Could my wastegate solenoid be crap???

[Dr. Jeckel]

I got my adjustable wastegate in but the only way to get the boost to hold at 13-14 psi was to adjust the rod out so far that the puck wasn't even closed. It worked great doing a 3rd gear punch I saw a steady 13.5 psi but if I tried to spool up the car from a stop all I got was 2psi and the accelerator was nearing the floor and rpms were only at 2000. If I adjusted the the rod to were the puck was closed then the boost wouldn't stop. I had the same problem before the adjustable wastegate. If I used the stock chip then I would get like 15psi, if I switched to the thrasher then the boost wouldn't stop. Could the solenoid be bad and therefore not allowing proper boost control?
Anybody have any ideas?

Thanks, James

 

[rbond]

Did you have the same problem before installing the adjustable WG?

To troubleshoot the solinoid take a short piece of vac. hose connected directly from the wastegate actuator to the turbo outlet. This will remove both the solinoid as well as the y hose from the picture. You should get whatever boost your wastegate actuator is set for (~10-12 with a stock setup)

If you just purchased a new Wastegate actuator it is possible that you have a high boost unit which will have a base level of 15-16 psi. With a stock chip that unit would give you 17-18psi, well over 20 with a Thrasher or any other aftermarket chip.

If the boost is a steady 10-12 psi with the above hose installed I would suspect the Y hose first although it is possible for the solinoid to fail.

 

[Dr. Jeckel]

Thanks, I'll try it. The problem was the same before the new wastegate actuator. When I had an ATR bleeder valve I could adjust the boost but was getting boost flashes up to 16-17 with the stock chip then it would come back down to about 14. The Y-hose looks to be in very good condition with no cracking at all. What is the other port on the solenoid used for? Why are there prongs to keep a hose on it and no hose?

 

[Just a Six??]

The second opening has a peice of foam on it that just falls off eventually. Not really any big deal as most are off.

 

[Dr. Jeckel]

Thanks, a friend and I were just wondering what it was supposed to be holding. Kinda thought it was something like that. Thanks, James.

 

[xxninja]

well honestly Boost is not controlled by the computer chip what so ever.
the ECM has absolutely no way of monitoring boost
so id probally rule out the chip being a factor.


do you have a Cat converter? if so that old mofo could be plugged and restricting exhaust flow. thus restricting boost.
most people do have a test pipe though.

maybe you changed your vacuum lines and reversed that plastic "Y" coming off of the adj. wastegate rod? the straight side should go to the nipple on the turbo and the curved side should go to the wastegate selenoid.


as for the wastegate selenoid, there are a few ways to test it
you coudl try swapping it out with a friend .
or there is 1 sorta unsafe way to test it.........

disconnet the rubber hose on the wastegate selenoid coming from the "Y" off the wastegate actuator. so that it is open to the atmosphere.

i would HIGHLY RECCOMEND!!!!!!!!!
that if you do this. that you turn your boost down ALOT, before you experiment with this


im talking like before you experiemnt, turn your boost down to like 5 pounds or something. then take the hose off and work the boost up 1 pound at a time. see if you get more that way


because if it fact it was the wastegate selenoid, and you MATT the pedal, you could shoot up to 22-23 PSI of boost, and most likely blow your headgaskets, and we all dont want that !

take your time with it and be gentle on the pedal.
i dont wanna see you make a post called "which headgaskets to buy"?

but then again, i just did 1 of those a month ago lol

 

[gn85]

Originally posted by Dr. Jeckel
Thanks, a friend and I were just wondering what it was supposed to be holding. Kinda thought it was something like that. Thanks, James.

Don't plug that hole off... Didn't know if you knew that or not. Made that mistake in my early going.

I know I had a mystery control issue with boost a long time ago on my 85 setup. I found it to a leaking vac line that was letting my boost shoot to the moon. Have you replaced that rubber "Y" hose yet? Make sure it's zip tied on too. They like to worm there way off. If you do replace the "Y" hose make sure you get the correct hose and not just parts store make up.

 

[Dr. Jeckel]

Confusing

Well I put the stock chip back in like I said and adjusted the rod so that the puck was just closed. The spool up was quick and it shot straight to 14psi...stopped....then showed 14* of KR
If I put the thrasher chip in then the boost doesn't stop, like I said. When I had the bleeder valve(and the stock chip) I could adjust the boost but didn't like the boost flash. The only thing it could be is the thrasher chip calling for a higher boost setting. The solenoid controls boost by allowing air pressure to be released or held according to your boost requirments in the chip...am I right there?? I would like to get a chip from turbo tweak but don't really have the money right now. Has anyone else put in a thrasher chip and had the same problem? If you plug up the hole on the solenoid the worst thing that could happen is you get less boost because the air pressure is forced to all go towards the wastegate actuator which will open it sooner...right? Is there any boost control device that doesn't give you boost flash that doesn't cost alot and doesn't give boost flash?

