engine rods

[pcpower]

hello,,

I was reading through some of the reports in the ms3 forums on blown engines. It basically looks like there were a number of them (not a staggering number, but still enough to catch a casual reader's attention),, and it looks like the synopsis was basically don't mod the heck out of your car, at least not without a dashhawk and proper tuning. and even then, there are no guarantees.

so as a noob I have a couple questions, if anyone feels like explaining. 'proper tuning',,,, means what exactly? for example, if your dashhawk is showing you that something is definitely not right, do you then take your car to a mechanic or someone with a dyno to correct it? for someone like me who wouldn't really know how to fix whatever, I can't see going to a mechanic and dropping $ on an unknown problem. how do u translate dashhawk results into actionable items.

anyhow, what I really wanted to ask about was engine rods. several of the blown engine reports mention too much power and low-end torque on a FWD car, which in turn puts too much load on the rods, and then snap crackle pop. so my other noob question was how do you go about reinforcing those rods early-on, before you start doing all the power mods. is it even possible?

word. (monkey2)

 

[jeff4880]

There is now way to "reinforce" rods. You can buy stronger ones.

 

[Sport6]

hello,,

I was reading through some of the reports in the ms3 forums on blown engines. It basically looks like there were a number of them (not a staggering number, but still enough to catch a casual reader's attention),, and it looks like the synopsis was basically don't mod the heck out of your car, at least not without a dashhawk and proper tuning. and even then, there are no guarantees.

so as a noob I have a couple questions, if anyone feels like explaining. 'proper tuning',,,, means what exactly? for example, if your dashhawk is showing you that something is definitely not right, do you then take your car to a mechanic or someone with a dyno to correct it? for someone like me who wouldn't really know how to fix whatever, I can't see going to a mechanic and dropping $ on an unknown problem. how do u translate dashhawk results into actionable items.

anyhow, what I really wanted to ask about was engine rods. several of the blown engine reports mention too much power and low-end torque on a FWD car, which in turn puts too much load on the rods, and then snap crackle pop. so my other noob question was how do you go about reinforcing those rods early-on, before you start doing all the power mods. is it even possible?

word. (monkey2)

You can't reinforce the engine rods. You replace them with beefier aftermarket forged rods. That's what people say when they say "I am going forged."

The Dashhawk is used to monitor stuff like Knock Retard, Fuel Pressure, Boost and Air/Fuel Ratio, etc. You will need an actual tuning software if you take it to someone to get it tuned, like the Cobb AccessPort or CP-E Standback.

Basically if you are worried about it, since your car is young you can easily avoid damaging it. Don't go crazy with the mods, and DO NOT LOAD THE CAR BEFORE 3000RPMs, down shift whenever you want to get on it. Take care of it, but easy thing to do is do minor mods that you can take off for dealer visits.

 

[djthom]

i wouldn't do anything more than an intake, bpv, motor mounts and the like before taking the time to learn everything you can about forced induction engines and your car.

 

[8.5MS3]

i agree with djthom. I lurked on these forums for months before i even purchased my speed3. before modding make sure you know how the engine/ecu behaves, what to monitor, and what to look/listen for.

 

[pcpower]

good info all-around,,, thx.