Specialty File
Most cars can benefit from more power, particularly small, tidy sports cars powered by modest four-cylinder engines. Pontiac's gorgeous $19,995 Solstice is a perfect example because its 177-hp, 2.4-liter four-banger is far from lusty and can't muster the thrust to exercise the pretty Pontiac's sophisticated chassis and large, grippy tires.
When we need more power, many of us immediately think of dropping in a small-block Chevy V-8, the energizer for countless swaps since the ubiquitous powerplant was born more than 50 years ago.
Chuck Mallett, owner of Ohio-based Mallett Cars, is a step ahead of our wishful thinking. He managed last August to acquire one of the first Solstices to arrive in dealer showrooms-at sticker price, no less-and immediately began a two-month job of installing a 400-hp LS2 Chevy V-8.
It wasn't easy. There was enough room in the engine bay, and the stock drivetrain was designed for heavier vehicles-the Solstice five-speed manual is from a Chevy Colorado and the rear differential is from a Cadillac CTS-so it should be stout enough to handle the LS2 V-8 (400 horsepower and 395 pound-feet of torque). But the pushrod V-8 required new engine mounts and a bell housing to mate up to the Solstice's transmission. As is always the case with modifying a modern car, the biggest hurdle came in the electronics department. For example, the V-8 requires eight fuel-injector leads, not four, so Mallett had to fabricate a new wiring harness and reprogram the engine computer to run the bigger engine. Open the hood, and except for the Mallett logos on the valve covers, the engine bay looks like a factory job.
The V-8 is heavier than the stock four-cylinder, so there's a weight penalty with this makeover. Mallett's completed heart transplant resulted in a stronger patient that weighed in at 3094 pounds, 217 more than the Solstice we tested last October and within 200 pounds of a Corvette convertible. There's also greater mass up front, 54.2 percent versus 52.6.
To accommodate that extra weight, the $18,000 V-8 conversion includes stiffer springs and shocks. You also get a Corvette Z06 clutch, a stainless-steel exhaust system with Corsa muffler, a larger radiator, and Mallett-embroidered seat covers.
If you want air conditioning, Mallett charges another $1995 (on top of the $960 option price). The car we tested also had Penske remote-reservoir adjustable shocks ($3930), 19-inch wheels with 265/35ZR-19 Michelin Pilot Sport PS2 tires ($4303), and Stainless Steel Brakes Corporation rotors and calipers ($2000), ballooning the as-tested price to $51,183.
As you've learned by now, money equals speed. Here's the fun part. With a stab of the gas, the V-8 Solstice lights up its tires in any of the three lower gears. It's as tricky in the Mallett to keep the wheels from spinning as it is to get wheelspin in a stock Solstice. With the V-8 heart in place, the Solstice feels as exciting as it looks.
