I am 17 and of course as a teenager i like to drive pretty fast, i have a '97 2.2 sunfire se 5 speed and i have installed a cheap universal short ram recently plus i have Denso plugs and autolite professional wires. I was wondering if there was anything i could get that wouldnt cost me a fortune to get more power out of my car thank you for any help

like most will say; you usually get what you pay for; that is unless you have a hook up that sells to you cheap.... lets see
: cold air is better than short but that a personal pref.

some of the cheaper mods, but they wont get you much power.
1). new headers
2). new full exhaust system."not just a bumble bee muffler"
3).you could attach a breather filter onto you valve cover.
4)possibly a new intake manifold.

now if you want to get even more power and spend $$ some more money
1).wiseco forged piston kit.: this way you change your compression ratios if you want and or can get over-bored pistons.$500.00
2). you can get a throttle body off of a 2.4l ( that is if you upgrade your intake manifold). together a little over $370.00
3).higher flow fuel injectors.( prices are subjective.)

the mod i would recommend as being the most effective, requires some knowledge, time, and patience. is as follows
1). comp cams. either COM-113200 or COM-113300 = $ 459.99 plus tax
2) Gm Racing adjustable cam gear set=$ 350.00

even jesse james recommends changing your cams from stock. he said its the cheapest way to see some significant gains.

now with all those mods suggested you could change your thermostat to a lower heat setting like 185 degree for example. then with the new thermo. you must make your computer do new tricks. to do this i suggest hptuner $499.99; i say this b/c with this program you can change so much and let your computer know what your new ratings are on all your components