Chasing Boost Leak
 

I've been chasing this for about a week now - I've gone through my IC piping 4 times, today I even removed entire track and re-installed it. Found a hole in a coupler, or so I thought. Fixed it, still got the leak. I'll attach a log. Boost builds very slow. Full 3" turboback and I only get full 13lbs by like 4,300rpms. When boost hits ~8 or 9 psi, I hear a magnificent whooshing sound - very much like air being crammed through an opening.

MAP is the same as it was back when the car was running well - ~24, 25, same as it is now. It idles fine. Not a vac leak. I'm thinking there's a pinhole leak since there's no leak at vac, or even under minor boost, which is why this is so hard to figure out.

I'm getting mighty pissed - I cannot, for the life of me, get this figured out. Thoughts on where it might be coming from?

Build a set of plugs for the turbo inlet and the throttle body IC pipe so you can seal and pressurize the entire system. Seal it, pressurize it, and go over it with a spraybottle of soapy water to ensure that you've got all the leaks out.

Good idea, thanks.

You don't even need a spray bottle. If you pressurize to 15 psi it'll whistle at the leak.

http://www.turboboostleaktesters.com...101/Categories

Sounds like a blown turbo IMHO. That's what my 2560 did when it shit the bed- had laggy spool and a hissing/wooshing noise under boost. If not, I'd focus on the coupler coming off the compressor as I have always had fun getting mine to "bite" properly and stay on under boost after I've taken it off. The other thing I would look at is a bad BOV?

I have been fearing a blown turbo as well - this thing is a raging pile of shit. It's been bad for a while, I was hoping it would at least last me the season.

Could you... describe the noise any better? I realize it's hard to describe air whooshing, but was it sharp or were there any other noises or anything?

Before you write off the turbo pressurize the intake tract like savington said.

I wouldn't be surprised thpugh if another crappy mexicali garrett ball bearing turbo shit the bed.

It's a fleabay special.

Mine was a bit more of a "whiiiiiiz" than a "wooosh". I've popped couplers and it was a sharper sound than a popped coupler...almost a metallic sound, but not a full on wheel contacting housing noise (mine never did). It would be simple to rule out by popping off the intake and turning the wheel by hand and feeling for any roughness when spinning. The connection I am making is the laggy spool for what seems to be no reason. Any time I popped a coupler, I couldn't get more than 2-4 psi for a moment before it returned to 0psi.