pretty much guarentees to set your check ingine light on


Thanks kinda new to this site

[snowleopard]

Just a random thought, but while theoretically a lot of stuff will swap over, you're not going to pull much out of the Malibu. There is next to aftermarket for performance mostly because this isn't the performance car.

Intake will throw a CEL on you. That alone isn't going to help. I'm guessing if you try to increase the tube to 3" you might also set off the CEL, but nobody here has tried that (or at least tried and posted).

The Malibu is a little over 3400 lbs ... the Cobalt is a little under 2900 lbs. That's a monumental difference and that alone is also going to severely hurt performance.

Probably the only thing that -might- fit would be the headers/down if you gut a lot of the engine bay to make sure there's room.

Exhaust isn't going to transfer. There is no F/I option for the Malibu. There is no tune for the 2.4 other than one that nobody has tested (or again, tested and posted). I was also looking for the gearing, but I know the Malibu is not geared for performance either and the stock tires are low resistance, so you're going to want to change those.


Most of the time, the Malibu is treated as one of two things: 1) an everyday car (generally people not on this site) -or- 2) a "luxury" oriented (i.e. non-performance) car (as in, sound systems, looks, etc). You're not going to find much in the way of performance for what I'm pretty sure you're looking for.

If you want to try all of this, there's plenty you can -try-.

1. Grab the headers/down from the site, it'll bolt up since it's the same engine, but you'll probably need a good mechanic to ensure it's on perfectly.
2. Get some free flow aftermarket true dual-exhaust and get that on.
3. Put on the CAI and get an OBD-II scanner to just delete that code everytime it comes on.
4. Get a tune from the place that was offering it (I forget the name, google or search on this forum should find it for you) and be the guinea pig for it.
5. Get better tires, something sticky, Michelin Pilot SuperSports if they fit (I forget what sizes they have, but great tires).
6. Fabricate a turbo system for the car and ensure you have a mechanic that knows how to work with turbos.
7. Eliminate your back seats, eliminate your spare tire, get a lot of the systems in front, radio, etc, try to pull down the weight as much as possible.

Then, you -might- have a car that can run quarters in the 13s or 14s (after you've spent well into the five digits), but your warranty (if you have any at this point) is out the window, your transmission will likely be shot after some amount of runs down the strip, and you're going to have a headache when something goes wrong.


I'm not bashing on your idea or on the Malibu. I love mine and most people on this forum love theirs. But, there have been plenty of people that come through thinking they can turn it into something for the dragstrip ... I've not seen a single one succeed.


It's like the saying goes: You can put a tuxedo on a goat ... but, it's still a goat.

[31tysonw]

Ya dude Thanks for your input no offense takin...

im not trying to make a drag car or any thing just want a lil extra push you know..

im going for the strut look something that stands out but would like that deep tone out of a magnaflow to help it get noticed.. so i was checking to see if anyone has used the headers and Dp off the cobalt.. and build a custom 2.5" cat back system.. im goign to use the magnaflow universal exhaust and tip #14836 i heard it on a cobalt it produced a nice tone off a stock piped cobalt.

the zzp site suggested to use their 3"high flow tube for the stock box with a drop in K&n filter.. to avoid setting off the code..

Again thanks for answer or helping me out

[snowleopard]

You're not going to get a deep tone out of a 4cyl that doesn't sound like bees in a can upon acceleration for the most part. At least not one where F/I isn't sort of masking that sound.

If you want a deep sound, forget a 2.5" system and jump up to a 3" piping (I have it on mine), funnel it into a muffler that isn't just empty space, get dual outs, and keep your fingers crossed. Or go further and have a shop fab up duals more upstream (like what DrivenDaily did) and get 3" piping (or 3.5" if it'll fit) and keep your fingers crossed. What you're going to get is maybe a small amount of performance (you likely won't notice it by the time it goes crank to wheel) and just a really loud sound. Also, be prepared for drone ... and lots of it.

There is so much you can do to make this car stand out. Trying to make it sound deep doesn't make your car get noticed in a positive way if it can't perform with it ... it just makes people giggle (no offense intended).


If your goal is to have a "show car" (regardless of whether you actually take it to a show or not), then I'd highly suggest going the aesthetic route ... making it sound loud is just going to make people call it a ricer ... especially since the Malibu is in no way a performance car. The appearance is going to go down, not up. It doesn't work on Cobalts either, but at least the SS versions were supposed to be "sporty".


Good luck with whatever you go with though.

[Cizzle714]

Just an FYI, youtube fast colbalts and you will find them in the 9's. So yes cobalts are/can be sporty!