This should be one of the first mods you do to your turbo DSM. This mod REQUIRES a boost gauge, do not install this without one, or bad things WILL happen!
So after reading a few write up's and guides I thought I would try my hand at building my own boost controller. Here's how it all went down.
It all started with a 3 hour shopping spree at Lowe's to gather up everything I needed. Don't be fooled by the guides that are online, everything is NOT located in the air tool section, in fact, only THREE of the parts I needed were. The only parts I could not locate at Lowe's (and trust me, I looked!) were the spring's and ball bearings. I was able to find the springs I needed from my local ACO hardware store so you may need to shop around a bit. And finally, I sacrificed an old ceiling fan for the 1/4" ball bearings. You can find them at bycicle shops or skateboard shops as well.
Tool's needed:
-Hacksaw with fine tooth blade for cutting metal
-2 crescent wrenches
-Small C clamp
-#18 drill bit
-5/16" tap for threading a fitting
Materials:
I will list them so that if you were to ask a salesperson where this part is they wont have to look it up somewhere, unlike some other guides.
-Nylon thread seal tape
-5/16''-18 Hex nuts
-1/4'' brass female pipe coupler
-1/4'' male brass barb adapter with a 3/16'' barb x3
-5/16"-18 Hex drive bolt, make sure it's at least 2" long. I chose the hex drive because the head is round with ridges so you can adjust your boost without tools.
-1/4" brass "T". Two female ends and one male end.
-2" long spring, 1/4" wide. Make sure you buy a couple different ones with different tensions as you may need to experiment to find the right one that works best with the amount of boost you decide to run.
-1/4" ball bearings. x2
NOTE, the materials listed are enough for ONE MBC only. If you plan to do a multi-stage then you need to get get enough to build an MBC for each stage that will not be a stock setting.
Lets start with the fun part first!
Step 1
Grab one of those barb adapters and wrap 'er up with the nylon tape. Wrap it 2-3 times and keep it straight, completely covering the threads. Now screw the barb adapter into an end of the T. Step one complete!
Step 2
Now pick up the other barb adapter and wrap 'er up in nylon just like the last one. This one will be a bit different as you need to use the coupler. Wrap the male end of the T in nylon tape and screw the female coupler to it. Now screw that barb adapter you just set down into the other side of the coupler. It should now look like this:
I was only test fitting in this picture, yours should have the nylon tape!
Step 3
This is VERY important, make sure EVERYTHING is very, very tight. Be mindful of over tightening as brass is a very soft metal. That's it for step 3!
Step 4
Now you should have one barb adapter left. Use the C clamp and clamp it down on your bench (or piece of wood on my bedroom floor like me). Now use your hacksaw and cut off the barb, make sure you cut it flush so that there is nothing left of it. Use the motor oil for lubricant, it keeps the heat down and makes the cutting a breeze.
Step 5
Now reposition the adapter you just "de-barbed" and use the #18 drill bit and widen the opening where the barb used to be, make sure you keep it straight. If you sway too much to the side while drilling you will have to start over. Once you have your #18 hole drilled it's time to tap it! This is where the oil really comes into play. If you have never tapped a hole before I will walk you through it on the next step, thats what guides are for!
Step 6
Begin my dipping the tap into the motor oil. Now take your 5/16" tap and hand tighten it into the freshly drilled hole until you cant turn it anymore. Do not use a drill if this is your first time, it can get out of control very quickly and ruin your adapter. I used a very small crescent wrench. Start turning it clockwise about 1/2 of a turn, then back it out another 1/4 turn, then repeat, making sure to add oil every other turn or so. The reason you want to back it out so often is so that the shavings do not build up in front of the tap, making this job much tougher. Once you break through, back it all the way out, then run it through one more time slowly so that the tap comes out of the other end. Done!
Step 7
I can't stress this part enough so I am making it into it's own step. Clean that adapter VERY WELL with soap and warm water. You can even use some Q-tips on it as well. You must remove every little shaving that is left in there, failing to do so can be potentially disastrous for your wastegate actuator!
Step 7
Take your newly tapped adapter and wrap the threads in your trusty nylon tape and screw it in to the last remaining female end of your T. Make one last check and make sure all your fittings are tight and sealed up good.
