Major Problems

[Zombiepryor]

I'm not sure if this is an ECU, Tuning, or mechanical issue.
I finally sealed the vacuum leaks (I think) and took the car for a run. It was running well but then started running rich with a rough idle, so I pulled over and the IAC was down to 0 again. I found that my vacuum line for my boost gauge had blown off, so I fixed it and continued on. I only traveled about a mile when it started running really rough and could barely stay running. I headed home and it started running ok again, then would go back to barely running. When I got home, I found the vacuum hose going to the boost solenoid had blown off, so I fixed that. When I started it back up it ran rough, then smoothed out back to normal, but the next thing I know it is barely able to idle and the engine is knocking. I was getting ready to shut it off when it smoothed out again with no noises or knocking but then it just stalled out. I tried one more time, but it was back to barely running and knocking, so I shut it down and gave up.
Why would vacuum lines be blowing off?
Why would it knock but once its smooths out be fine again?
I have attached a couple of the runs I did, and my tune.

 

[EricM]

Make sure all vacuum/boost lines are clamped or zip-tied. Also make sure the MAP hose is very secure, no leaks or kinks.

For the unstable idle, I see your VE table is a bit uneven in the lower map/rpm area. The fueling could be way off depending on what cell you're in.

The 1st pic is your VE table around idle, and the 2nd pic is a more typical VE table.
You can see the 2nd one has much smaller differences in the values from one cell to the cells around it. I would work on that.

 

[Zombiepryor]

I was using auto tune to try and get the idle better. At times it would make either no changes, or very small changes, and when I checked it said correction was still at 95 or 105 in some places. I also tried to use auto tune for the warmup enrichment, and it was hit or miss on if it would work. One time it showed target lambda at 11.8 and actual at 9.6, but it wouldn't make any changes.

 

[ShaunKris]

I was using auto tune to try and get the idle better. At times it would make either no changes, or very small changes, and when I checked it said correction was still at 95 or 105 in some places. I also tried to use auto tune for the warmup enrichment, and it was hit or miss on if it would work. One time it showed target lambda at 11.8 and actual at 9.6, but it wouldn't make any changes.

I tried that to see if it would work too. IT DOESN'T.

 

[EricM]

In general, it is preferred to tune around idle manually. But if you do use Tune Analyze, you at least have to blend the cells back in, around where it made changes. Also, if you have hoses blowing off or leaks, it will make improper changes. For now, I would put that part of the table back to the original tune file

When using Tune Analyze, I would set it up so it doesn't make changes around idle. Change the min rpm and min fueload (kpa) to 1500 and 40, like in this pic. Then it won't make changes below those thresholds.

 

[Zombiepryor]

This just keeps getting worse and worse. I was trying to figure out why it had been knocking and clanging and then would smooth out. I started looking at all the wiring and it was fine. I was thinking that somehow the timing was going way off, and then coming back to spec. It still sounded like the timing was a little off, or a miss, but the SES light wasn't on, and the tuner software showed no malfunctions. I decided to shut down each cylinder, one at a time. When I got to cylinder 4 there was no change, so I replaced the coil pack and then the spark plug wire with no change. I pulled the spark plug out and it no longer has a ground strap, and the center electrode is all bent to shit and ready to break off!
So now that chunk of metal has beating around in the cylinder, gone through the exhaust valve, and most likely into the turbo. I tried to pull off the downpipe and of course those bolts are now a permanent part of the turbo.
If I have a dead cylinder, why are there not any codes being set with the ecuGN?
Should I torch off all the downpipe bolts and remove the turbo, or has the metal already made its way to the CAT?

 

[EricM]

Aftermarket ECUs can’t detect whether a specific cylinder is firing or not, so it can’t set a code for it.
My guess is something got into the cylinder and bounced around, destroying the spark plug in the process.

 

[Zombiepryor]

Great!
Should I try pulling the turbo, or is it just a waste of effort at this point?

 

[ShaunKris]

Great!
Should I try pulling the turbo, or is it just a waste of effort at this point?

I would pull the head. You should look at the valve seats now.

 

[Zombiepryor]

I used my scope, and the cylinder has no fragments in it and only very minor marks on the top of the piston where it was bouncing around. The cylinder walls looked fine and surprisingly clean for having almost 107,000 miles. I also went up through the downpipe and the exhaust wheel on the turbo looks to be fine and no sign of anything stuck in there. I have a better scope coming that will show a 360 view. What are the chances it made its way to CAT without damaging anything?

