An often overlooked rating of an engine is the compression rating. This is a calculation of the highest amount of pressure inside the combustion chamber compared to the lowest amount. This means that if the highest compression is nine times higher than the lowest, the compression ratio is 9.0:1. As with all engines, the 2.2-liter Chevy engine has its own compression specifications. There were two 2.2-liter engines offered by Chevy in 2001.
The 2.2-liter OHV Flex Fuel engine can be found in the 2001 Chevrolet S-10. This engine has an 8.85:1 compression ratio.
The 2.2-liter OHV engine is the standard engine in the Cavalier. This engine has a higher compression ratio of 9.0:1.
Testing of compression is done using a tool to determine the maximum pressure created in each cylinder. Then the pressures are checked for variances between the cylinders. The Chevy 2.2-liter will create 125 to 160 pounds-per-square-inch (PSI) and should not have more than 5 percent variance between cylinders.
