Jump to content

Boost leak after installing turbo-side induction, why?


DoubleCee33

Recommended Posts

  • Member
  • Member For: 4y 9m 13d

It's a very long story so I'm going to try and keep it as short as I possibly can.

 

Last week I had an Antz Performance turbo side induction and battery relocation kit installed in my 2011 FG XR6 Turbo ute, before this kit was installed I had absolutely no problems with my turbo, no problems with boost, the boost has never been altered from factory settings, everything ran as it should.

 

Anyway, I had a professional mechanic who I have been going to for the past couple of years install the kit for me, whenever it comes to anything like the engine or the turbo I always let the professionals handle it.

 

Anyway, the installation went seamlessly, the only thing of note that the mechanic did point out was that the factory intercooler piping was a bastard to work around, but everything eventually fit as it should.

 

One problem he did however notice was that the car was no longer boosting as it should, there were times where you could get it up to 2 or 3 PSI and it would hold, but then drop back to 0 immediately, other times it wouldn't boost at all.

 

I have checked every single inch of piping and tubing coming out of that turbo that leads anywhere, and I have not been able to find a single crack or misfitting part, the old blow off valve port has been blocked off correctly, for all intents and purposes the job was done as it should have been done.

 

I have spoken to the manufacturer, Antz Performance, and they swear that they have never had an issue like this with any of their parts and that it almost certainly would have to be a boost leak somewhere, but as I have said, I have checked all of that and being able to find nothing at all.

 

Some people on other forums have said that it's more than likely that I now probably need a new wastegate, I run that passed the manufacturer and they said that if I was running stock boost there was absolutely no way that I needed a new wastegate simply by adding a turbo side induction kit.

 

Honestly, I don't know what to do here, can anyone possibly give me any leads on what I might be able to do or on what the issue maybe?

Anything would be greatly appreciated.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • less WHY; more WOT
  • Site Developer
  • Member For: 15y 11m 18d
  • Gender: Male
  • Location: Melbourne

:Welcome2FordXR6t:

the manufacturer was right, you don't need a new wastegate (or wastegate actuator, which is what they probably meant) when you put in an air intake only.

 

so, to be clear, a few questions:

1. it has a boost gauge and you can see how much boost it's making?

2. if it makes boost at all on the boost gauge, what is the highest number it gets to and does it get there quickly and when it gets there how long can it stay there throughout the rev range?

3. is the small pipe that goes from the front of the turbo to the wastegate solenoid and then goes from the solenoid to the actuator nipple, all connected fine?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Member
  • Member For: 4y 9m 13d

1. Correct, I'm running an autometer boost gauge.

 

2. It makes boost to a maximum of about 3 psi, it will stay there for a few seconds as long as I'm not increasing my RPM, the second I try and squeeze more boost out of it by pressing down on the accelerator the boost will plummet back down to zero. 

 

3. From what I can visually see myself, yes, as far as I'm aware there was nothing touched during the installation of the turbo side intake that didn't need to be touched, so everything connected to the blow off valve and obviously the tubing leading from the turbo to the pod filter and that's about it. 

 

As I said in my write-up I didn't have any issues whatsoever before this turbo side induction kit was installed.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • less WHY; more WOT
  • Site Developer
  • Member For: 15y 11m 18d
  • Gender: Male
  • Location: Melbourne

ok...

if it's making 3psi and the revs are increasing "slowly" (as the revs must be increasing as boost = acceleration = revs increasing), then trying to gain more boost by more throttle depth causes the boost to drop to zero and then your car "feels slower" at that point even though you've got more throttle applied?

 

the thing is, to install a turbo-side intake, the entire air intake from the passenger side all the way to the turbo front inlet needed to be removed, which means the BOV pipes etc that need to connect to the "air intake" side need to be re-routed completely, so any of those pipes could be disconnected or loose.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Donating Members
  • Member For: 5y 10m 19d
1 hour ago, k31th said:

the thing is, to install a turbo-side intake, the entire air intake from the passenger side all the way to the turbo front inlet needed to be removed, which means the BOV pipes etc that need to connect to the "air intake" side need to be re-routed completely, so any of those pipes could be disconnected or loose.

 

if you dont know how your bov lines should be routed, put up a couple of pics and im sure someone here will tell you if it looks right.

if the bov is not connected right it will just be a huge leak in the pressure piping.

 

normally when the wastegate actuators die, the diaphragm leaks and they build more boost than they should.

this is not to say something else could have happend, if you dont have your heat shields on just make sure the actuator rods still connected to the flap and you cant move it open by hand.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Member
  • Member For: 4y 9m 13d

The blow off valve was completely removed and all of the lines connected to the above were either blocked off with screws or removed and blocked off completely.

 

I'm taking it back to the mechanic tomorrow to see if there's anything he can find, but he did tell me that there was a very good chance that I would probably need an aftermarket actuator, apparently it's fairly common to install a new one when doing a turbo side conversion. 

 

I'm not overly mechanical myself so I wouldn't know, but a few people on a few different forums have agreed with him.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • less WHY; more WOT
  • Site Developer
  • Member For: 15y 11m 18d
  • Gender: Male
  • Location: Melbourne

he'd be right if you were going for more power, which is what most people are doing when they install a turbo-side intake... but you're not going for more power as your car is stock, so you definitely WILL NOT need a actuator replacement.

 

the mechanic should be able to diagnose it.

 

if you keep answering our questions then we may even get it sorted before you take it back there :)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Member
  • Member For: 4y 9m 13d

I will say that I'm probably siding with the people that say that it's almost definitely a boost leak, there is a notable change in tone from when it is holding boost and from when it 'let's go' and the pressure goes back to zero, but as I have pointed out several times I have checked every single pipe leading into and out of the turbo including the blow off valve lines and I can't find anything that is loose or anything that has any holes in it or anything like that, everything is nice and tight and secured, unless it's something that you would have to take off to physically see I honestly don't know.

 

I'm happy to answer any additional questions that might be able to help you diagnose it, I really do appreciate the help.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • less WHY; more WOT
  • Site Developer
  • Member For: 15y 11m 18d
  • Gender: Male
  • Location: Melbourne
1 hour ago, k31th said:

if it's making 3psi and the revs are increasing "slowly" (as the revs must be increasing as boost = acceleration = revs increasing), then trying to gain more boost by more throttle depth causes the boost to drop to zero and then your car "feels slower" at that point even though you've got more throttle applied?

can you please answer this question? perhaps describe the situation in detail rather than the overview you've currently given? include sounds, actions, events, results etc.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Member
  • Member For: 4y 9m 13d

Ok, but I warn you, it's not going to be Pulitzer prize stuff lol

 

During acceleration I can audibly hear the induction sound of the air going through the pod filter, when I increase acceleration further to get into boost I can now hear the turbo spooling up, when I increase acceleration even further into boost the needle on my boost gauge starts climbing, as I'm increasing the revs the boost is starting to build and the sound of said boost being created is getting louder and louder, obviously the car is also now noticeably accelerating faster.

 

At about 3 psi the needle on the boost gauge will drop down to just below zero psi, the induction noise of the turbo making boost will stop, the turbo will still be spooling and that is still audible, but the feeling of the car lurching forward under boost is no longer there but I'm still accelerating under the engines power.

 

It's very difficult to explain,what I might do later on when my partner gets home is take her for a drive and actually physically record what happens, and then upload it to YouTube and link it.

 

I hope that description was reasonable enough for you.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
  • Create New...
'