Step 8
Last step! Drop one of your 1/4 ball bearings down into the hole that you tapped earlier, followed by the 2"x1/4" spring, and finally another ball bearing to keep your adjuster from binding up on the spring. Pick up your 2" hex drive bolt and screw one of your 5/16" nuts all the way down it. Now wrap ALL of the threads with the nylon tape. It's a good idea to wrap the bolt at least 4-5 times completely around, you need a good seal and this bolt will not be as tight as everything else. Make sure you put the nut on the bolt first, if you don't, the nut will tear up the nylon before you get the bolt into the tapped adapter. Once you have the bolt all wrapped up, screw the bolt into the adapter that you tapped out. Only screw the bolt in about 1/2" to start with. This is what it should now look like:
All done! Now it's time to intall it. I've decided to cover that as well.
Installing your new MBC:
Step 1
Under your air filter you will find a solenoid with two vacuum hoses attached and one electrical harness. This solenoid is what controls the vacuum to the wastegate actuator, which is what opens and closes your wastegate, increasing or decreasing the amount of gas exhauses to your turbine, which is what controls your boost. Disconnect both vacuum lines to this solenoid. This what the solenoid itself looks like after removing the vacuum lines:
Step 2
You should now have 2 vacuum hoses in your hand, or dangling from your turbo, whichever the case you now need to connect them to your MBC. One of the hoses will be connected to your WGA (wastegate actuator), the other is your vacuum supply. The pictures below explain. Connect your vacuum lines like in the picture. You can mount your MBC wherever you want, I chose to tie mine down to the plastic cooling fan enclosure.
This is your WGA:
And this is how you should connect your new MBC:
You can use any vacuum supply, however, do not T into your BOV line as that will have ill affects on your BOV performance. If you choose to use another vacuum supply make sure you clamp the old one off.
Your done! You have now built and installed your own MBC and saved about 100 bucks!
If I missed anything or something doesn't make sense send me a PM please. Thanks for reading.
Coming soon: make your own multistage boost setup for under 40 dollars and easy/cheap ways to improve spool up.
So after reading a few write up's and guides I thought I would try my hand at building my own boost controller. Here's how it all went down.
It all started with a 3 hour shopping spree at Lowe's to gather up everything I needed. Don't be fooled by the guides that are online, everything is NOT located in the air tool section, in fact, only THREE of the parts I needed were. The only parts I could not locate at Lowe's (and trust me, I looked!) were the spring's and ball bearings. I was able to find the springs I needed from my local ACO hardware store so you may need to shop around a bit. And finally, I sacrificed an old ceiling fan for the 1/4" ball bearings. You can find them at bycicle shops or skateboard shops as well.
Tool's needed:
-Hacksaw with fine tooth blade for cutting metal
-2 crescent wrenches
-Small C clamp
-#18 drill bit
-5/16" tap for threading a fitting
Materials:
I will list them so that if you were to ask a salesperson where this part is they wont have to look it up somewhere, unlike some other guides.
-Nylon thread seal tape
-5/16''-18 Hex nuts
-1/4'' brass female pipe coupler
-1/4'' male brass barb adapter with a 3/16'' barb x3
-5/16"-18 Hex drive bolt, make sure it's at least 2" long. I chose the hex drive because the head is round with ridges so you can adjust your boost without tools.
-1/4" brass "T". Two female ends and one male end.
-2" long spring, 1/4" wide. Make sure you buy a couple different ones with different tensions as you may need to experiment to find the right one that works best with the amount of boost you decide to run.
-1/4" ball bearings. x2
You must be logged in to view this image or video.
You must be logged in to view this image or video.
NOTE, the materials listed are enough for ONE MBC only. If you plan to do a multi-stage then you need to get get enough to build an MBC for each stage that will not be a stock setting.
Lets start with the fun part first!
Step 1
Grab one of those barb adapters and wrap 'er up with the nylon tape. Wrap it 2-3 times and keep it straight, completely covering the threads. Now screw the barb adapter into an end of the T. Step one complete!
Step 2
Now pick up the other barb adapter and wrap 'er up in nylon just like the last one. This one will be a bit different as you need to use the coupler. Wrap the male end of the T in nylon tape and screw the female coupler to it. Now screw that barb adapter you just set down into the other side of the coupler. It should now look like this:
You must be logged in to view this image or video.
