Need some help.

[MY T FAST]

ok guys,
this is probably going to be lengthy so i apologize in advance. here goes...

i bought my bone stock 87 we4 in 4/08. 6/08 i ran it at the local track (still bone freakin stock) with a best time of 14.500 at 95, with a 2.25 60' (track sucks lol)

fast forward to last night. same track, but car now has pypes 2.5" exhaust, test pipe, 3" MAF pipe with k/n on it, rjc powerplate, 160 thermostat, rjc manual boost controller, TT 93 street chip, buickgn aluminum radiator, and a pts xtreme shift kit. also have a scanmaster and a boost gauge. ran the car last night, same track for a best time of 14.87 at 88 , same 2.23 60'. wtf is wrong here, i don't know where to start. oh, i was running about 18 lbs of boost, with 10 gal of 93 and 2 gal of 110 so zero knock.

i can't really give you an accurate o2 count from the scanmaster. at part throttle, it'll lock pretty consistently at about 780. under WOT tho, the damn thing jumps all over the place, and when i try to recall it, it shows somewhere around 560. so i'm not sure what to do about that.

the fuel system is still stock, (i know, shame on me) but it will be upgraded real quick like. putting an Adj. FPR on this afternoon.

so the real question here is why the hell did i lose 7mph after opening her up a little, and how do i go about fixing this problem?
thanks in advance, gents.
Talon

 

[chadly]

With the upgrades you did I would not expect to see a huge gain, but defiantly you should not have lots mph. Are saying that your scan master no longer works? Because if you were running 560 02’s @ wot I sure would think you would have some kr’s recorded. Sounds like you need get a scan master that is working properly and then start tuning. I would think you should be in the 13's.

 

[MY T FAST]

yeah i wasn't expecting anything great, but losing mph kinda made me mad. lol. you really think the scanmaster is broken? like i said it seems to lock right around where it should under 3/4 throttle, its just under WOT that its screwy. is it possible that i just hooked it up wrong? but it seems to show everything else ok...
thanks chadly
Talon

 

[chadly]

My understanding is the scan master will not recall lowest 02’s unless it records wot. What does your tps read on the scan master at wot while you are in the car, not under the hood?

 

[MY T FAST]

last time i checked it, at wot the tps was around 4.5. its been a while tho, i'm working on changing the fuel filter and installing an adj. fpr at the moment so i don't wanna prime the pump by turning the key on just yet. i'll check when i can tho. thanks again,
Talon

 

[ES1]

1) I would verify if you really are running 18# boost.
2) I would see what your RPM is at WOT
3) I would do a compression check.
I ran 14 flat @ 99mph with a 130,000 mile engine and that was with a 2.2 60ft
It does not appear that your motor is making the correct HP.

 

[MY T FAST]

ok, got the adj. FPR on. line off 43 psi. went for a wot run and the fp gauge spiked a little, but more or less hovered at around 42 (with boost at 18). not rising 1:1 with boost at all. so a new fuel pump/hotwire is definitely in order. but it still read 0.0 knock on the scanmaster the whole run, and the wot o2s when recalled were 015. something isn't right there. if the fuel psi is really that low, shouldn't i be knocking somethin fierce? and why would the o2 count be that screwy?

my autometer boost gauge reads 18, i don't think its wrong, but i'll see if i can bum a different gauge off of someone and check.

wot shift points are right at 5k, per my aftermarket tach.

wot tps is 4.56.

please give me your thoughts, but i'm not going to have free time to work on the car again for a couple weeks, so i'll check what y'all say when i can, but unfortunately it won't be right away. thanks again guys,
Talon

 

[ES1]

1) Race gas may of killed your O2.
2) Could you feel timing being pulled?
I wonder if you knock sensor is working.

 

[theCATman]

Fast T....... you state bone stock (for the most part) but then how are you turning the boost up?? Did you install an adjustable 'gate rod?? If not, then the gauge is wrong. Stock fixed rod won't allow 18 PSI.

With the engine running tap with a screwdriver near the knock sensor & have a buddy, wife, g/f, someone watch the SM for knock. At 18 PSI with straight pump gas it should retard some timing at WOT (I know, I tried 18 PSI on 93, didn't work)

I would almost say the o2 sensor is wacked also. My o2 is good & I have 780-800 mV at WOT & it pulled 2.5* at 18 PSI. I turned it back down to 17 PSI...... no retard.

