[Alturiak]

Has anyone replaced the wastegate actuator on the turbo? And can it be done without pulling the turbo out of the car?

I'm chasing a WGDC issue on my PS2 where I'm barely making 15psi boost on 90% WGDC... considering switching out for the Pure upgraded "heavy duty" wastegate actuator but looking into the install for it to see if I can just DIY it. Car has been smoke tested several times and they never find anything, and everything else that controls boost has been replaced with new parts so I'm running out of options...

Any insight would be much appreciated!

And just to be clear, I'm talking about this on a N55 PWG

[TunafishE93]

I havent done the replacement but looks like you can get to it with turbo in car. Saying that there are easy way to test. Put a vacuum on wastegate actuator and see if it holds. If it holds its good since its only a vacuum dash pod.

Your issue is more likely that your wastegate actuator is not adjusted correctly. A smoke test wont show the out of adjustment.

[Alturiak]

Thanks, I'll definitely be doing that. I'm hoping it just wasn't adjusted properly from the get-go. But I figure in the event it's bad I'd rather have the new part ready to go and put in while I have access to the stuff over there and have the DP off.

[wheela]

It would also be worth checking out your pressure converter - is the solenoid valve that controls the vacuum to the wastegate. People have trouble with those causing low boost when they're on the way out. Also check the vacuum line between this valve and the wastegate, as they can partially collapse over time, limiting the amount of vacuum sent to the waste gate (so it doesn't close as much as it should).

[Alturiak]

Originally Posted by wheela

It would also be worth checking out your pressure converter - is the solenoid valve that controls the vacuum to the wastegate. People have trouble with those causing low boost when they're on the way out. Also check the vacuum line between this valve and the wastegate, as they can partially collapse over time, limiting the amount of vacuum sent to the waste gate (so it doesn't close as much as it should).

By pressure converter do you mean the boost solenoid that sits right near the O2 sensor clips? Because that has been replaced, as well as the vacuum line itself less than 10k miles ago.

[wheela]

Originally Posted by Alturiak

By pressure converter do you mean the boost solenoid that sits right near the O2 sensor clips? Because that has been replaced, as well as the vacuum line itself less than 10k miles ago.

Yep, that's what I meant. Sounds like you can probably rule them out then.

[Alturiak]

If this helps anyone else out, I replaced it this last week and been testing it out. Replacement was a little bit of a pain, and I needed to remove the "U" hose at the water pump to have enough room to squeeze the old WG out and pop the new one in. From there is was fun setting the close pressure with everything in the way lol.

All in all it did nothing to help my main WGDC issue, and the car is pulling 100% to make 18psi at 6200rpm in 4th. I'm convinced (and hoping) I have a leak and the car is going to be pressure tested in the next week or so, as well as have the DV+ swapped out for the new TurbosSmart BOV. Will update with any relevant news.

[drwillb]

Just spit balling here but the valve cover has built in ducting that carries vacuum from the pump to where the boost solenoid is located. What if there is a small crack in the valve cover?

Put a pressure gauge on the vacuum line going into the solenoid to measure how much vac you are generating. I think the acceptable value is 30mm Hg.

I went through a lot of what you’re experiencing but it was for a totally different reason: bad ground on JB4.

[TheGoodTheBadTheUgly]

I am at the total opposite of you where I overboost up to above 28 psi and I am fed up with trying to find what is going on, so I understand the type of frustration you are going through.

The odds of the DV+ failing are extremly slim if you understand the way it works, so I suggest you try other things before going through the pain of changing this damn thing again. Did you use the spring supplied by the DV+ kit when installing it or you re-used the stock one?

[wheela]

Originally Posted by drwillb

Just spit balling here but the valve cover has built in ducting that carries vacuum from the pump to where the boost solenoid is located. What if there is a small crack in the valve cover?

Put a pressure gauge on the vacuum line going into the solenoid to measure how much vac you are generating. I think the acceptable value is 30mm Hg.

I went a lot of what you’re experiencing but it was for a totally different reason: bad ground on JB4.

I was thinking this exact same thing. People have posted on here where that vacuum reservoir in the valve cover you're talking about has filled with oil because of a crack that formed somewhere in the valve cover, so oil gets sucked in from below. It seems if oil can suck in, then you could also potentially be loosing some of your vacuum in that reservoir. If so, the wastegate will not actuate as far as it should for a given duty cycle. I totally agree with measuring the vacuum in that reservoir, but if you don't have a means to, you could always just visually look for oil in that reservoir. A lack of oil wouldn't necessarily mean you don't have a leak, but if you see oil it seems a pretty sure bet it's cracked and you're losing vacuum.

[wheela]

A way to look for oil in the reservoir is to pull off the fitting from the valve cover that comes across the top of the motor from the vacuum pump. I haven't done it, but from looking at pictures it seems that once this fitting is removed, its a decent sized hole you could look into to see if there is any oil in the reservoir.

[wheela]

I credit Vespa, he has a really good write-up on the pcv valve here in this forum that shows all the ducting in the valve cover. A lot of good pictures in that thread. Try to find that thread if you haven't seen it yet.

[Alturiak]

Originally Posted by drwillb

Just spit balling here but the valve cover has built in ducting that carries vacuum from the pump to where the boost solenoid is located. What if there is a small crack in the valve cover?

Put a pressure gauge on the vacuum line going into the solenoid to measure how much vac you are generating. I think the acceptable value is 30mm Hg.

I went a lot of what you’re experiencing but it was for a totally different reason: bad ground on JB4.

Thanks, I'll give that a try. I hope that wouldn't be the case though, since the valve cover and gasket were replaced only 20k miles ago when the turbo first went on...

