Hey guys,
I just bought an 89 TGP last week and just had some questions about performance issues. I have been reading quite a bit of stuff on here the last few days and trying to take it all in. I am new to the turbo game and I love the car. I was just wondering of some basic things I can do to the car to get a little more power out of it. It does have a manual boost controller and the guy I bought it from has it set for 5#'s of boost. What can I turn it up to? He also installed what he said was a $300 crossover. Other than that I think she is bone stock with 85,000 miles. I could sure use a few pointers. Thanks.
This thing shift hard as tits into 2nd gear and its almost like its asleep when it tries to shift into 3rd as well. And its got a bit of hard downshifting as well. Is this normal???? I'm thinkin not but I've not had an automatic car since highschool and this is kinda the reason why. They just dont seem to hold up to the WOT applications that i prefer lol.
first off, it's a TGP not a GTP, but welcome anyway!!
There are quite a bit of things you can do for performance if you search around here a bit but the first thing I would probably do is try to get a hold of a top gun chip, it is the cheapest and easiest thing you can do for a very noticeable increase in power and acceleration. I put one in my car and it was like a totally different car. Also Ford 302 injectors are a common mod that we do. Ditch that stock intake and go for a cone be it right off the turbo or off a pipe like I got goin on, you will love the sound of it, trust me... lol
I will leave the other mods to people who know more about them to better explain!
Oh, and pics are a must too... lol enjoy the car.
Thats pretty funny cause I know its TGP but I said GTP anyhow. :icon_lol: I'm an idiot.
Quote from: balkyrollsinred89 on September 10, 2008, 12:26:07 PM
Thats pretty funny cause I know its TGP but I said GTP anyhow. :icon_lol: I'm an idiot.
GTP's are twin cams and 3800's. People in the 60 degree community take offense to it sometimes ;) Welcome and get an adjustable vacuum modulator for the trans then you can adjust the shift feel to suit your needs. Also the 2-3 accumulator springs in the 4T60's sometimes fail (or is the 1-2 Adam chime in here) either way if you go GM you can get different accumulator springs from a Caddy (can't remember which year) which will firm up the shifts in all gears. I remember because we did it on my 89 cutlass international and it shifted like a MT ;)
Ken
I think you might be thinking the early 90s caddy deville maybe, the one that has the 4.9. IIRC that tranny has the same bolt pattern and similar internals to the 4t60e. I remember seeing years ago someone swapped that motor in a GP and it was a direct bolt on I believe.
Thanks, if anybody can remember what year the caddy trans is I need a spring from feel free to share. And do you have a link to the site I might be able to get the chip from? Check on the injectors. I picked up a set today and what type of air filter is going to fit directly on the turbo. Having some troubles with clearance around that area. Cant quite get it on there. Need some ideas.
Quote from: balkyrollsinred89 on September 11, 2008, 01:48:04 AM
.... what type of air filter is going to fit directly on the turbo. Having some troubles with clearance around that area. Cant quite get it on there. Need some ideas.
Relocate your coolant overflow to the passenger side. That'll give you some room. I used a K&N filter #RX-4960.
The chip you will just have to keep an eye out on here or w-body.com, they pop up for sale from time to time... and the injectors... just check ebay but you might have a hard time finding them in a set other than 8.
Big progress today. Had a friend come over with this home-made boost leak tester and ended up havin a huge boost leak. So got that fixed and he also said the boost controller that was on there was junk so we made up a new one. Had an old cone filter in the shop so mounted that baby on the turbo and it sounds awesome. Its all spins and grins in first gear now.
I am now wondering though if the car has factory BOV or is the charged air just comin back out the intake. It is quite loud when I let off the pedal when it is boosting. And if no BOV where is the best spot to install one? My friend gave me his factory first gen dsm BOV to put on there. Just not sure where the best spot is.
And wondering if its common for these wastegate controlers to get weak. Boost gets up there to about 8 or so then drops right back down to 4-5. With the boost leak gone wondering whats giving now?