I was only test fitting in this picture, yours should have the nylon tape!
Step 3
This is VERY important, make sure EVERYTHING is very, very tight. Be mindful of over tightening as brass is a very soft metal. That's it for step 3!
Step 4
Now you should have one barb adapter left. Use the C clamp and clamp it down on your bench (or piece of wood on my bedroom floor like me). Now use your hacksaw and cut off the barb, make sure you cut it flush so that there is nothing left of it. Use the motor oil for lubricant, it keeps the heat down and makes the cutting a breeze.
You must be logged in to view this image or video.
You must be logged in to view this image or video.
Step 5
Now reposition the adapter you just "de-barbed" and use the #18 drill bit and widen the opening where the barb used to be, make sure you keep it straight. If you sway too much to the side while drilling you will have to start over. Once you have your #18 hole drilled it's time to tap it! This is where the oil really comes into play. If you have never tapped a hole before I will walk you through it on the next step, thats what guides are for!
Step 6
Begin my dipping the tap into the motor oil. Now take your 5/16" tap and hand tighten it into the freshly drilled hole until you cant turn it anymore. Do not use a drill if this is your first time, it can get out of control very quickly and ruin your adapter. I used a very small crescent wrench. Start turning it clockwise about 1/2 of a turn, then back it out another 1/4 turn, then repeat, making sure to add oil every other turn or so. The reason you want to back it out so often is so that the shavings do not build up in front of the tap, making this job much tougher. Once you break through, back it all the way out, then run it through one more time slowly so that the tap comes out of the other end. Done!
Step 7
I can't stress this part enough so I am making it into it's own step. Clean that adapter VERY WELL with soap and warm water. You can even use some Q-tips on it as well. You must remove every little shaving that is left in there, failing to do so can be potentially disastrous for your wastegate actuator!
Step 7
Take your newly tapped adapter and wrap the threads in your trusty nylon tape and screw it in to the last remaining female end of your T. Make one last check and make sure all your fittings are tight and sealed up good.
Step 8
Last step! Drop one of your 1/4 ball bearings down into the hole that you tapped earlier, followed by the 2"x1/4" spring, and finally another ball bearing to keep your adjuster from binding up on the spring. Pick up your 2" hex drive bolt and screw one of your 5/16" nuts all the way down it. Now wrap ALL of the threads with the nylon tape. It's a good idea to wrap the bolt at least 4-5 times completely around, you need a good seal and this bolt will not be as tight as everything else. Make sure you put the nut on the bolt first, if you don't, the nut will tear up the nylon before you get the bolt into the tapped adapter. Once you have the bolt all wrapped up, screw the bolt into the adapter that you tapped out. Only screw the bolt in about 1/2" to start with. This is what it should now look like:
You must be logged in to view this image or video.
All done! Now it's time to intall it. I've decided to cover that as well.
Installing your new MBC:
Step 1
Under your air filter you will find a solenoid with two vacuum hoses attached and one electrical harness. This solenoid is what controls the vacuum to the wastegate actuator, which is what opens and closes your wastegate, increasing or decreasing the amount of gas exhauses to your turbine, which is what controls your boost. Disconnect both vacuum lines to this solenoid. This what the solenoid itself looks like after removing the vacuum lines:
You must be logged in to view this image or video.
Step 2
You should now have 2 vacuum hoses in your hand, or dangling from your turbo, whichever the case you now need to connect them to your MBC. One of the hoses will be connected to your WGA (wastegate actuator), the other is your vacuum supply. The pictures below explain. Connect your vacuum lines like in the picture. You can mount your MBC wherever you want, I chose to tie mine down to the plastic cooling fan enclosure.
This is your WGA:
You must be logged in to view this image or video.
And this is how you should connect your new MBC:
You must be logged in to view this image or video.
You can use any vacuum supply, however, do not T into your BOV line as that will have ill affects on your BOV performance. If you choose to use another vacuum supply make sure you clamp the old one off.
Your done! You have now built and installed your own MBC and saved about 100 bucks!
If I missed anything or something doesn't make sense send me a PM please. Thanks for reading.
Coming soon: make your own multistage boost setup for under 40 dollars and easy/cheap ways to improve spool up.
