Tuning the Vauxhall C22NE

"Comprehensive guide to tuning the Vauxhall C22NE engine!"

We often are seeing threads asking about the best C22NE modifications. So let us look into Vauxhall C22NE modifications and outline the best modifications on this great engine and point out some potential pitfalls along the way.

The Vauxhall C22NE have loads of potential and with a few sensible sports tuning mods like remapping, turbo improvements and camshafts you will substantially improve your driving opportunities.

TorqueCars will review and look at C22NE tuning and provide tips on the premier upgrades.

The ultimate C22NE tuning parts on an engine are typically the ones that give the best value for money.

We won't be swayed by popular C22NE tuning parts, they need to be cost effective.

Significant gains on the C22NE can be made from cam upgrades. Altering the cam profile alters the intake and exhaust durations on the engine and can dramatically change the torque and power output.

NB: Fast road cams tend to bump the torque over the rpm range, you may lose a little bottom end torque but the higher rpm power will be higher.

Race cams, bump the higher rpm power band but as a result the car will not idle smoothly and low end power nearly always suffers.

In a daily driver you need to match your bhp range to your preferences.

I'd never have ever thought a C22NE Motorsport and race cam is a pleasure to live with when in heavy traffic.

Each engine responds better to different cam durations than others.

The ecu map and injectors and fuel pump also will say much on the bhp gains you'll achieve.

Altering valve durations can alter the bhp band and on most engines the exhaust and intake durations do not need to match, although most cams and tuners use matched pairs there are some advantages to extending the intake or exhaust durations.

C22NE Tuning Stages

Stage 1 C22NE modifications: Drilled & smoothed airbox, Panel air filters, Fast road camshaft, Sports exhaust manifold, Intake headers, Remaps/piggy back ECU.

Stage 2 C22NE modifications: induction kit, fuel pump upgrades, Fast road cam, Ported and polished head, Sports catalyst & performance exhaust, high flow fuel injectors.

Stage 3 C22NE modifications: Competition cam, Internal engine upgrades (head flowing porting/bigger valves), Twin charging conversions, Crank and Piston upgrades to alter compression, Adding or Upgrading forced induction (turbo/supercharger), Engine balancing & blueprinting.

Plan your options and then buy your upgrades and set yourself a power target to avoid costly mistakes.

ECU mapping helps release the full potential of all the upgrades you've done to your C22NE.

It will usually give around 30% more power on turbocharged vehicles and you can expect to see around 15% on NASP engines, but the end result usually differs on the upgrades you've fitted and the condition of your engine.

Getting fuel and air into the C22NE engine is vital to any car tuning task.

The intake plenum carry the air during the suck phase from the filter and allow it to be sucked into the engine and mixed with fuel.

The bore size, shape and rate of flow of the Intake manifold can make a substantial effect on to fuel delivery on the C22NE.

Most plenum chambers are needing a performance upgrade, although some car makers provide well optimised plenum chambers.

Larger C22NE valves, doing a bit of 3 or 5 angle valve jobs and porting and head flowing will also increase bhp, the fantastic side effect is it will make space for a greater bhp increase on other mods.

Turbo upgrades for the C22NE

NASP engines need quite a lot of work when you add a turbo, so we have a separate guide to help you take into account the pros and cons of going this route on your C22NE

The more air you can get into an engine, the more fuel it can burn and uprating the induction with a turbocharger upgrade makes major power gains.

If an engine has a turbo already fitted parts are relatively easy and you will discover turbo engines are made using better components.

However every engines have limits

See where you'll find these limitations and install better quality crank and pistons to handle the power.

We've seen people spending a loads on turbo upgrades on the C22NE only to suffer the indignity of watching the motor explode just after it's finished.

Large capacity turbo chargers will usually suffer a bottom end lag, and small turbo chargers spool up really quickly but do not have the high rpm bhp gains.

In the last 10 years the selection of turbos is always improving and we are seeing variable vane turbos, where the vane profile is altered according to speed to lower lag and increase top end power.

Twin scroll turbos divert the exhaust gases into 2 channels and feed these at differently angled vanes in the turbo. They also boost the scavenging effect of the engine.

It is common that there is a limitation in the air flow sensor MAP/MAF/AFM on the C22NE when considerably more air is being drawn into the engine.

Going up you'll find 4 bar air sensors coping with quite large power gains, whereas the OEM air sensor limited performance at a much lower level.

Adding a supercharger or additional turbo will make large torque gains, although more challenging to get working. We have this feature on twinchargers if you want to read more.

Uprating C22NE fuel injectors

When you raise the performance you will need to pay attention to to the fuel delivery.

More performance needs more fuel. It is important to be generous with your injector capacity.

As a rule of thumb add another 20% when buying an injector, helps cope with injector deterioration and provides a bit of spare capacity should the engine require more fuel.

We think this one is common sense, but you'll need to match your fuel injector to the type of fuel your car uses as well.

Best C22NE performance exhausts

You should look to replace your exhaust if your current exhaust is actually creating a restriction in flow.

On most factory exhausts you'll see the flow rate is good even on modest power gains, but when you start pushing up the power levels you will need to get a better flowing exhaust.

Sports exhausts can help increase the flow of air through the engine.

But if your exhaust is too large, ie: over 2.5 inches bore, you will lose a great deal of the flow rate and end up sapping power and torque.

Usual exhaust restrictions are in the emissions filters installed, so adding a higher flowing high performance alternative will help avoid this restriction.

Problems and issues to look out for on the C22NE

The C22NE engines, if regularly serviced and maintained, are generally very reliable and have few issues.

Regular oil changes are vital on the C22NE, particularly when the engine has been modified and is putting down more power than the manufacturer intended.

For more information on Tuning your C22NE engine please join us in our friendly forum where you can discuss tuning options in more detail with our C22NE owners. It would also be worth reading our unbiased tuning articles to get a full grasp of the benefits and drawbacks of each modification.

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