Now I'm confused!

[S10xGN]

After seeing the (friendly ) p@#$ing match between Razor and Salvage over "BAR" units and conversions, along comes the new TurboSmart boost controller and gets me all confused again. They are (not) taking vacuum into account - can that be correct?

 

[V6POWER]

Wow, $749!

 

[turbo2nr]

1 BAR (barometric atmosphere) is about 14.5psi. At least that is close enough. All Subaru WRXs with the optional boost guage are in these units. Reading boost by BAR is stupid. Just my opinion. It's like weighing an apple in tons. (.000021 tons.)
Turbosmart is a good company, more of a ricer thing, pretty lights, shiny things, big money for something simple. I do like the turbo smart BOV on my manual turbo car (WRX). But the money for a spring in a hunk of metal is obsurd. I want some of that profit. I may sell my company to start making ricer parts.

 

[dhjenkins]

That's what I did - I now make ricer mufflers.

I can fab up 2 different types right now...

Folger's and Maxwell House

 

[turbo2nr]

LOL

I'll take a decaffinated muffler.

 

[salvageV6]

Why would you take vacuum into account on a boost gauge or controller?

The dual mechanical gauges do, but you normally reference gauge pressure ABOVE atmospheric like most mechanical gauges for many but obviously not all applications.

Gauge vs. absolute argument again.

It's all frames of reference.

The GM MAP is an engine management device, they need both vacuum and boost readings, that probably was left over and stuck into our cars to run a boost gauge, the vacuum portion of it means nothing since no lights on the dash display vacuum well not normally anyway....

Their 2 and 3 bar references can get confusing compared to a straightforward boost only gauge in bars or psi.

It's much easier to use PSI boost, since that assumes above atmospheric (gauge) to most folks.

I think...

 

[S10xGN]

Working in a refinery and using gauges all day long, I've always been under the impression that 1 BAR (barometric) = 14.7 PSIA (absolute) which equals 0 PSIG (gauge). That would mean:

• "0" BAR = -14.7" psig
• "1" BAR = 0 psig
• "2" BAR = 14.7 psig
• "3" BAR = 29.4 psig

So, it's either an Australian thing or perhaps the USA is the one not "with the program".

As for the price stated, again it's Australian. They are available stateside for $450 - $500. Still expensive, but looks like a nice solid multi-function piece.

 

[salvageV6]

Just a definition.

How you use it is up to you, psi. are units that can be referenced to vacuum, atm., etc.

Pabs = Patm + Pgauge

I don't think it matters what country you are in but certainly matters what industry you are in or what you are trying to measure accurately.

Engine management you obviously want to read vacuum but for a boost controller or gauge it isn't necessary unless perhaps the controller needs to try to hold 1psi. or something real low.

I still think bars are for ricers.

 

[turbo2nr]

1 bar means- one unit of barometric pressure at sea level. Which is ABOUT 14.5psi..... 0 bar is 0psi.......2bar is almost 30psi, etc.....That's how my pressure guages read in my dental lab for nitrogen, compressed air, etc.

 

[Razor]

The 2/3 bar GM sensor's were designed to not only read pressure but vacuum as well.

Example, look at the Syclone trucks. They dont use a MAF, they do it with the 2 bar sensor. So the computer can read vacuum and boost.

Here is where it sometimes gets tricky. My Greddy boost controller has a 4 bar sensor built in. 3 are positive, one is vacuum.

The Motorola sensor is a 2.5 bar sensor. Tho it only reads positive making it a 36 PSI sensor.

I understand your confusion.. the reality is the question has to be asked. I made the mistake assumming the Motorola sensor read boost and VACUUM. Not so.

HTH

 

[norbs]

Stay away from the e boost since you can't dial in the boost, only the ratio of 0-100. So you have to guess what boost each number is, confusing. Had to sell mine because of that!

 

[ijames]

MAP sensors are absolute sensors so they start at zero pressure, or a perfect vacuum, just like a gauge calibrated in pounds per square inch absolute. They have a reference cell which is usually vacuum, and the electronics read the pressure above this reference in this case. I posted something that was wrong when this came up in the alky forum a while ago, so I want to get it right here. By definition 1 pascal = 1 newton / meter^2 and 1 Pa = 0.00001 bar, so 1 bar = 100000 N/m^2. Plug in the conversions between N, m, pound force, and square inches, and 1 bar = 14.5 psia. It's sheer coincidence that this is almost 14.7 psia which is one atmosphere. [In that other thread I said 1 bar = 1 kilogram/m^2, sigh - sorry about that, guys.] If the reference cell in a MAP sensor is at one standard atmosphere, it could read pressures both above and below this, depending on the electronics. Apparently the Motorola sensor doesn't read below this, only above, which means it can go to higher pressure with a lower range strain gauge, but of course it can't read vacuum.

 

[turbo2nr]

So if 1 bar is not one atmosphere of pressure at sea level, then what is a BAR?

What does it stand for? I thought it was Barometric atmosphere??

 

[salvageV6]

Enjoy, I didn't write it.

http://www.weatherwise.org/qr/qry.00.atmpress.html

Think gauge pressure when you want to measure boost.

Remember vacuum sucks.