Is it Supported? 2005 Chevy Classic, 2.2 L61

[Dr scott Diabolical]

Is this car supported???
2005 Chevrolet Classic, 2.2 L61 (Not Malibu Classic, just.... Classic)

This car is an odd duck. It's basically a 2003 N-body Malibu that was built in 2005 and intended for fleet-only sales. I'm guessing it was a rental car. The engine is definitely a 2.2 L61 per the VIN. Guessing the trans is a 4T40, but I haven't verified that yet. It is definitely NOT a 2005 Epsilon-body Malibu. The Supported Vehicles list includes the 97-05 Malibu 2.2. But it doesn't list the 2005 Classic 2.2 L61. And I'm not sure if there's some gotcha that makes the difference between the two.

So, can this turd be tuned?

Thanks for your help,
Dr scott Diabolical
current owner of the car Motor Trend called "Less sexy than a wet Tuesday afternoon in Cleveland"
...because I inherited it. And because it's beige. And because it would be fun to tune the most boring car ever made.

[5FDP]

It's still malibu even if they called in a classic. The parts catalog at one of my jobs just lists them as Malibu Classic or Malibu, with the Classic obviously being the 1997-2004 body style.

The vehicles list does say both 97-03 and 97-05 which would include that 2.2 for 2004-2005 model years. Do you have HP Tuners yet to plug it into?

[Dr scott Diabolical]

I don't have a tuner yet. I'm trying to confirm that my car is supported before dropping $$$.
It "appears" that in 2004 GM kept building the 2003 N-body, but called it the "Malibu Classic" They released the new Epsilon-chassis as the "Malibu" sometime mid-year 2004. BUT.... they kept on building the N-body car, calling it just "Classic" for late 2004 and 2005. Those were probably cars made from the leftover 2003-04 N-body parts. My '05 interior and engine layout appear identical to the 2003 Malibu. Which is also probably why their sale was limited to fleets and rental companies when they were new. Floor sweepings and leftovers.

[tunerpro]

Can you post a picture of the ECM ?

[Dr scott Diabolical]

PXL_20220501_023930508[1].jpg

This is the best photo I could get tonight. I'm not sure how the silly thing comes out of it's holder and I didn't want to start prying on things in the dark.


Update: After a bit more digging... this appears to be a P11 ECM, similar to the ones used in the 2005 Cavalier/Sunfire 2.2 L61s. EFILIVE lists the 2005 Chevy Classic by name and references the P11 as its ECM. And, I've found a few sites that cross-reference the GM part# 19210073 to the 2005 Classic, 2005 Cavalier, and the 2005 Pontiac Sunfire. So maybe, just maybe.........

Any J-body tuners out there?
Your thoughts/experiences ?

[Dr scott Diabolical]

PXL_20220501_004558534[1].jpg

Here are the RPO codes in case they help. I was able to decipher most of them. It definitely is an Ecotec 2.2 L61 with a 4T40E NM4 transaxle and a 3.91 final drive ratio. So that will be the limiting factor in how much power I can add. The 4T40E is supposedly rated for 190 lb/ft and a 4,000 lb vehicle. IDK if I can get anywhere near 190 ft/lbs with just a tune though. But if I can, that should theoretically be enough to get me in the 130 mph Club at Bonneville.

[tunerpro]

Yes, that's a P11. The question is whether the operating system / calibration is supported.

[Dr scott Diabolical]

Gotcha. Based on what I've gleaned from the EFILive website, this P11 should use the standard GM operating system. So the real question is: Does HPTuners have a calibration file for this car? Any idea how I would determine/confirm that? Is there an appropriate HPTuners support desk where I could ask this question?

[gtstorey]

What do you mean by calibration file? HP Tuners does not supply modified tunes/calibration. It only supplies the interface and software to allow a user to make changes. It will read your existing "calibration" from your ecm as a starting point to make changes.

[tunerpro]

I think he's looking for a solid answer on whether this application is even supported before making a purchase decision. The PCM appears to be supported, but does VCM editor recognize the vehicle and the software in it? That's a question for the support team I would think.

[Bill@HPTuners]

Gotcha. Based on what I've gleaned from the EFILive website, this P11 should use the standard GM operating system. So the real question is: Does HPTuners have a calibration file for this car? Any idea how I would determine/confirm that? Is there an appropriate HPTuners support desk where I could ask this question?

https://support.hptuners.com/

[Dr scott Diabolical]

Thanks Tunerpro. That's exactly what I was trying to say and determine. I grew up tuning with a timing light and a dwell meter. So I'm not familiar with all of the new terminology yet.

[Dr scott Diabolical]

Oh HELL YEAH!

Bill Henn (HP Tuners)

May 3, 2022, 1:35 PM CDT
Thank you for contacting HP Tuners support Scott

In speaking with our GM engineer we can confirm that we do support your application, it uses a shared ecm and operating system to some other application already listed on our supported vehicle list.

Based on your vin number we were able to look up your vehicles info and confirm it is supported.PXL_20220503_223653047[1].jpg

[5FDP]

Yours looks a lot cleaner than mine.

I have a 2003 same color with a 3.1 V6 in it. Only has 89,000 miles but has some mean piston slap and it also made friends with a guard rail two winters ago down the drivers side. But for $600 is was worth the money and now it's only cost me $1,500ish total to fix it up and have a decent beater car.

[tunerpro]