[mazda3ndp]

I have the cpe chargepipe with cobb stage 1 installed and alpine transmission flash. The chargepipe has been installed for about a year and a half without issue, and 6months with the cobb tune without issue. Last night while accelerating in d6, I could feel the boost build then BAM loud sound then no power... pulled over the chargepipe had blown off at at the rubber connector by the intercooler. anyone else having this issue?

[ZROFCKSGVN]

likely the culprit is weak clamps, get yourself a nice set of new clamps and give it a try. Chances are that over time they have weakend

[Jeff@TopGearSolutions]

I'm not sure if you were going wide open in 6th but that's a no no in the turbo world. It creates too much boost, too much load, and way too much heat.

The connector coming off should not be a concern. Just put it back on and tighten it good. Over time boosting for a year or so takes it toll and equipment. It probably just loosened up over time and was never really 100% secure.

[mazda3ndp]

I went ahead and reseated the connector and the clamps, I think a combo of the clamp not being seated 100% perfect, and the rubber connector was pushed pretty far onto the chargepipe, kinda creating tension on the connecter that holds onto the intercooler. drove it for about 20 miles today with no issues. I believe it was loose/leaking for sometime because the car is WAY more responsive now. hoping it doesn't happen again, its my girls car.

Jeff I know what your saying about over boost, Im just surprised the car being in auto D6 did not downshift, to 4 or 5.


I will update if it happens again.

[hetzle]

Originally Posted by Jeff@TopGearSolutions

I'm not sure if you were going wide open in 6th but that's a no no in the turbo world. It creates too much boost, too much load, and way too much heat.

Wait these cars really can't handle WOT in 6th? I've never heard this before and I do it all the time, should I stop? My DP is ceramic coated and heat wrapped which should help...

[bdoooh]

Originally Posted by hetzle

Wait these cars really can't handle WOT in 6th? I've never heard this before and I do it all the time, should I stop? My DP is ceramic coated and heat wrapped which should help...

It's not as dangerous as say.. in the mazdaspeed world people would blow engines doing that since it creates too much load. Either way, it's not good for a turbo car. If I feel I need to give it more than 50% in 6th, I'll downshift.

[redz06]

Originally Posted by Jeff@TopGearSolutions

I'm not sure if you were going wide open in 6th but that's a no no in the turbo world. It creates too much boost, too much load, and way too much heat.

I used to have a Porsche 944 Turbo with added boost and reprogrammed ECM. This car had no problem running full boost in 6th gear and run laps until I was tired of driving it. Granted, when one is doing this, the car develops a lot of heat and only gets about 5 mpg. I cannot believe that the tunes available for a BMW would be any different.

That being said, the initial tunes available for the 944 Turbo did result in some reliability issues. Lots of people were running these tunes on road courses at club events. There were some instances where the sealing of the head gasket was blown. As a result the tuner released a new version of the tune which pulled back the ignition advance above 5500 rpm, limiting the peak HP that the tuned engine could produce and the head gasket issues went away. I ran my tuned car hard several times a year for almost 10 years at Porsche Club road course events without any ill effects. The first few events were with the version 1.0 tune; after that with the safer 2.0 tune. I would hope to do the same with my BMW after my warranty is gone and the tunes are a little more proven. I have driven my stock 335i sedan for laps at Nordscheife, so I know it badly needs a larger intercooler as well, as the heat soak on the OEM one is terrible.

The point of this story is that if the Cobb or BMS tunes are not good for full throttle track use, please let me know and I will stay stock. The controller should protect the engine (not from idiots, but it should protect the engine from the boost and power output that the engine can develop during a club event on a road course in the hands of a good driver IMHO).

[Jeff@TopGearSolutions]

Originally Posted by redz06

I used to have a Porsche 944 Turbo with added boost and reprogrammed ECM. This car had no problem running full boost in 6th gear and run laps until I was tired of driving it. Granted, when one is doing this, the car develops a lot of heat and only gets about 5 mpg. I cannot believe that the tunes available for a BMW would be any different.