[Alturiak]

Originally Posted by TheGoodTheBadTheUgly

I am at the total opposite of you where I overboost up to above 28 psi and I am fed up with trying to find what is going on, so I understand the type of frustration you are going through.

The odds of the DV+ failing are extremly slim if you understand the way it works, so I suggest you try other things before going through the pain of changing this damn thing again. Did you use the spring supplied by the DV+ kit when installing it or you re-used the stock one?

TBH I'm not sure what was done. Studio RSR in Anaheim did the install and messed so many things up during it and lied about so much stuff being done (that wasn't) that I wouldn't believe them on anything they told me unless I was physically there to watch them do the work... That being said though, I've read some horror stories on the DV+ failing, and so I'm just going to have the shop I'm taking it to do the install it since they'll have the car anyways (that and I really don't feel like doing that job haha).

Honestly though I'm fully expecting there to be other leaks happening that just weren't being found by the shop that built the motor, but we'll see. I just really want the car to be running right so I can really enjoy it again

[TheGoodTheBadTheUgly]

Originally Posted by Alturiak

TBH I'm not sure what was done. Studio RSR in Anaheim did the install and messed so many things up during it and lied about so much stuff being done (that wasn't) that I wouldn't believe them on anything they told me unless I was physically there to watch them do the work... That being said though, I've read some horror stories on the DV+ failing, and so I'm just going to have the shop I'm taking it to do the install it since they'll have the car anyways (that and I really don't feel like doing that job haha).

Honestly though I'm fully expecting there to be other leaks happening that just weren't being found by the shop that built the motor, but we'll see. I just really want the car to be running right so I can really enjoy it again

Back when I got the DV+ I never heard of any issue with it. I have some updating and reading to do it seems!

Seriously I understand you it's so infuriating to not be able to pinpoint and easily fix the issue. Hang in there, you've got this!

[anjuna]

Originally Posted by TheGoodTheBadTheUgly

I am at the total opposite of you where I overboost up to above 28 psi and I am fed up with trying to find what is going on, so I understand the type of frustration you are going through.

The odds of the DV+ failing are extremly slim if you understand the way it works, so I suggest you try other things before going through the pain of changing this damn thing again. Did you use the spring supplied by the DV+ kit when installing it or you re-used the stock one?

bitch what the fuk u doing - pm me so I can help

It's probably feed forward tables. I overboosted to a similar level when those were set incorrectly.

[TheGoodTheBadTheUgly]

Originally Posted by anjuna

[
bitch what the fuk u doing - pm me so I can help

It's probably feed forward tables. I overboosted to a similar level when those were set incorrectly.

Don't you remember we PMed for like 2 months in a row like 1.5 year ago and tried to fix it? Ur ass left me on read in the PM box

[wheela]

Originally Posted by TheGoodTheBadTheUgly

I am at the total opposite of you where I overboost up to above 28 psi and I am fed up with trying to find what is going on, so I understand the type of frustration you are going through.

The odds of the DV+ failing are extremly slim if you understand the way it works, so I suggest you try other things before going through the pain of changing this damn thing again. Did you use the spring supplied by the DV+ kit when installing it or you re-used the stock one?

Crazy thought on your overboost... I've seen multiple people on this forum who've sold their cars that returned everything to stock before selling, except for their PS2 turbo (probably because it's a pain to remove, it looks stock from the outside, and it would be kind of pointless if moving to a different platform). If you bought the car used, I wonder if a previous owner left a turbo upgrade installed? It might explain the spike if you're running a tune set up for the stock turbo - the load targeting and PID would bring everything back in-line after the initial overshoot.

[TheGoodTheBadTheUgly]

Originally Posted by wheela

Crazy thought on your overboost... I've seen multiple people on this forum who've sold their cars that returned everything to stock before selling, except for their PS2 turbo (probably because it's a pain to remove, it looks stock from the outside, and it would be kind of pointless if moving to a different platform). If you bought the car used, I wonder if a previous owner left a turbo upgrade installed? It might explain the spike if you're running a tune set up for the stock turbo - the load targeting and PID would bring everything back in-line after the initial overshoot.

Hahaha I was actually looking forward to being this lucky a while back, but I took pictures of my compressor's impeller and it seems stock :< .

[TheGoodTheBadTheUgly]

To get back to OP, was the ubderboosting occure since the DV+ was installed or it occure later?

[Alturiak]

Well the turbo and the DV+ went on at the same time so it's hard to tell. I spent the last couple weeks going through everything and found several things to correct from the shop that put it together (intake mani gaskets, tightening hose clamps from turbo all the way to the TB, using proper thread sealant on all NPT connections, etc) and I replaced all gaskets around the DP and redid the tightening procedure, as well as install the Turbosmart BOV.

This was all great and the car feels amazing, and it completely fixed my AFR issue I was having! The car is producing boost like it should however the WGDC is still way too high, pegging at 100% at times in the upper end of 4th gear at 19psi. I'm dropping it off this week at a different shop for more leak testing. I suspect something vacuum related because another issue it has is that it will stall only when cold starting it for the first time of the day. I have to give it a little throttle til it can hold then its fine and every startup after that it starts up just fine. I'll continue to update as I get more info. Looking forward to having these issues behind me though! Having the AFRs fixed has really given me hope haha

[Alturiak]

Quick Update: Car was finally smoke tested and at not even 5psi there was smoke spewing out of where the auxiliary injectors connect to the PI manifold! I've ordered oversized o-rings that should work and be more than adequate to seal that up and then I'll be back to continue smoking it and work up to the pressure test. The good thing is I could not find smoke coming from any connections between the turbo and intake manifold, which is nice since that was the area I had focused on when working on it a few weeks ago. I had never even contemplated that the injectors could be leaking smh. Will update further after the new o-rings are in!