Nova 1.2i change

[richardsneddon]

Hello people, I have a standar k reg 1.2i still with cat and and other useful ancilliries lol not. What could i do to make it perform the same as the older novas Do you convert it to an old carb? or is there a much simpler way to do it? Just i couldnt keep up wit timmy in his nova which is older :cry:

[adamgte]

I've heard de catting the newer 1.2s gets about 8bhp, not sure tho as i havn't bothered doing mine. My bros old 1.0l non cat nova was quicker than my 1.2i with the cat in

[richardsneddon]

its kind of embarrasing Would like as much power as possible outa me lil baby

[adamgte]

c20let conv then

[richardsneddon]

I'd rather a 1.6 16v to be honest ive heard they can be just as good wit a bit better handling

[adamgte]

yer much cheaper conv aswel

[mikey14sr]

Aragorns 1.2i tuning thread was lost when the forum got moved over, which is a shame as it contained all that you are wanting to know.
You'll have to check with your local mot guys about wheather you can remve your cat or not.
The injector can be changed for one from a 1.4spi (C14NZ), and the camshaft can be changed to a gte version. IIRC Aragorn did these mods to his brothers 1.2i and it was putting out about 70bhp.
I would suggest sending him a PM asking for his advice, he might take a while to reply though as he isn't on here as much as he used to be.

[richardsneddon]

ok thank you its a start, I'm no mechanic although i like to think of my self as capable of the simple jobs! is changing to 1.4 spi difficult and also changing the camshaft easy or difficult?

[2LBaz]

My old 1.2, I put a 1.3sr inlet manifold & carb- was alot better.

[richardsneddon]

was it a difficult job? ave you still got it?

[2LBaz]

Not difficult at all

Although, fitting a 1.6 cam IMO isnt gonna help u. The 1400's have the best cam profile for what u want. (just checked ur parts wanted thread)

[Stuart]

the 1.2i guide "should" still be there? lol

its all very very easy to do if you have a haynes manual!

[richardsneddon]

cool ok so i want a 1400 camshaft?

[mikey14sr]

you're right as usual Stuart, I found it in it's hiding place, maybe we could re-do the link in the faq section?

1.2i Tuning guide (http://www.novaload.net/forum/showthread.php?t=46466)

http://www.novaload.net/forum/showthread.php?t=46466

[craig green]

1.2 cam is lame, which has to be the starting point. I was advised on a GTE cam a month or so ago & to swap to 1.4 SP injector.

Are the injectors easy to come by 2nd hand?

[Stuart]

GTE cam for the injection version and the 1.4 carb cam for the carbed 1.2


im sure all that stuff is easy/cheap since most people throw it away for an XE

[craig green]

Ive got a GTE cam (or 3) in my shed for if/when I tnker with my SPi.

Will need a 1.4 injector tho.

[Adam]

The 1.2i cam is pathetic, nothing else to say about it.
Mine drove a lot better when i fitted a GTE cam.

You can also swap the inlet for a 1.6spi one, and the throttle body for a 1.8spi one, with a 1.4spi injector.
The 1.4 injector might overfuel slightly tho.
There should be plenty of 1.4 mk3 astra merits etc to nick the injector from.

A full exhaust system and a de-cat, with the cam should see about 60-65ish bhp.
Those are the mods i've done to mine, and imo, it goes pretty well for what it is. You can easily feel the difference the mods have made.

Fitting is straight forward for the cam, using a rocker removal tool, so you dont have to touch the headbolts.

[craig green]

The 1.2i cam is pathetic, nothing else to say about it.
Mine drove a lot better when i fitted a GTE cam.


Did you run it with just the cam changed (with 1.2 injector??)

[Adam]

Yup.
I wouldn't bother fitting a bigger injector unless you do the inlet and tb swap.
Mine seems to cope fine with the gte cam with the std 1.2 injector.

The cam helps the power as you move up the rev range, and mine doesn't have a problem pulling to the limiter, even in 3rd/4th.
Whereas std, it struggled in even 3rd gear.

I have a 1.4i injector in my glovebox tho,lol
I might try it sometime.