EDIT: never mind the rod question, just re-read & seen the boost controller.

 

[BlackBandit]

ok, got the adj. FPR on. line off 43 psi. went for a wot run and the fp gauge spiked a little, but more or less hovered at around 42 (with boost at 18). not rising 1:1 with boost at all. so a new fuel pump/hotwire is definitely in order. but it still read 0.0 knock on the scanmaster the whole run, and the wot o2s when recalled were 015. something isn't right there. if the fuel psi is really that low, shouldn't i be knocking somethin fierce? and why would the o2 count be that screwy?

my autometer boost gauge reads 18, i don't think its wrong, but i'll see if i can bum a different gauge off of someone and check.

wot shift points are right at 5k, per my aftermarket tach.

wot tps is 4.56.

please give me your thoughts, but i'm not going to have free time to work on the car again for a couple weeks, so i'll check what y'all say when i can, but unfortunately it won't be right away. thanks again guys,
Talon

STOP DRIVING YOUR CAR UNDER BOOST!!!! Odds are if you're scanmasting is working then it's working. Since your fuel pressure isn't going up with boost I would guess that you're scanmaster is dead on with the o2 readings. Just because it's not reporting knock doesn't mean it's not happening. Keep putting your foot in it and best case scenario is you'll be doing headgaskets soon.

You need to figure out whether or not the ESC system is working. Make sure the knock sensor is at least plugged in. I would go so far as to remove it and re-torque it. I'm not sure but I think if you tap the block with a hammer by the knock sensor with the engine running you should register some knock.

Also, an adjustable FP regulator isn't going to do anything for you if your pump can't keep up. Do you have an aftermarket pump and hotwire?

One last thing to check is to pull the vacuum line off of the FP regulator and check for vacuum. That will tell you if you're hard line is plugged.

 

[MY T FAST]

ok, thanks again Gents,
i'll check what you said when i can. this is only the 2nd time i've ever run any kind of leaded fuel, and even then it was a mild mix, but maybe it screwed up my o2 sensor. i'll replace it and see.

i know that the adj. fpr won't help the pump any, i know i need a bigger pump. but the fpr was a good way for me to confirm that. i'll check the fpr line/vac. thing and report. thanks so much for the advice. i'd be lost without turbobuick.com.

i'll do a compression check tomorrow to see, but i'm pretty sure i'm ok in the headgasket dept, i just changed the oil and there was no coolant present. but a simple test will confirm...

is a knock sensor a part that i can only get at a gm dealer?

not at all doubting you bandit, and i'm not driving the car under boost. But why, if the scanmaster is working, wouldn't it register knock?!?!

thank you all so much, again.
Talon

 

[Pronto]

But why, if the scanmaster is working, wouldn't it register knock?!?!

Talon

Make sure it's hooked up!
If you mv reads 560 at WOT you're on the road to ruin. How fast are the CCs moving? If they move real slow the O2 is done.

Get that fuel pump in and a hotwire kit.

You lost mph because your demanding more fuel with opening up the intake and exhaust and not getting it.

 

[ITSAV6]

The engine has to be over 1,000 rpm to do the "knock test".
Get the new pump in ASAP!

 

[BlackBandit]

not at all doubting you bandit, and i'm not driving the car under boost. But why, if the scanmaster is working, wouldn't it register knock?!?!

Well, the scanmaster only registers knock when the ecm pulls timing. If your ESC circuit isn't working whether it's because of a mis-torqued/unhooked sensor, or something else than the ecm won't see knock so it won't pull timing so the scanmaster won't show it....even if it's happening.

 

[turbo6mike]

I would make sure your knock sensor is working most important,then do the fuel pump and hot wire and make sure the headers are not cracked or leaking.That seems to be the problem but you should not be racing it without those fuel mods and making sure the knock sensor is working.Those headers were original and never welded on so most likely they could be leaking.Even a little leak will kill spool up and mph.

 

[MY T FAST]

thanks Mike,
no worries, there will be NO wot runs until this is resolved.
i dont really have any spool up issues, it spools right quick, but i'll check the headers anyway. ALL exhaust leaks, even tiny ones are audible right? new walbro 340 is in the mail. kind of a dumb question, but whereabouts in the block is the knock sensor. i know how to test it, but not where its at. thanks again for the help.
Talon

 

[turbo6mike]

The knock sensor is on the top of the motor were it bolts to the trans.If you take the coil pack and module off it will be under it.Good Luck!