The sound with the filter is great. There is no factory BOV, so the sound you hear when letting off the gas, is probably the impeller being forced to slow down. People have put their BOVs on both the upper and lower charge pipes, so it is really where you want to, just make sure there is clearance. When I get mine I am planning on putting it on the lower pipe, but that's just where I want it.
Where do people typically get the pipe and flange assembly to mount the blow off valve on?
comes with the Bov then you weld it on there. Any muffler shop can do it for you.
Ken
Any good ideas where to pick up a wastegate actuator???
If you're looking for a good BOV and flange, PM me as I have mine for sale...never had it mounted.
Quote from: balkyrollsinred89 on September 16, 2008, 01:44:17 AM
Any good ideas where to pick up a wastegate actuator???
check my thread in FS, I have a stock one and a 10 psi wastegate.
Ken
Did some lookin in the FS section. Seen some of your for sale stuff, but didnt come across an actuator. What prices do you have on each?
Stock wastegate actuator is $15 + shipping and the 10# one is 40 + shipping... ;)
hahah thanks Adam yep those are the prices!
Quote from: balkyrollsinred89 on September 12, 2008, 01:14:26 AM
Big progress today. Had a friend come over with this home-made boost leak tester and ended up havin a huge boost leak.
Hey, I have just purchased a 89 TGP as well and I seem to have a similar problem with the turbo. According to the boost gauge in the dash and the aftermarket one the dash, it's seems I am only getting a maximum boost of 4 PSI. I considered that the gauges could be defective but both of them? However I did not think of boost leak, any idea how I could check that or if I can take it to any garage to get it tested? Unless someone knows other possible reasons for this lack of boost.
Seems like you are only getting what the wastegate actuator spring is preset at.
Check for vacuum leaks in the wastegate actuator solenoid circuit.
I checked all wastegate components and intake tubing but have not found any air leak. Is it possible for the solenoid to be defective?
If you could data log you could see what the MAP sensor is reading and do a conversion to see if you have a vac leak somewhere. The other thing you could do is remove the wastegate vac line from the actuator and cap it to see if it is a vac problem. If it still makes only 4 psi it is not a vac issue. But be careful you will probably hit overboost doing this if it is a vac issue (could make like 10psi on the stock chip) anyways the other issue could be the crossover pipe could be bad. Does it idle like shat?
Welcome to the wonderful world of the TGP and forced induction :) It could be a number of things to be honest. Start with the wastegate and see where that takes you.
Ken
Quote from: maxlap21 on September 30, 2008, 09:40:43 PM
Is it possible for the solenoid to be defective?
Absolutely, It's happened to me before... I have also seen the vac lines hooked up backwards at the solenoid and cause the same problem.. ;)
I understand that data logging means reading the info from the car's computer, however, how do I do so and what equipment do I need?
I will try removing the vac line. What is the max PSI a stock LG5 can take?
It does idle slightly high (1500rpm) but after 5 seconds from start up it is constant.
As for the solenoid, any way to determine if it is functional? Is it specific to the the car or universal?
I also failed to mention that there is a blow-off valve that was added, if that can be the cause.
Thx everyone, sorry for the basic questions regarding turbos.... just starting to learn them.
So I took the vac line from the solenoid to the actuator off and took for a little drive. Apparently it is a vac issue since I've reached 8 PSI. I did not try to push it further but what is the maximum I could reach for a stock LG5 with a blow off valve? Is there a way to check if the solenoid is defective?
Stock was 6-8 psi so you have not exceeded that limit yet. Besides if you hit 10 psi or more the computer will hit overboost and prevent any more acceleration. Now what you need to do is find the leak, do a visual, make sure everything is hooked up and look for holes or loose boots on the stock lines. you can use a spray bottle of water to help find the leak, at idle it will suck the water in and might cause the motor to bog, check that cluster fook on the top of the intake mainfold, it is towards the firewall, sometimes the lines come out.