Weird boosting problem

[daveyfx]

Hey guys I just completed my 14b swap onto my 2G and I'm experiencing a weird problem. I'm watching and hearing the car build boost just fine but when I take the car out for a drive and take it up to 4500-5000 rpm's I hear a loud somewhat high pitched whining noise (kind of sounds like a supercharger) and the car doesn't even have a T-25 pull to it. It makes this s/c sounding whine when I'm near or at WOT only, not if I'm goosing the throttle or giving it part throttle. I only have a factory boost gauge right now and it is reading boost but it doesn't peg the boost gauge.

Any ideas or suggestions of what to look for? Thanks guys/girls!

 

[BMWHATR]

If i am correct it sound like your turbo is about to go. Get boost gauge asap. Also do you have blue smoke coming out of exust?

 

[90CherryTSI]

and get the $25 boost gauge, please. Do a search for stock boost gauge, boost gauge sucks, boost gauge - anything with the stock boost gauge and anyone and everyone will tell you it is not accurate. My stock said 7, my gauge said 12. By pegging the gauge you could be close to 20+ but not all cars are the same. Also the "pull" you're talking about missing could be because knock. I also hope you're logging.

 

[captd108]

Possible boost leak somewhere?

 

[leet]

If you do not currently have one, purchase and install an Intake Manifold Pressure gauge (boost gauge). Once installed, make sure you aren't overboosting. Then check for Boost leaks. It is more than likely you have one, or a few.

 

[daveyfx]

No smoke or anything. I checked for shaft play and it is very minimal both front and back and side to side.

I'm about to check my piping and do a boost leak tester. I should also add that I had to fabricate a lower intercooler pipe out of a GReddy hard pipe and my stock soft piping so I maybe have a leak around there.

 

[captd108]

Yeah i would def. check that connection b/c i had to connect two couplers together to connect my L pipe to my licp cause my regular coupler was like 3 inches too short and i have a boost leak there and i have that high pitched whistle sound. Just make sure that connection is secure and tight and of course all your other ones too.

 

[daveyfx]

Okay, checked out my piping and made sure all the connections were secure, which they now are. The car still feels the same so I parked it back in the garage and had a buddy stand behind while I reved it up.

If I wind it out to about 7k it blows off and lets out a little blueish cloud of smoke. When I pegged it to 7.5k it blew out a bigger cloud of smoke. I have no oil leaks so I'm guessing I got myself a bad turbo?

I'm pissed but I guess I should still do a leak test in case the car is just overcompensating the metered air with too much fuel.

 

[daveyfx]

After some more talking with various DSMTuner members it sounds like I have a bad engine. When I swapped on the 14b and drained out my oil I only had about maybe 2 quarts drain out which I thought was odd but I didn't think much of it since my oil feed line was cracked.

Gonna do a compression test next I suppose as it sounds like I may have a fubar'd engine.

 

[daveyfx]

Well, looks like my engine is OK. I don't have the slightest f***ing clue of what's going on! The only thing I can see that's a problem maybe is I have a very small and slow oil leak at the feed to the turbo. I bought a stainless steel feed line and have the adapter assembled as follows: feed line sandwiched between the two washers and the banjo bolt tightened in as far as it will let me take it.

Anyone else got any suggestions?

 

[justin0469]

check boost leak yet?

 

[mETRo]

Hi guys, this is Dave's friend Chris. We've checked all of the intercooler hoses, the intercooler itself, the turbo (for shaft play and wheel movement) and everything seems fine in that regard. I've owned a few turbo cars myself and this is not making much sense. The car will pull like mad at partial throttle, but at full throttle it has nothing at all.

We're leaning towards a bad TPS now, because it has the performance it should at 30% throttle. The turbo is still making a whining noise, like a roots type blower, which we cannot seem to pin point. I dunno what's up here, it doesn't make sense. The engine is fine, the turbo is boosting properly, but it has nothing at full throttle.

 

[justin0469]

did you do a boost leak test or just visually inspect it? do a test with pressurized air.

 

[trbotaln]

my car made that noise when I had a boost leak.

 

[justin0469]

my car made that noise when I had a boost leak.

there you go, that would be my point as well as the ppl that pointed it out before.

 

[mETRo]

Yeah we're gonna get a leak tester, or make one. It's gotta be leaking somewhere. I told him to just get all new hard pipes and a 1g BOV, that'll fix it.

 

[daveyfx]

And I told you I have to wait until Hannukah to get all my hard pipes! :laugh:

 

[captd108]

i dont know how this may affect you if at all, but if you are still using that stcok 2g bov, something tells me it really wont be holding much boost coming from your 14b and you're probably gonna have a leak there from the increase in air flowing through it with the 14b. Just a thought.

 

[daveyfx]

I'm very inclined to agree with you as it's holding part throttle boost fine but falls on its face at anything more than 50%. One of my assumptions is the stock valve is leaking bad because it started acting like this on my T-25.

 

[daveyfx]

Anyone else have any insight or other ideas (aside from the boost leak) as to why I'm only getting good acceleration at light throttle? I guess I'd like to know all the possibilities in case the leak test turns up nothing

 

[BMWHATR]

you better hope its leaking somwhere like bov. Cuz then you might have some problems

 

[mETRo]

I'm sure he's just leaking at the BOV or one of the IC pipes. It's gotta be that, the whining sound is definitely air being forced out of something at a very high rate. I'm gonna build him a leak tester today so we'll get it all squared away.

 

[hurley4387]

Hey, If you would...could you email me the directions on how to make a boost leak tester? Because my car is starting to get this problem and Im getting very pissed, and I would also like to see if I have a boost leak somewhere. Another thing I wanted to add, if you install a MBC, could their be a wrong set-up to make this noise...because my car will sometimes go to 13lbs then slowy lower...and sometimes it will go to just like 8lbs and then lower to like 5lbs. Any help would be great. Thanks...oh yea my email- [email protected] thanks!

DSMike

 

[justin0469]

http://vfaq.com/mods/ICtester.html

 

[goonie]

Anyone else have any insight or other ideas (aside from the boost leak) as to why I'm only getting good acceleration at light throttle? I guess I'd like to know all the possibilities in case the leak test turns up nothing

do you have a boost controller? what kind? and how much boost you are running?