Quick question about wastegate actuator

[zzMSP03.5]

Any info on where to find it or how to fix it? Do you think it could be the wastegate? Since for some reason it builds boost but the car wont hold it?

You've got a leak somewhere, my car was at 22vac give or take a few psi when the fans would kick on.

 

[orng1]

Yeah that could be almost any leak start at the most obvious, Loose connectors, actuator and T's.

 

[zzMSP03.5]

I am going to look, but i have other issues so i am going to be calling a shop that also works with the unichip because it needs to be tuned have them take a look and do everything right. I don't care about how much it costs i just want the car to run right. So i am calling them tomorrow and just telling them all my issues and gonna drop the car off hopefully on wednesday to get the work done.

Yeah that could be almost any leak start at the most obvious, Loose connectors, actuator and T's.

 

[orng1]

Yeah that's a good idea.

 

[dirtysouth_msp]

Do you have a boost gauge?? if so what is it reading at idle? Because i could swear i have a vaccum leak or something wrong with the wastegate as well, i dynoed my car yesterday and got horrible issues with loss of boost... the car would build boost and then just loose it, i have a feeling there is a leak or something has went up ... my boost gauge reads 10vac at idle and i dont think that is right. Does anyone else have this problem or have any idea how i can fix it? Or do you all read 10vac at idle i heard most read about 20vac

LOL, that is exactly what made me start looking for the leak. My vac was showing 10-11 at idle, but would return to 20 if I made the wastegate open and close. Boost also seemed to have trouble holding. You should be seeing somewhere in the neighborhood of 20 in.Hg of vac at idle.

The easiest way to determine if it is your wastegate is to attach a new piece of hose to the nipple on the WGA, attach a vac pump to the other end of the hose and see if it holds vacuum. If it doesn't then its time for a new WGA.

If you do not have a vac pump, buy one, LOL. They are only about $25-$50 depending on what they are made of and are available at just about any auto parts store. You won't regret it and it is sure to come in handy and save you $$ in the future.

 

[dirtysouth_msp]

Update

Update:

I just successfully installed the ATP Turbo WGA, without removing the manifold, however, it was kind of a pain. I had to remove the hot-side IC pipe and the slip-over nut that secures the EGR pipe in order to remove the two nuts on the body of the WGA. Then I had to remove the intake in order to get to the clip that secures the WGA rod. The only way to really access that clip is from underneath the car. Removing the clip was easy, it broke off, lol. The part that is apain is getting a new clip on. I eventually got it on there with some long pliers with curved tips. The whole process took a couple of hours, including a trip to the auto parts store to get a new clip.

A word of advice to anyone planning on doig this:
Do not even try to start unless you have a large assortment of tools. You will need such things as curved pliers, jointed ratchet, small hands, etc. Some of the nuts are really hard to get at.

 

[dirtysouth_msp]

The WGA is working great! No more vac leak, no rough or dipping idle and I can finally hold boost!

A word of caution:

I do not recommend this WGA if you are bone stock (or stock boost) and would like to remain that way.

1. The WGA is not exactly the same as the factory one. The factory WGA has an adjustable rod, while the ATP WGA does not, so its not an exact replacement. However, it does fit without any modification.
2. Although it is advertised as a 6lb actuator, it will give a higher level of boost than that on the msp turbo setup. I now get a spike of 9.5-10 psi when I punch it and holds steady at 8 psi until redline. This is not much of an isuue for me, because I am running Unichip without the EBC. This amount of boost is exactly where I want to be. Low_psi told me about this before I bought the WGA, so this was no surprise to me.

If you need to replace your WGA and would like the boost similar psi as what I listed above, then this is a great alternative to paying $200+ from the stealership.

 

[Velocifero]

thats awsome Rob, how much is this WGA you so highly recommend? I'm spiking to 9 and settling at 8.5 psi with my spring mod, so that is the range I want to be in, what you are doing now sounds good if my diaphram fails.


Edit: BTW there is a meet/ BBQ this Sunday if you're interested, we'll be down in Pine Mountain, some decent curves there.

 

[dirtysouth_msp]

thats awsome Rob, how much is this WGA you so highly recommend? I'm spiking to 9 and settling at 8.5 psi with my spring mod, so that is the range I want to be in, what you are doing now sounds good if my diaphram fails.


Edit: BTW there is a meet/ BBQ this Sunday if you're interested, we'll be down in Pine Mountain, some decent curves there.

What's up Scott? The WGA is only $60 from ATP Turbo. I think my WGA was screwed for awhile. But, recently it got a lot worse and showed its ass as a vac leak. I think that it was leaking boost before that because my boost did not seem to hold very well. Now it holds solid as a rock and WOW what a difference.

It would probably work well for what you want, although boost may be about 0.5 psi higher. Are you having problems with yours?

I kind of already committed to something on Sunday. There is a big drift/car/stuntbike show/competition this Sunday down at the Turner field called Drift Fury. It lasts from noon till like 7:00 pm. A friend of mine, who also happens to be my mechanic (when I need one, lol), is riding in the stuntbike show. He also owns a shop named NE Autotek and a bunch of us are riding down to support him and the shop. We will all be sporting NE Autotek window stickers, lol. It will probably be a lot of fun. If you guys have time, you all should come through

If you would like more info about this show/competition visit:

www.driftfury.com

 

[Velocifero]

for sure, no I am not having any problems that are apparent at this time, but it will be nice to have an idea of what to do if something does happen, thanks

What's up Scott? The WGA is only $60 from ATP Turbo. I think my WGA was screwed for awhile. But, recently it got a lot worse and showed its ass as a vac leak. I think that it was leaking boost before that because my boost did not seem to hold very well. Now it holds solid as a rock and WOW what a difference.

