So i just picked up a 95 sl2 automatic for $560, its an awesome little car minus the quirks. I'm looking at doing a rebuild this summer and possibly going turbo depending on the costs I'm looking at already with the rebuild. The motor and trans have 200k on them but it drives fine so far with no oil consumption or major leaks (that I've found yet). If my research is right these cars pull around 124ish at the wheel? I'm looking to boost that to around 200+ and keep it as a daily driver with a little more zip. What are the big things to look out for in these DOHC 1.9s? Opinions, ideas, experiences?

 

Rebuild is a must for engine, and the tranny should have bit the dust a while back unless it was truly cared for its whole life.

Depending on boost level, you may need to go to forged internals. I think you can get away with 7-8psi on a stock DOHC motor.

I don't know that I've heard of too many turbo automatic S cars. Not saying it can't be done, but if you can't control the shift point rpms, I'm not sure how much fun this will actually be. Plus, given the valve body and input shaft nut issues that lead to slamming into gears on these TAAT transmissions, I wouldn't want my turbo kicking in just as the trannny shifted---just seems a recipe for eventual disaster. Especcially on a 200K mi tranny.

Would consider doing an auto to manual swap. Can and has been done. Would need any MP3 tranny but will also need a donor PCM from a 95 SL2 M/T. 95 PCMs are year and model specific.

You would want to find one with exact matching options if possible to avoid reflash costs but one from a 95 SL2 manual can be reflashed to match whatever is in the car (I think)

If you did the auto to manual swap, I would get the differential pin welded before putting the tranny in the car.
------------------------
Overall Turbo project will include (not limited to)
This will require
higher flow rate injectors
higher flow rate fuel pump
t2/t3 turbo
blow off valve
intercooler
exhaust turbo manifold (don't know if any mfr still sells them -- most peeps fabricated their own in the day
External engine management system
larger OD exhaust for better flow
..............

food for thought

 

Thanks for the info derf! I've read up a little on doing a swap to the manual trans but I think I'd like to stick with an auto for now. What kind of power gains can i get just sticking with NA and using bolt ons? Also what are the auto trans rated at? I think i have the mp7, it has this little "performance button" next to the shifter but it just seems to raise the shift points to 6-7k which on this 200k motor is a little scary haha. Also I've tried looking through the forums for performance parts but it seems like a lot of the manufacturers that made good parts for these cars sold off or closed down :/

 

You have as much power as you are going to get without redoing everything from throttle body to exhaust. And if you are going to do that, you might as well throw on a turbo or S/C because you'll only gain 10 HP going through the whole system and leaving it N/A. Waste of money.

No clue what the TAAT transmission is rated for, but I definitely would not recommend putting your 200K auto to the test. It was never designed for major abuse, The autos often fail and need complete rebuilds much sooner than 200K. Yours may not be the original or may have already been rebuilt

 

Hey sorry about the delay, I'm probably at this point gonna stick to N/A with the block i have since I'm currently using it as a daily, i wanna go turbo with the t3/t4 kit but I'm almost positive that the 200k motor it has in it now will blow up if i try to. Odd out of the blue question though, do you know of any places or websites that still sell performance parts for these cars? The only part of any importance I've found is a helical LSD thats sold by Mfactory to fix the diff pin issue from occurring, but other than that it seems like a dead market, most of the sites I've found hunting through the forums seem to have closed down

 

If you want something with a turbo, I'll sell you my 03 Chrysler PT Cruiser GT. It has a 2.4 turbo and is pretty fast. You can always put a larger turbo and bigger injectors in it and boost 15 to 17 lbs. if you want to. And the transmission is designed to handle the turbo. It's an auto-stick. Lots of fun. Just needs a paint job now.

 

Thanks Rubehayseed, I'd probably take you up on that but I'm about 4,800 miles away on the other side of the continent haha, and i really like the car i got and want to make something of it. I was looking into it a little more and considering picking up a low miles Junkyard motor and manual trans to build, its just been a pain lately finding places that make decent parts

 

You'd better get used to that. Saturn parts are getting harder to find all the time since they don't make them anymore. I'm trying to find a part for derf and am not having much luck so far. I MIGHT be able to go look at a new to me junkyard this week. Or maybe not. I don't know yet.

 

That is one of the reasons that I no longer drive Geo Metros. They stopped selling them in 2001, their getting pretty used up. I now see them broken down beside the road all the time. I may just be over aware since I drove them for 8 years.
The L series is pretty cheap now for a decent car. The general used the Ecotec engine before major changes from 2000 to 2006 across several platforms. It was available with high and low pressure turbo systems and a supercharger all with factory components.
There are lots of S cars around out West, I don't know how they hold up on the east coast.

 

All true, I just figured with it being a cheap $500 car with 200,000 miles on it if I could spend ~$1500 on it and get another 200k it'll definitely be a worthwhile investment haha.