Original Article Sourced From: SonicInsider.com

Let’s get to it. The Sonic has been praised by the media as an all-around performer, but the real performance all stems from one place – right under the hood. For those new to the ECOtec school, get ready for a crash course because we have some engine talk to get to.

The ECOtec is an inline four cylinder motor family that has heritage all the way back to the ‘70s but with all of the fuel saving and performance benefits of today. It’s quite the potent little powerplant that back in 2004 was pushed all the way to 1,800 HP to outright slay the competition on the drag strip. Records were broken, parties were had and it was a fun time for the ECOtec.

But that was then and this is now.

So what’s the latest with ECOtec and does the Sonic’s motor even deserve to be labeled an ECOtec? Well for starters the Sonic does have the ECOtec logo stamped on the engine cover of its new 138hp 1.4L Turbo LUV. If you’re asking yourself what an LUV is, well that’s the technical engine code that GM has christened this motor with. Know it well.

Quick tip: You should just write “LUV” on your mirror now so that every morning you can remind yourself to search for all the latest performance parts that will be coming out in the upcoming months.

Now back to the LUV specifics. In comparison to the previous family of ECOtecs, of which one powered the Cobalt SS and pumped out 260hp right from the factory floor, there are some positive similarities and differences to the LUV. One key difference, there’s just 1.4 liters of displacement in the LUV versus 2 liters in the LNF which powered the Cobalt SS. One key similarity, they’re both turbocharged.

Being turbocharged from the factory is a critical benefit that Sonic has over its competition like the Ford Fiesta, Scion xD and Fiat 500. With the turbo, not only is big power delivered consistently and low in the RPM range, but for those speed seekers it also means that plugging a computer into this bad boy and tweaking the tune can give you a major boost in power very easily and at minimal cost (more on that in the future).

Like the title says, this is a quick dive into the new 1.4L Turbo LUV ECOtec as there is a lot more to get to. We also realize that this article probably just created more questions than answers and we’re ok with that, even though it may drive you crazy.

If you want to get any of those crazy questions off your chest and into the next LUV article, drop us a line below and we’ll look at covering the best ones in our next quick dive into the LUV.

The Chevy Sonic has a lot of things going for it. For one, it has quite a loud bark due to its aggressive styling which doesn’t make excuses for being a B-segment vehicle. Its bite is even worse though, as the Sonic packs some serious damage in the form of the 140HP turbocharged LUJ ECOtec. But we’ve known both of those things already. So what gives with the recap? Well as we get closer to the launch of the Sonic, late 2011, more and more Sonic styling and performance goodies are starting to see the light of day. The latest – a look at the production version of the much anticipated Z-Spec accessories package.

While there are no go-fast bits included in the latest release, there are some nice sit ‘n stare options. Those parts are the parable default of manufacturer offerings, but Chevy has turned the volume up on Sonic and is starting to break out different styling cues in their factory appearance options. Some of the new looks are outlandish, some are clean, but all will allow anyone to express themselves with minimal cost and maximum effect.

We’ll only be sharing one today, called “White Out”. But we’ve seen many others that will be coming out that are sure to peak interest in anyone that has a pulse. Beyond that, we can share that there will be another wrap called “Black Out” that incorporates some sharper design elements.

With this initial salvo of add-ons goodies, we can only imagine what’s on the horizon for Sonic in the form of Z-Spec accessories. Only time will tell, but as the months tick away in 2011, we’ll be covering each and every update from Sonic that we can dig, scratch and claw for.

Stay tuned!

There’s one thing we love about the Europeans: they know exactly how to slap a large motor in a small car - such is the case with the latest Chevy Spark we just laid eyes on. Apparently some guys at Chevrolet’s office in Europe thought that it’d be a good idea to transplant the new LUJ 1.4L Turbo motor into the upcoming B-segment hopeful, the Chevy Spark, and send it out for WTCC pace car duty. All we know is that we’d like to meet the man that thought of this idea and buy him a drink.

The LUJ puts out an incredible 140hp out of its miniscule 1.4L displacement – that’s less space than that bottle of Mountain Dew you pounded last night. That’s not N/A of course and comes via the help of the snail integrated into the header of the ECOtec four. And keep this in mind; the LUJ has an iron block… That means it’ll eat boost up better than your Uncle at the Sizzler buffet. For that reason, we can’t wait to see what Tuners do with this motor when it finally makes its way over to the States this fall underhood of the Chevy Cruze (WTCC-version Cruze shown in the background of the image above).

