Unsure What I have Under The Hood.

[yarbeau]

Hello all, as the winter months just seem to drag on here in alberta, the anticipation builds tremendously for me as I wait to show Natalie (My 87 Grand National) How much fun it can be to live in Edmonton and not Calgary!:wink:

Little background info.

I'm 19 work as an apprentice Carpenter (for now) and just bought my first turbo'd Regal. I've been driving an 80 regal that me and my dad redone about 3 years ago but i needed to convert to the dark side:biggrin:

Bought the car for 12K Canadian. Outrageous amounts of upgrades. I cant even tell what is stock anymore.

I need help determining what i have here. car pulls hard! ill take better pics tomorrow when i go see the car again but for now if anyone can help me identify or tell me ways of identifying what i have.

car has methanol injection. what is the difference between meth and alky? which is better worse etc..

previous owner was a total gear head and found he benefitted most when using regular windshield washer fluid as the meth over the specific formulated meth liquid!!! I cant possibly believe this!

I know the tranny is an art carr, injectors were just redone, engine was taken out and completely redone internals wise, cam, heads, bottom end. b&M sport shifter etc..

Exhaust is all new 3", bigger garret turbo, new rad, the list goes on and on.

he said it makes about 22 pounds of boost regularly but he installed a knob that allows you to crank to 25 pounds.

I'm wondering what parts i have on here to start with and approx what am i running HP and torque wise.

The car is disassembled as we speak interior wise as the floor boards were rotten. have new pans thanks to dwall and will be installing soon.

I'm looking at keeping this car for a moderate daily driver. it does not have a scanmaster and i dont completely understand the function of one.

My dad isnt even in the loop with turbo 6's. hes back in the 350 C.I. ++ era. so hes looking to learn along with me.

the only picture i have right now is as follows.




what is the function of a boost gauge on the intake like this one has?

I have oil pressure, boost/vacuum, temp, rpm, gauges already installed.

i have read alot of people recommend "knock" gauges. what purpose do these serve and are they vital?

Again I'm extremely "green" in terms of turbo'd regals here but I'm open to any and all criticisms and suggestions.

Any feedback greatly appreciated.
Derek

yarbeau@gmail.com

 

[1quick6]

That's not a boost gauge, it's a fuel pressure gauge. It is mounted on the fuel rail so you can adjust the fuel pressure appropriately.

Knock gauges provide you visual and/or audible warning that your engine is detonating so you can get out of the throttle quickly to avoid head gasket trauma. I have a Casper's unit in my car.

Please ... before you get rolling in this car, educate yourself on them with the help of this site and Turbo Regal Web Site Your car and your wallet will thank you. Your car has a lot on it from what you describe and you need to learn about it. Catalog what you have, learn about each component and how they all work together.

 

[1BADTT]

Welcome...start reading!!!

First of all welcome aboard Derek. Your best friend on this forum will be the search buttom . The pics need to be less blury & include some side shots as well. Like 1quick6 said, the only gauge I see is the fuel pressure gauge @ the tip of the fuel rail. You also have a adjustable fuel pressure regulator (red top). The valve covers seem to be aftermarket meaning you might have roller rockers (stock valve covers don't clear roller rockers) or the owner just had them for aesthetics. You have a steep learning curve ahead of you. Try hooking up with any board members around your area.

 

[turboTime87]

looks like a ta-49 turbo, stock appearing turbo, cant see if it has an aftermarket downpipe like you stated. where is the meth being injected?

 

[yarbeau]

thanks for the responses guys. i will include better pics im sorry those are from my phone. didnt have my camera with me at the time.

the meth come from a reservoir by the windshield washer container and is not picture in this photo.

when i take photos i will also take closeups on parts id love to learn about and things im confused at so i can simply say what is this instead of uselessly trying to explain what im seeing.

thanks everyone and ill be in touch with more photos shortly.

happy holidays!
derek

 

["Turbo-T"]

I'm looking at keeping this car for a moderate daily driver. it does not have a scanmaster and i dont completely understand the function of one.

i have read alot of people recommend "knock" gauges. what purpose do these serve and are they vital?

Again I'm extremely "green" in terms of turbo'd regals here but I'm open to any and all criticisms and suggestions.

Scanmaster......it's used for tuning and used for keeping tabs on what the ECM sees...it's basically a digital gauge you permanently install in the car. It will show you 2 important things to know...like knock retard and the 02 millivolts which show you a general idea of if you're lean or rich. It will also show you mph, rpm, coolant temp, malfunction codes, etc. The Scanmaster is very easy to hook up and very easy to use. It's the first thing you should spend money on, unless you like replacing broken parts.

Knock gauges tell you if the knock sensor is telling the ECM to retard the timing (knock retard)...with a forced induction engine, if your engine develops knock, it can lead to blown head gaskets or worse, a blown up engine. If the knock gauge goes off while you're building boost, it's a warning that you should consider letting off the gas pedal until you can find out what the cause of the knock gauge going off is. The knock gauge is another thing you should have, although I like the knock alarm better, as it's one less gauge I have to look at...instead I can use my ears to tell me if I need to lift off the pedal.

You definitely want to learn your car and know how to tune it and keep it in shape. These cars can be fun but if you don't have all your ducks in a row you can easily blow one up. Get yourself the Scanmaster and the knock gauge/alarm. The vendors on this page sell both items. You also want to do a spring cleaning (see Turbo Regal Web Site for what this is) before you start beating on the car and also make sure you have a hot wired fuel pump and a good altermarket pump of some kind...again inadequate fuel volume/PSI can result in blown head gaskets or self destructed engines.

 

[Headcutta]

Welcome, read, read, read and when you get through with that read some more! gnttype.org

 

[turboTime87]

reading through the threads and searching perofrmance parts will net you a lot more knowledge then waiting for people to explain every single item on the car. You have to learn somehow so I would start there instead of spending time taking pictures of EVERYTHING. Not trying to be rude because everyone needs to learn but there is plenty of info on here and gnttype.org that will answer pretty much any question you have about the car.

 

[87NAT]

Welcome, read, read, read and when you get through with that read some more! gnttype.org

x1000

If not...I see new headgaskets in your future.....

 

[gordsgn]

hey man, im from edmonton too. cant wait to get this gravel off the road and untarp my '86 and terrorize the 5.0s. see ya on the cruise!

 

[davidf]

By looking at the intercooler neck it appears to have an aftermarket intercooler or maybe Duttweiler neck. How deep is the IC?
Looks like GN1 VC's. I like those.

 

[Fast4Ward]

read all the sticky's you can find...for more info.
...i lived in Edmonton for abit. no place for any performance car...replacing windshields and headlamps gets tiring..LOL ...way too much dirt and gravel on the roads for me....land of $$ but can't afford to clean the roads.

 

[blackmonte]

By looking at the intercooler neck it appears to have an aftermarket intercooler or maybe Duttweiler neck. How deep is the IC?
Looks like GN1 VC's. I like those.

Looks like a stock intercooler to me?A Dut neck would be 2 1/2 that looks like a stock 2''. The up- pipe would match the outlet from Turbo and then a step coupler would be used that looks the same size 2'' in/out