GM Stage Kit

[allnighter]

I read that Chevrolet has an official stage kit that increases HP and torque by an additional 10 HP without voiding the warranty. Has anyone purchased this and added it to their vehicle? I am curious if there is any noticeable difference in power. 10 HP is on the low side but for a small car, maybe it makes a difference?

Also I was wondering if the exhaust note changes at all or if it stays the same?

Thank you for any information that you can provide. Possibly I will go for a better tune down the road but I don't want to mess with the warranty until its at least past warranty.

Thanks!

 

[MORTIS]

I have the GM intake along with the re-calibration of the ECM which supposedly allows for a few more ponies, and I can confirm this to be true.

I'm also considering this GM Turbo Stage kit. It also comes with a re-calibration of the ECM, which mean either a reflash for the exhaust alone or a different reflash if you have both the intake and this exhaust.
If the intake and reflash allowed a bit more gain, then maybe this exhaust with reflash will add a bit more. I'm also wondering about the volume of this exhaust. I'm certain it will change the sound but I hope it's not much louder in the cabin.

In this Youtube clip you can hear this exhaust starting at 1.20. It sounds good to me. The reviewer says no gains, just noise, but he likely has not compared it to a stock 1.4, or the exhaust installed on that car is just the Borla but without the reflash. You can buy it either way.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LxXW9DVuVZk

 

[allnighter]

Nice, so with the intake you and their calibration you feel a power difference? Does it make the car noticeably louder?

I saw that youtube video before actually, I was wondering if that was the exhaust that was part of the stage kit or not... so, thank you for answering that for me The exhaust doesn't sound too bad but its a little on the loud side for my tastes.

It's still not really clear to me if in the video he has a stage kit on that Sonic or not.. if so, his 0-60 times seems slow?

 

[MORTIS]

Nice, so with the intake you and their calibration you feel a power difference? Does it make the car noticeably louder?

It's still not really clear to me if in the video he has a stage kit on that Sonic or not.. if so, his 0-60 times seems slow?

You can read about my experience with the intake Here

As far as I know it's the same Borla catback exhaust whether you get just the exhaust or the Turbo Stage kit. I believe the difference being the Stage kit includes the reflash of the ECM. That reviewer probably doesn't even know which one is installed on that car.
You can't really judge the gains based on that guy's attempt at a 0 to 60 time. He weighs a lot and he appears to have given it only 2 attempts.

 

[6speedti]

I looked into this setup. Intake and exhaust. Overpriced. I went with the Morgan intake with the amsoil filter. The better and less expensive exhaust is the ZZ Performance direct bolt on with better choices of components. Then you can decide which reflashing performance is best for your style of driving. The GM combo gives you no choices and costs more money. Don't worry about warranty issues unless you remove the cats on the exhaust.

 

[MORTIS]

I looked into this setup. Intake and exhaust. Overpriced. I went with the Morgan intake with the amsoil filter. The better and less expensive exhaust is the ZZ Performance direct bolt on with better choices of components. Then you can decide which reflashing performance is best for your style of driving. The GM combo gives you no choices and costs more money. Don't worry about warranty issues unless you remove the cats on the exhaust.

The MPFab intake and ZZP exhaust are definitely quality stuff, and yes the GM intake and exhaust are overpriced but they are also excellent quality, especially the intake. Whether the ZZP exhaust is better is a matter of preference. It's louder than the GM stage which the OP and myself don't want. Then you also have to buy a tune to get more gain than with the GM combo.

As for no warranty issues. You may be fine but you can never be certain. It depends on the attitude of individual dealers. A few days after I got the GM intake installed, I got a lean code. I checked all connections and everything looked fine and tight. I took it to the dealer and the tech removed the MAF sensor and found a tiny bit of debris inside, probably a bit of material from the new filter. They put it back together and it was fine, and they sent me on my way. If that had been an aftermarket intake and I could not find the cause of the code, I would have to take to the dealer and they would be within their rights to charge me for it.
So yes it cost more for the OEM mods but you're always covered and you'll never have to worry whether a warranty claim might be denied.