Jonathan819

Hi there, been browsing and searching the forums but I can't seem to find the answer to my question, forgive me if this question has already been answered too many times or if I'm not in the right section!

I have a coworker who blew a crank bearing, I'm guessing from oil starvation. He's not too keen on fixing or rebuilding the current engine, so he's going for a full swap. Not looking for performance, more along the line of just getting the car running. The car is his wife's daily driver.

The car is a 2006 Cobalt SS N/A 2.4L Ecotec VVT (Le5 i think). He already has the new donor engine. I had a quick look at everything, seems pretty straight forward bolt in, besides swapping TB's, and T-stat housings, only problem I can see is his donor engine is a NON VVT engine. It does not have the 2 sensors on top of the valve cover. It still is a 2.4, just without the variable valve timing. The engine is from a 2007 Pontiac G5 if I'm not mistaken.

Here's my question; will his current 2.4L VVT wiring/computer/ecm be compatible with this new engine? Will the car run? Im guessing the check engine light is gonna come on, and probably throw a bunch of codes, but will she run since the 2 sensors won't be plugged in?

Any help or suggestions are much appreciated! Thanks!

574

iTrader: (5)

I'm pretty sure you can just get the donor engine, swap the heads sensors and misc other stuff. Bottom line is I don't think the one without vvt will work

andrewcarr1993

iTrader: (5)

That's a 2.2 L61 then not a 2.4 LE5 if it's non VVT. You should have bought another LE5 not a different engine.

09CobaltSS1

It will take a little extra work, and recalibrating the pcm but you can make a non-vvt engine work in an otherwise vvt engine with the e67 pcm the car has in it.

Pitbull2o08

iTrader: (2)

NO. You're swapping out a 2.4 for a 2.2 and going backwards. Find another 06 LE5 for 300-400 and direct swap in a day.

nhanson

iTrader: (1)

You could find a 09+ 2.2 and swap it in...those will straight swap in.

I did it the other way (swapped a 07 2.4 VVT into my 09 2.2 VVT car)

andrewcarr1993

iTrader: (5)

Why didn't you get the stronger 06 LE5? Also you need to update your build thread, I always liked following your build.

Jonathan819

Thanks for the replies! Here's some more info; the car is not mine, it belongs to a co-worker. I had nothing to do with the purchase of the engine, he already had purchased it and asked me for some advice since I have some experience swapping engines. More of a volkswagen turbo guy myself.

Visually the engines both look the same, but I don't know chevy engines all that well, could be a 2.2L for all I know. Where can I find numbers on the donor engine to confirm this? I know for sure the engine is out of a 2007 Pontiac G5. I'll try to snap some pictures tonight of both engines. I know a straight swap would have been the easiest route, but 2.4L VVT engines are hard to come by around here. So he picked up what he could. I was hoping he could just drop the engine in and deal the with VVT/No VVT issue by some sort of computer reprogramming/flashing. Or just straight up not plug in the VVT sensors on top of the vavle cover. Guessing it won't be so easy...

Swapping heads is out of the question, he's not interested in engine teardowns or rebuilds, just needs a running car for the wifey. If he's was going to swap heads, he might as well have rebuilt the current engine. He was looking for more of a drop in solution, which does not seem to be the case as of now...

Pictures to follow!

574

iTrader: (5)

Swapping heads and rebuilding are completely different. A set of head studs, a new head gasket and about an hour of your time and you could have it done. If he wanted something that is a direct drop in he should have bought an le5 VVT

Pitbull2o08

iTrader: (2)

My professional opinion is that of this; a direct swap 06-07 LE5. If none are available (hard to believe, look in malibus and HHR's) then a rebuild would be the next suggestion and most effective.

09CobaltSS1

You guys kill me sometimes. The guy is asking IF the motor his buddy has can work because it's not vvt and nothing else. The simple answer is YES! Like I stated earlier, it will be a little extra work and the pcm will 100% need recalibrating but it CAN work.