The Engine

Engine: 1.598 cc 74 hp, 90 lb/ft Inline 4 cyl
Bore X Stroke: 3.11 X 3.21
Compression Ratio: 8.6:1

Coming from V8 and high reving V6 engines, the power in this 4 cylinder engine seems lacking. But, what it lacks in performance it makes up for in fuel economy. After all, if I want to drive fast, I can just grab a different set of keys. There are a few obvious weak points in the design of this engine:

• Distibutor - Poorly made. The parts fell in my hands when I removed the cap
• Distibutor Wiring - The early cars used spade connectors, while the later cars used nice weatherpack connectors
• The timing belt has no spring tensioner, so it must be changed every 60k miles
• The engine is of an interference design, so a broken timing belt is costly
• The timing marks on the cars with AC are nearly unusable because they can't be seen

Newer Style Distributor Fix

The new style ignition module and distributor can be retrofitted to the older cars by cutting some connectors off of a junkyard GM vehicle. My two-pin connector came from a 91 Pontiac Sunbird, while the four-pin connector was found on a 97 Chevy Cavilier. The 4 pin connector is the easier of the two to find and is on many different GM cars. The two pin connector can be tricky, because most don't have the correct smiley face sort of shape or have a gap in the center between the two pins.

Timing Marks Fix

The timing marks are much easier to see now, because I deleted the AC and installed the non-AC crank pulley. This change necessitated installing a shorter belt. Oddly, none of the factory belt options worked for me. The one that I ended up using is 21/32" (17mm) x 29 3/4" (1008mm), part no. K050390.

SMOG Tests

Factory Engine Replacement

After having the timing belt break just after I bought the car, I was able to find a factory new engine that was sitting in a climate controlled warehouse in texas. The engine was complete, including spark plugs, distributor, intake, and injector. I used the opportunity to also switch to a cable operated manual transmission.

Engine Swap Options

Engine Options
Engine ID	Cyls	Displacement	Heads	Turbo	Compr. Ratio	Notes	Vehicles	BOE Hp Potential
C20LET	I4	2.0L	DOHC 16V	Turbo 9-13 psi	less	Turbo Cam, Turbo PCM, Low CR Pistons	(6spd 4wd F28 Gearbox)	375hp
Z20LET	I4	2.0L	DOHC 16V	Turbo	less	Turbo Cam, Turbo PCM, Low CR Pistons, EcoTec, Same Block, Different Head than C20LET	Vauxhall Astra Turbo (F23 Gearbox)
C20XE	I4	2.0L	DOHC 16V		high	NA Cam, NA PCM, High CR Pistons
C20GET	I4	2.0L	SOHC 8V	Turbo			Pontiac Sunbird GT
C20NE	I4	2.0L	SOHC 8V
C20SE	I4	2.0L	SOHC 8V
A16DMS	I4	2.0L	SOHC 8V

I was able to find a Pontiac Sunbird engine in the junkyard, but that project will need to wait.




   Last update: Dec 7th, 2019