Fun fact: the Spark only tips the scales at 1,905lbs. Do the math on that and let us know how easy it will be to clean house at your local test-and-tune on Friday night in a LUJ-powered Chevy Spark. For now though we’re forced to live vicariously through the WTCC pace car iteration of the turbo Chevy Spark and hope that it comes as an option on the US Spark order form.

Would you be down to roll out in a Spark Turbo? What would you be willing to spend on such an automobile should it be parked at your local dealer? Let us know in the comments below!

The 2011 Chevrolet Cruze is very close to becoming the next staple GM small car for tuners to tweak, tuck and play with. With a new Delta II chassis underpinning the new Cruze, a new ECOtec was developed to properly motivate the new car. With all of the performance heritage behind the L61 though, the next-gen ECOtec had its work cut out for it. Enter the LUJ: a turbocharged, VVT, 1.4L ECOtec that puts out 138hp and 148lb.-ft of torque. Weekend warriors rejoice, there is a new top dog in town.

Staying true to ECOtec form, the new 1.4L LUJ ECOtec is quite the potent, pint-sized little package. Seemingly having two engines in one package, the low displacement and high power output of the LUJ allow the engine to deliver fuel economy of 40mpg on the highway or 148lb.-ft of torque depending on what the situation requires – groceries: 40mpg, drag strip: 148lbs of torque! This kind of multiple personality disorder is possible because of the turbocharger that comes bolted to the 1.4L ECOtec and is part of the recipe for the domination of the Cruze over its competitors.

Having a built on power-adder makes potential upgrades even easier than with prior-generation ECOtecs, coupled with a traditional port-injection system for easy tunability and the 1.4L ECOtec has the potential to usurp the LNF as the breadwinner in the ECOtec family. Pretty strong words we know but you’ll see why we’re not completely out of our minds as the new LUJ has some critical benefits that make this engine a monster waiting to be unleashed. These additions include a cast iron block with 5-bolt mains and hollow frame construction that reduces weight by 20 percent. Connecting rods that are forged, piston cooling jets to calm high boost temperatures, an on-board oil cooler, VVT in the head, and to cap it all off – a six-speed manual transmission makes gearheads around the world rejoice.

Check out this new video and some pics below that show how the whole LUJ deal works. Pretty basic turbocharged affair here but cool stuff nonetheless. If you want to print out either image and put it on your wall let us know we’ll shoot you over the high-res file.

Things are looking good for the GM Sport Compact world and we can’t wait for the Cruze to get here to keep sticking it to the competition!

There has been a lot of excitement from everyone about the Cobalt LNF Upgrade Kit and for good reason; it will add some serious kick to your Cobalt. Like with anything this popular though, there are a good amount of questions. We found some great questions among the comments in our last LNF Update post on July 20th and Design Systems Engineer Bill Duncan at GM HPVO was kind enough to take the time to answer a couple of them. Everyone over there and everyone over here wants to make sure that owners are armed with every last bit of information about this kit that they need to be able to step up to the parts counter with confidence when the time comes. That being said, take a look at the two Q&A topics below:

The voice of the Cobalt community is being heard inside GM! The team in charge of the Cobalt LNF Turbo Upgrade has seen the comments left on the Petition post and have been working tirelessly to deliver a kit that will meet all the demands and expectations left by all of the owners there. We’ve been doing our fair share of hootin’ and hollerin’ over here saying that this kit will let you dominate the streets, make mince meat out of your competition, etc and we’re just glad that the folks at GM aren’t going to make us eat our words.

The LNF Turbo Upgrade Kit for the Cobalt SS Turbo is going to bring the Cobalt SS into a whole new arena in terms of performance and power output and is the only upgrade available to enthusiasts that want to retain their factory warranty. In addition, GM wants to make sure that regardless of which one of the 50 United States you live in, that you will be able to enjoy this new upgrade. That ability comes via the form of a CARB EO approval and is the main hurdle that the team in charge of the upgrade has to deal with to bring this upgrade to all enthusiasts across the country.