ECOTECH/B207 BUILDS

    The B207 is by far the most mis-construed Saab motor. Almost every Saab tuner will tell you that these motors might be able to make 330hp on a good day. This is not true in the slightest. The LSJ, the B207’s companion for the gen one Ecotec, is very commonly known in the cobalt world to take 400-450whp all day. Some cars have even upheld the 500hp mark. Now, the reason why so many people believe that it is impossible for a Saab to achieve such numbers is because of several reasons. Number one being: most tuners do not know that the LSJ motors even exist here in the states. Number two being: the Saab’s stock support is terrible. The list only continues to go on. The Saab’s setup is extremely restrictive in comparison to the cobalt’s setup. Once you port the Saab head and get away from the stock turbo and exhaust manifold, you are golden. Once built, you will be blown away. If you choose to build a gen three sand casted block, the possibilities are nearly endless. We always try to convey to our customers the true power capabilities of these cars.

     Whether you choose to build a gen one motor, or a gen three, there is a list of components that should be addressed.

GENERATION I ECOTEC

GENERATION III ECOTEC

THE GM ECOTEC MOTORS

     This mighty little GM motor series truly is a force to be reckoned with. Impressive power with proper modifications, fantastic motor reliability with proper maintenance, and readily available cheap parts. These three factors make the ultimate trifecta for unique performance.

GENERATION I ECOTEC

     As many Saab enthusiasts know, this motor was not Saab. The first generation of the Ecotec motor was yet another GM motor, done up with Saab’s turbocharging influence. Most commonly known worlds over as the LK9, it is a turbocharged, 2.0L four-cylinder motor. Small, yet mighty, with a cast iron sleeved aluminum foam-casted block and sand-casted aluminum head. This is the NG 9-3 2.0 Saab motor that we are all quite familiar with. The gen one motor also had a supercharged version that many are familiar with, the LSJ. This is the exact same motor, except for a millimeter of porting in the head. Where the Saab motors get their bad reputation is from the bolt-ons surrounding and supporting the motor. The motor itself is not the weak point, until you are hitting 450hp. Once you are hitting these power numbers, the sleeves become an issue.

GENERATION II ECOTEC

     Once we get into the generation two Ecotec motor, there is not much to speak of, due to how terrible it truly is. The gen two motor is horrendous. We do not build these motors for a reason. The largest fault in these motors is in their casting. Both the gen one and gen two blocks experience porosity issues, but the gen two’s faults are much worse. Unlike the first gen Ecotec, the second gen’s head is cast with loose foam, not sand. Due to poor casting, these blocks are much more likely to have internal coolant leaking issues. Technically, the gen two block is a stronger motor, in comparison to gen one. However, the gen one block is less prone to the internal failure issues that the gen two has, stock for stock. The water jacket castings are the largest problem for these blocks. The gen two head is also an issue. Unlike the gen one, this head is lost foam casted, instead of sand. With larger microgranules, the metal is much more porous, and is prone to casting issues and failures. This head does flow better than gen one, but it does not handle high horsepower numbers as well.

GENERATION III ECOTEC

     The generation three Ecotec is what we call the “holy grail” for motor builds. This is where GM truly stepped up. Realizing their internal failures with the factory sleeves, as well as poor loose foam block casting in the gen one and gen two, GM got away from these awful procedures. The gen three truly is a force to be reckoned with once built. This motor is not sleeved, it is a solid casting. The best part about the casting is that it is sand casted, not lost foam. GM didn't just stop there though with those improvements to this block, they also added more material to the inside of the block to strengthen the block internally. The most important upgrade, however, came to the cylinder bores themselves. The new 3rd gen blocks added material at the top of the cylinder bores to bridge and stabilize the tops of the bores. This bridge also increased the amount of aluminum around the top of the bores to help strengthen the cylinders even more, combatting against higher cylinder pressures found with high horsepower builds. The motors from factory with stock internals, however, are definitely not the strongest. Both the rods and the pistons with this generation of Ecotec motor got much lighter, all for efficiency and fuel economy. So, sadly, they are much weaker. Once you step away from the stock internals, and go to forged internals, the power capabilities are nearly limitless.

SAND CASTED VS LOOSE FOAM CASTED

     Many of you may wonder why the casting of the metal really matters. What may seem like something minuscule, actually makes a huge impact. The whole reason GM utilized loose foam casting was for production costs. With foam casting, it is actually much cheaper to manufacture large amounts of motors. With sand casting it is more cost conducive with a smaller production number. The gen one and gen two blocks covered a large number of cars. The gen three block design did not. The gen three is a much rarer occurrence than gen one and gen two. The largest issue following foam casting is porosity. With loose foam castings, impurities and faults are easily formed. With this design, these blocks, more so with the more intricate gen two, are already prone to coolant-mixing and structural failure issues, due to cracking. A grain of sand is much smaller than a piece of foam. Therefore, sand is much more compact, and is fantastic for structural rigidity. Porosity has never been seen as an issue with these motors. This is even more reason as to why the gen three Ecotec is such a beloved motor for builds.

CONTACT US

     We look forward to working with you throughout the process of transforming your motor. If you have any motor build inquiries, please contact us. We are always happy to help. If you are scheduling a motor build with us, send us an email, and please give us a call. If we do not answer, or it is outside call hours, please leave a message with your name and important vehicle/motor information.

CONTACT INFORMATION:

(941)315-0859

info@snailwerx.com

CALL HOURS:

Sunday-Thursday (EXCLUDING HOLIDAYS) 1:00 PM- 7:00 PM