turbo charger trouble

[hogboy59]

I have 3 nice road worthy tc's and all 3 have a common problem I have not yet adressed.The turbo kicks in and out and makes it impossible to enjoy the drive. Is there a common problem here that I can fix without taking it (them) to the shop?

[Jeffrey Backes]

You might try my project to use a manual boostvalve controller.

http://www.backesfamily.com/TCProjects/index.html

[hogboy59]

Thanks Jeff, Is there a performance advantage? How much?

[Jeffrey Backes]

There can be both "off the line" and "high end" performance enhancement. But as with all turbo upgrades, your engine and transmission will be taking the brunt of the increase in boost.

You need to be careful, I was VERY conservative and set my max boost at 10 lbs. I've read where the ECU limits overboost to 14lbs and will shut off the engine.

My next upgrade will be a 4 degree cam key to advance the valve timing. I'm told that it will really help on off the line. The 0-30 MPH is the worst part of TC performance on the 2.2 8v automatic, if you ask me.

I should probably go to the track and get some real data for everyone... Maybe next month.

[Bill Reichert]

If you have not replaced the vacuum hoses,that is the place to start. I guarantee that they are toasted and brittle and you probably have a crack in one. One sign is that your heater controls will not work sometimes.

[hogboy59]

Thanks Bill, you were right, on the daily driver it was a vacum leak. I plan to go to the manual valve as Jeffrey suggested soon. Thanks again