 

[Ormand]

Thrasher...

The chip can/will increase boost. The Thrasher dumps more air out through the wastegate than the stock chip, thus giving more boost, especially in first and second. If your solenoid is "sticky" and doesn't close, that would give you big time boost! You can clean it by squirting carburettor cleaner through it, see if that helps. I guess it is possible for a bad chip to open the solenoid,and hold it open, but I never heard of it happening. If it did, I'm sure Russ or Scott, whoever made the Thrasher, would fix it/replace it.

 

[Dr. Jeckel]

Thanks, I'll try cleaning it. It's just strange that it would be so precise at controlling boost with the stock chip but then not with the thrasher.

I have sent an email to the thrasher site that said they are not able to ship because of inventory but have not received a response.

 

[Dr. Jeckel]

Well I found out by reading some more on thrasher chips that they do have more boost in them. Like 22psi in 1st and 17psi there after was the concensus. So I just need to get a different chip to work with my setup. Thanks for everybodies help.

 

[Sleeper]

Originally posted by xxninja
well honestly Boost is not controlled by the computer chip what so ever.
so id probally rule out the chip being a factor.

Wrong!!! What the heck do you think the solenoid that sits on the rocker cover is for? There are 3rd and 4 gear boost scalers, code to ramp the wastegate, wastegate duty cycle vs RPM, and TPS scaler of wastegate duty cycle tables in the chip that DO control the boost.

Dr. Jeckel
It sounds like you are getting a boost spike from the Thrasher. (They ramp the spool up quickly.) You may need to enlarge your wastegate puck hole a bit to help with the spike.

I would also check the "Y" to make sure you have the right orifice size in the restricter leg, and the restricter leg is pointed to the compressor side.

Paul

 

[Dr. Jeckel]

The Y-hose in properly installed. I was reading in the Computer chips 101 section about the thrasher chip and it sounds like the chips are setup for more boost. One guy got 23psi in first gear(luckily he was running some race gas). Are there any chips out there that I can get that will run 15psi and low spark advance(20-22), that I will not have to mess with anything else?

 

[Ormand]

???

I'm running a Thrasher 92, with 30# injectors, adjustable waste gate, adjustable FPR, stock turbo, and I have no problems. You get more boost in first, because the engine will tolerate more boost in first. It doesn't "normally" hurt anything. But if you want another chip, Jim Testa, or Eric (at Turbotweak), or Joe Lubrant, or Carl Ijames can help you, as well as others on this board.

 

[Dr. Jeckel]

What psi are you getting in first? Mine shot to 19 psi(then I let off) and I wasn't all the way on the throttle. How do you have your actuator setup? I'm scared to try it with the thrasher because I don't want it to shoot to 22 psi and pop my head gasket.

 

[Sleeper]

A lot of it depends on the octane of gas you are running. If you are using 92-94 you can get away with a bit more boost than 15 psi. A lot depends on the timing. Some chip guys lower the timing and up the boost , and visa versa. As Ormand said about the Thrasher, it does give more boost in the lower gears, and that is usually tolerable because of the lighter load. I second what he says. Jay Carter, Eric (TurboTweak), Bob Bailey, Jim Testa, Joe Lubrant, all make great chips that are very streetable on pump gas.

Paul

 

[Dr. Jeckel]

Will chips from these guys give the same characteristics as the thrasher, i.e. quick spool and more boost or can they make them for just 15psi, since the highest octane around here is 91 and I don't have the cash to buy race gas to mix in every fillup.

 

[Danster]

Try running your setup "tuner style". Just make sure the rod is extended and barely any pressure on the puck. You should be able to get the desired PSI. If not, look into buying a valve a member on this board has been selling "sinful6". I have this setup with a heavy duty actuator and I can adjust any desired PSI I want.

Dannyo

 

[Dr. Jeckel]

I'll try it tonight. Do you have any poost flash with that setup? I don't want to get something like that. I want my setup to go to the desired psi and stay there, without initially going over by a couple psi then settling.

 

[Danster]

I do get about an additional 2 PSI do to the quick spool feature in the Thrasher Chip, however, it usually settles to the desired PSI before I hit third gear. But even then I'm not getting any knock.

Make sure your puck moves freely without the rod hooked up to ensure your puck is not sticking.

Keep us posted!

Dannyo