Wow - what a morning!
Careful adjusting those wastegates fellas - i just had a VERY lucky accident.
Not all wastegates apparently adjust the same. I just got mine on with a new TH downpipe, and got it all workin..time for the test drive (or so i thought)..
Runnin great..nail the gas to test her out..it was REALLY, REALLY, unusually fast...looked at my pillar-mounted boost gague...30+ lbs of boost! On a bone-stock turbo! Before i could even think "holy ----!" i hear a LOUD POP!!!, then the car stumbles, and doesnt accelerate at all..
I thought my motor went poof. I was scared to pull over and look, but i saw no smoke whatsever as i was approaching the shoulder.
Turns out - my MAF inlet pipe from the intercooler to throttle body popped off! (yes, with those 4 huge clamps on it)! It blew completely off and it was resting down by the intercooler.
The GN gods were watching as it's a miracle my oil is perfectly clean, and didnt blow a headgasket or anything. My previous max safe boost was 17lbs without detonation, and i got 30+ (pinned the gauge) on that test. Man - it was ungodly fast for about 5 sec though ;)
Just a tip when adjusting your wastegates for any newbies like me out there..test gradually and gently because very bad things can happen VERY quickly on these cars. So fast by the time you realize it - it's too late. I was warned of this elsewhere on this site, but didn't listen thinking I knew anough...very wrong, and (almost) VERY costly mistake on my part. The pros on this site really are invaluable, and their advice is worth gold...many learned the hard way, and are here so we all dont have to go through $$$, and have the same headaches.
Happy tuning folks!
Same thing happened to me in my 87 T-Type..my catalytic converter was clogged and messing up the back pressure. I floored it at a light, heard a boom, thought it was over. But thank the Buick gods it wasn't. The pipe came off at the throttle and blew a hole clear through the hood insulator.
I don't think that a Gn,or T-Type owner out there has never had that pipe pop off at least once. I picked up a set of Aircraft turbo pipe clamps from a friend who is an aircraft mechanic along with teflon pipe connectors. I have never had the problem again. I run 25 psi on an O-ringed 3.8 motor.
I have 86 gn and I'm thinking of changeing to a maf sensor from a 2001 corvette it has no screens and I'm told I need to use a translator wiring harness,whats the purpose of it besides having a matching plug on the end for the maf.Any help will be appreciated.thanks walter frazier
The Translator is an electronic box with the proper connecters to hook up to the new MAF & the original MAF connecter. The elctronics end of things translates what the new style MAF is reading to what our cars understand.HTH,Curt.