 

[ShaunKris]

I used my scope, and the cylinder has no fragments in it and only very minor marks on the top of the piston where it was bouncing around. The cylinder walls looked fine and surprisingly clean for having almost 107,000 miles. I also went up through the downpipe and the exhaust wheel on the turbo looks to be fine and no sign of anything stuck in there. I have a better scope coming that will show a 360 view. What are the chances it made its way to CAT without damaging anything?

Good question.. Small pieces could move along in there, hard to say. If your VERY lucky they will just blow through. What plugs are you running? I would pull them all out and inspect them for damage as well. As far as your turbo goes, I would pull your DP back and have a VERY close look w/ a bright light so at the very least you know if it did any damage. I would want to determine the cause of this event.

 

[Zombiepryor]

Good question.. Small pieces could move along in there, hard to say. If your VERY lucky they will just blow through. What plugs are you running? I would pull them all out and inspect them for damage as well. As far as your turbo goes, I would pull your DP back and have a VERY close look w/ a bright light so at the very least you know if it did any damage. I would want to determine the cause of this event.

Well using the scope for both the #4 cylinder and the exhaust wheel looks like I somehow dodged a bullet, no real damage and back to running halfway decent. The plug that came apart was a Brisk, I pulled all of them and replaced them with a set of CR42TS plugs I had. #4 was the only broken one.

 

[Zombiepryor]

Make sure all vacuum/boost lines are clamped or zip-tied. Also make sure the MAP hose is very secure, no leaks or kinks.

For the unstable idle, I see your VE table is a bit uneven in the lower map/rpm area. The fueling could be way off depending on what cell you're in.

The 1st pic is your VE table around idle, and the 2nd pic is a more typical VE table.
You can see the 2nd one has much smaller differences in the values from one cell to the cells around it. I would work on that.
View attachment 2073


View attachment 2074

I made the adjustments you suggested and it's running much better, it has 0 knock and the fueling looks good.
How do I go about setting up boost by gear? The last time I tried this I have to turn it off because it seemed to ignore the boost control duty chart and over boost all the time.

 

[EricM]

Boost by gear requires closed loop boost control, so you can set the target boost. If you want open loop, then do boost vs. VSS1 (mph). Then it will add a table for duty cycle vs MPH.

 

[Zombiepryor]

I took another run and it's looking good. I got up to 20 psi boost with no knock. When I was looking through the data I noticed there is a variable called "Torque", what does this reference? I know it can't be engine torque because going by that I would be on the moon with the first run...lol.

 

[TurboBob]

TunerStudio does some calculations , generally it will take the vehicle weight and how fast the car is accelerating and calculate a HP, then calculate torque from that (I think), Its an ok thing to look at, but is likely inconsistent, depending on how youre testing.

Bob

 

[Zombiepryor]

TunerStudio does some calculations , generally it will take the vehicle weight and how fast the car is accelerating and calculate a HP, then calculate torque from that (I think), Its an ok thing to look at, but is likely inconsistent, depending on how youre testing.

Bob

I wish it was 100% accurate, it says my torque is 80,523.

 

[Zombiepryor]

Boost by gear requires closed loop boost control, so you can set the target boost. If you want open loop, then do boost vs. VSS1 (mph). Then it will add a table for duty cycle vs MPH.

I have it tuned in for 19 psi for 1st and 2nd gear, what would be safe for 3rd and 4th? For now, I set them a lot lower at 14 psi and 12 psi.

 

[EricM]

For 93 octane and no alky injection, normally 16-18psi is safe. Just watch for knock.
Every setup is a little different, and some can only run 15psi, while others can run 19-20psi (but that's rare), before knocking.

 

[Zombiepryor]

For 93 octane and no alky injection, normally 16-18psi is safe. Just watch for knock.
Every setup is a little different, and some can only run 15psi, while others can run 19-20psi (but that's rare), before knocking.

I took it out for a ride and except for a couple of glitches where it had knock at lower boost in first gear when everything else looks good it seemed to run well......but it recorded 0-60 times that were up over 6.5 seconds, and dismal 1/4 mile times of 16 to almost 19 seconds. I included the tune and data file.