Another ATR wastegate ? or 2

[turbobrain87]

Ok, rookie needs help. I can't get the car to boost past 18#'s even with my manual boost controller and wastegate fully opened. So this must mean that I have an 18# spring in the gate, correct? And if ATR's biggest spring is a 20#er, how can I boost past 20#'s? Shims or similar? Buy bigger gate? Please tell me I'm just missing something. Still learning a great deal and not gonna spend a bunch of money for 5 er 6 pounds of boost unless absolutly necessary. Thanks for any help! Brian

 

[turbo2nr]

There are many ways to adjust boost setting. Be careful while playing around. When you say you have the wastegate fully open (??), I guess you mean you have tightened the wastegate rod alot. When the wastegate is closed, you are building boost, when open, the turbo is not getting 100% exaust. First, double check boost lines from turbo to "T", to accuator, and solonoid. Do you have the metered oriface in the right line? Any leaks (exaust, intake, etc) Are you familiar with the hydraulic operation of the wastegate accuator? You can bleed off some pressure and raise boost. Need more info??

 

[turbobrain87]

No leaks. Everything looks good. I can set the boost anywhere, 10, 13, 15, just no higher than 18#s. There is no acctuator or solenoid, its setup with one line going from wastegate to boost controller, in the glove box and the other line out of the wastegate "T"s off and goes to the other end of the controller and to the vacuum pod on the tb. ??? That's how it was setup when I bought the car. Is this wrong? Brian

 

[Bent6]

Originally posted by turbobrain87
No leaks. Everything looks good. I can set the boost anywhere, 10, 13, 15, just no higher than 18#s. There is no acctuator or solenoid, its setup with one line going from wastegate to boost controller, in the glove box and the other line out of the wastegate "T"s off and goes to the other end of the controller and to the vacuum pod on the tb. ??? That's how it was setup when I bought the car. Is this wrong? Brian

I assume you have an external gate. Line from side of wastegate body should go the the turbo. Assuming your "controller" is a Turbonetics Dial-A-Boost (most are) it will have an arrow on the back indicating airflow direction. Line from top of wastegate should go to output side of boost controller. Line from input side of boost controller should go to a boost source such as the vacuum pod on tbody. Starting out, set the spring tension on the wastegate at the midway point and set the controller to full counterclockwise (lowest setting) and start dialing up from there. You can make large adjustments with the spring tension and fine tune with the controller. Good luck!!

 

[turbobrain87]

The way everything is hooked up is like this -->http://www.turbotechnologyinc.com/boost_control_diagram.htm. The "controller" is a Norgren brand valve similar to the one in the diagram. Look right? Or should I hook it up using the turbo, as you suggested? Pardon my lack of knowledge, I just wanna get it right. Brian

 

[Bent6]

The diagram you show is mechanically correct. I personally don't like using the T fitting on the reference source. I run one line from the compressor side of the turbo to the side of the wastegate and then a separate line from the manifold to the control valve. Is the T fitting in your setup the factory grey splitter that was on the stock setup? If so, this is probably your problem as it has a restrictor inside. Is your wastegate mechanically sound - no flange leaks or damaged diaphram?

 

[turbobrain87]

I inspected the wastegate last weekend when I couldn't get the boost up. The diaphram is in good shape and seems to seal fine. The splitter isn't factory but I will delete that today and set it up with a line to the turbo, as you do. Thanks for the help, Bent6. I'll be back with any news. Brian

 

[Bent6]

Is this a new problem or has boost been a problem since you got the car? It could be the boost control valve itself. I am not familiar with Norgren, but some valves are different ie - 0-15psi, 0-30psi valves, etc. Norgren valves are popular on Euro cars - yours may be the wrong valve for your application.

Spring size is more a function of "controllling" than "amount" of boost. You can tell what size spring is in your gate by simply running the line from the side of wastegate to the turbo and plugging the top port. Set the spring tension about mid-way. You should be able to go higher than 18#s with whatever spring you have using a boost controll valve. Good luck!

 

[turbobrain87]

Is this a new problem or has boost been a problem since you got the car? It could be the boost control valve itself. I am not familiar with Norgren, but some valves are different ie - 0-15psi, 0-30psi valves, etc. Norgren valves are popular on Euro cars - yours may be the wrong valve for your application.

Ah, good point. The controller was already on the car when I bought it. I used to have it at 14#s and now at 18#'s. I had never tried to turn it up past that until I got a Turbo Tweak chip for the car and some race fuel. That's when I found the problem. I have a full tank of pump gas so I guess I'll have to wait to check things out, i.e. remove the controller and or delete the splitter. Thanks again Bent6, I really appreciate it!! Brian