It would probably work well for what you want, although boost may be about 0.5 psi higher. Are you having problems with yours?

I kind of already committed to something on Sunday. There is a big drift/car/stuntbike show/competition this Sunday down at the Turner field called Drift Fury. It lasts from noon till like 7:00 pm. A friend of mine, who also happens to be my mechanic (when I need one, lol), is riding in the stuntbike show. He also owns a shop named NE Autotek and a bunch of us are riding down to support him and the shop. We will all be sporting NE Autotek window stickers, lol. It will probably be a lot of fun. If you guys have time, you all should come through

If you would like more info about this show/competition visit:

www.driftfury.com

 

[zzMSP03.5]

I really believe this is the problem i am having, my car is going to Altered Atmosphere Motorsports tomorrow www.alteredatmosphere.com Only place that can tune the unichip in MD. They are going to look into all my other issues including this. When i get there i am going to tell them what i think the problem maybe, and have them tell me what i should do. Ill keep you guys informed.

 

[dirtysouth_msp]

Good luck. Let me know if you have any more questions. I'll be glad to help as much as possible.

 

[Drumfreak]

The WGA is working great! No more vac leak, no rough or dipping idle and I can finally hold boost!

A word of caution:

I do not recommend this WGA if you are bone stock (or stock boost) and would like to remain that way.

1. The WGA is not exactly the same as the factory one. The factory WGA has an adjustable rod, while the ATP WGA does not, so its not an exact replacement. However, it does fit without any modification.
2. Although it is advertised as a 6lb actuator, it will give a higher level of boost than that on the msp turbo setup. I now get a spike of 9.5-10 psi when I punch it and holds steady at 8 psi until redline. This is not much of an isuue for me, because I am running Unichip without the EBC. This amount of boost is exactly where I want to be. Low_psi told me about this before I bought the WGA, so this was no surprise to me.

If you need to replace your WGA and would like the boost similar psi as what I listed above, then this is a great alternative to paying $200+ from the stealership.

That's not fair. I just put in the same WGA and my boost remained the same. Maybe .5 psi more. I love the new WGA though. The car runs so smooth. I need to do some datalogging to see if my boost gauge is correct. Why did my boost remain the same. I guess youy could say different car, different results.

 

[dirtysouth_msp]

Hmm, not sure about that one. What were you boosting before putting in the WGA?

Mine was leaking, so it was not holding boost. Plus, I believe that the ATP actuator has a stiffer diaphram. I know that when comparing my old one with the ATP, I could tell that the ATP was a lot stiffer. However, my stock one was pretty shot. I think that I'm seeing a little more boost due primarily to those 2 reasons. Also, I don't have one of those 5 psi MSPs, mine came stock holding 6.5 - 7 psi (according to my boost guage, which was installed almost immediately after buying the car). So, I only gained a little over 1 psi, but it spikes a little more than before I think.

 

[ND4MSP]

thanks for the write up. I'm having trouble building boost too. I've done some troubleshooting but I'm not quite yet positive its my WGA, but I think I'll buy one just to do it anyway.

 

[zzMSP03.5]

Quick update, she is still in the shop i talked to the guys today they said it should be out by today but because they spent 4 hours tuning it on the dyno they have called unichip and like i suspected because of the mods on my car they are gonna have to order new injectors, mainly the stock wrx injectors to fix the problem. Unfortuneatly that is going to take a couple of days he said. Car was just running really lean at any setting so they have decided to go with new injectors, which i thought would be best anyways to make the car run right.

 

[Velocifero]

Quick update, she is still in the shop i talked to the guys today they said it should be out by today but because they spent 4 hours tuning it on the dyno they have called unichip and like i suspected because of the mods on my car they are gonna have to order new injectors, mainly the stock wrx injectors to fix the problem. Unfortuneatly that is going to take a couple of days he said. Car was just running really lean at any setting so they have decided to go with new injectors, which i thought would be best anyways to make the car run right.

i have some wrx injectors just waiting for me to get some fuel management, I am gonna be going with Megasquirt due to there is a lot more you can do with it and I don't have the cash for a unichip, but I do like the unichip ease of operation

 

[dirtysouth_msp]

Quick update, she is still in the shop i talked to the guys today they said it should be out by today but because they spent 4 hours tuning it on the dyno they have called unichip and like i suspected because of the mods on my car they are gonna have to order new injectors, mainly the stock wrx injectors to fix the problem. Unfortuneatly that is going to take a couple of days he said. Car was just running really lean at any setting so they have decided to go with new injectors, which i thought would be best anyways to make the car run right.

Did they fix the vac leak? Was it the WGA?

I've heard that it is better to go with an extra injector when using the unichip, although I'm not sure if anyone has done it on an MSP. It's something to do with idle.

 

[Velocifero]

Did they fix the vac leak? Was it the WGA?

I've heard that it is better to go with an extra injector when using the unichip, although I'm not sure if anyone has done it on an MSP. It's something to do with idle.

i belive a couple people are running extra injector with Unichip, i remember reading it when I was looking at them, if I come across the thread i'll reference you to it

 

[dirtysouth_msp]

Cool

Thanks, Scott