turbocharger wastegate malfunction

[jstreett]

Need help my check engine light came on and i checked it and it says turbocharger waste gate actuator malfunction. whenever i give my car full throttle and it starts boosting there will be like a cut out and the light will come on. I dont know what to do. If anyone knows let me know what i should get. thanks..

 

[KKneipper]

If you've had the code for the CEL checked and it says your wastegate actuator is faulty... replace the wastegate and actuator arm. I've got a buddy that had the same problem. He went to the junkyard and pulled another one. Problem solved. You can also check with GReddy about getting an external wastegate, but it's cheaper to pull one off a dsm at the junkyard.

Do you have a manual boost controller set up? and if so, make sure it's hooked up correctly before replacing the wastegate.

Also, the "cut" you're experiencing is "fuel cut." Any time there is a problem with the car that the computer finds, it will start cutting fuel flow to keep the engine from blowing up. It's a nice thing to have.

 

[jstreett]

alright yea i got a manual boost controller and it ran fine for awhile then one day it just started doing it. Ill probably just end up going to a junk yard and trying to find one

 

[KKneipper]

Disconnect your battery, unhook your boost controller and set up the stock one again, Reconnect the battery afterwards and see if it's still malfunctioning. If it is still messing up, then time for a replacement wastegate, actuator, or both.

If it's running fine, you could just have had the boost controller hooked up wrong. If you bought a knockoff (which I did) they can be labeled wrong and I had to take mine apart to find out that the arrow pointing to the wastegate actuator was backwards.... Luckily I found that out before I blew up my turbo.

And one more thing... turn the boost down. If you're still all stock, then you shouldn't be pushing more than 15-16 psi on the T25 turbo. Running more boost will kill your car fast. The T25 can hold quite a bit of pressure, but your fuel system can't keep up.

 

[jstreett]

alright sounds good man. thanks for the help

 

[Trickstar]

If you've had the code for the CEL checked and it says your wastegate actuator is faulty... replace the wastegate and actuator arm. I've got a buddy that had the same problem. He went to the junkyard and pulled another one. Problem solved. You can also check with GReddy about getting an external wastegate, but it's cheaper to pull one off a dsm at the junkyard.

Do you have a manual boost controller set up? and if so, make sure it's hooked up correctly before replacing the wastegate.

Also, the "cut" you're experiencing is "fuel cut." Any time there is a problem with the car that the computer finds, it will start cutting fuel flow to keep the engine from blowing up. It's a nice thing to have.

Im willing to bet when he installed the boost controller he set it too high and it gained fuel cut. If you have a decent working boost gauge, make sure you set the new boost controller for about 10lbs and try that.


I recommend just pulling a stock actuator.. some people buy the aftermarket ones and mistake the ones that need so much boost to operate normally for the one they really need for a stock setup.

alright sounds good man. thanks for the help

Sounds like your tapping around for astetics first..
go get yerself a better fuelpump and fuel regulator. Next stop 550 injectors should work ok with a 2g maf if not alittle rich. THEN go get a decent diverter valve and boost controller.
While you at it, go over all your IC pipes and fastener's for leaks.
If you boost gauge sucks, get a new aftermarket one.
thats a pretty good start for alittle more power and less fuel cut.
SAFC II can level out shitty fuel problems too.

 

[jstreett]

well when i bought the car it had the boost controller already on it. I didn't really mess with it and it ran fine then like 4 months later one day i got on it and it did it and the check engine light came on. It doesn't say its faulty it says turbocharger wastegate malfunction. I was looking at getting a new actuator and i found this one but it says 17psi idk if that's up to 17psi or what but I'm only at 14psi. here's the link
FP DSM 17psi DSM T25/T28 Actuator - Turbo Accessories - Turbo - DSMparts.com - DSM Performance Parts

 

[spyderturbo007]

I would test the WGA arm first since it's easy and free to do. Disconnect your MBC and hook up your compressor to the pressure source on the wastegate. Slowly increase the pressure and watch for the arm to move. It should open "around" 12 - 14psi. Then do the same thing, only with your MBC hooked up and see when it opens.

But then again, wastegates are cheap and easy to replace.

 

[gorf]

Waste gate actuator failure? The only sensor for the waste gate is the boost control solenoid. If you have a MBC this has been bypassed, the only thing the ecu checks is if it clicks or not. Did you pull a little black thing with two nipples and a wire going to it, off of the inside of the wheel well?