That being said, the initial tunes available for the 944 Turbo did result in some reliability issues. Lots of people were running these tunes on road courses at club events. There were some instances where the sealing of the head gasket was blown. As a result the tuner released a new version of the tune which pulled back the ignition advance above 5500 rpm, limiting the peak HP that the tuned engine could produce and the head gasket issues went away. I ran my tuned car hard several times a year for almost 10 years at Porsche Club road course events without any ill effects. The first few events were with the version 1.0 tune; after that with the safer 2.0 tune. I would hope to do the same with my BMW after my warranty is gone and the tunes are a little more proven. I have driven my stock 335i sedan for laps at Nordscheife, so I know it badly needs a larger intercooler as well, as the heat soak on the OEM one is terrible.

The point of this story is that if the Cobb or BMS tunes are not good for full throttle track use, please let me know and I will stay stock. The controller should protect the engine (not from idiots, but it should protect the engine from the boost and power output that the engine can develop during a club event on a road course in the hands of a good driver IMHO).

My recommendation to avoid WOT in 6th gear has to do with basic principals of driving any vehicle. This practice is followed by enthusiast, engine builders, tuners and racers.

For anyone that knows how engines work and how load translates into the internal pressures of an engine they would tell you that on a turbo car especially, it is not good practice to load up top gear at low RPM. This creates extra load on the engine, resulting in higher internal combustion temperatures and pressure on the rods and crank. Some vehicles can take this abuse better then others.

As mentioned above the Mazdaspeed 3 is one of those vehicles that you really want to avoid high load low rpm as it was very easy to bend a rod. I know a few people this has happened to but that is neither here nor there. This practice should be followed on any vehicle. Just like you change your oil it's another form of preventative maintenance or in this case preventative measure to avoid abusing your engine for no justifiable reason.

The same reason it's not recommended to drive around in 1st gear near red line for 30 minutes even if you just want to maintain 40 MPH (and your gearing allows for it) is the same logic to avoid WOT in 6th gear at low RPM, it's abusive.

If you feel yourself needing an excessive amount of throttle to accelerate, down shift.

My post had no underlying meanings to say that a tune or this particular BMW can or can't handle it.

Originally Posted by hetzle

Wait these cars really can't handle WOT in 6th? I've never heard this before and I do it all the time, should I stop? My DP is ceramic coated and heat wrapped which should help...

As mentioned above the car can "do it". It's still not good for it though. Your downpipes and their ceramic coating are irrelevant. Engine load and heat are internal in the combustion process. Of course this could naturally increase EGT's but that was the least of my worries looking at the whole picture.

Originally Posted by Jeff@TopGearSolutions

My recommendation to avoid WOT in 6th gear has to do with basic principals of driving any vehicle. This practice is followed by enthusiast, engine builders, tuners and racers.

For anyone that knows how engines work and how load translates into the internal pressures of an engine they would tell you that on a turbo car especially, it is not good practice to load up top gear at low RPM. This creates extra load on the engine, resulting in higher internal combustion temperatures and pressure on the rods and crank. Some vehicles can take this abuse better then others.

As mentioned above the Mazdaspeed 3 is one of those vehicles that you really want to avoid high load low rpm as it was very easy to bend a rod. I know a few people this has happened to but that is neither here nor there. This practice should be followed on any vehicle. Just like you change your oil it's another form of preventative maintenance or in this case preventative measure to avoid abusing your engine for no justifiable reason.

The same reason it's not recommended to drive around in 1st gear near red line for 30 minutes even if you just want to maintain 40 MPH (and your gearing allows for it) is the same logic to avoid WOT in 6th gear at low RPM, it's abusive.

If you feel yourself needing an excessive amount of throttle to accelerate, down shift.

My post had no underlying meanings to say that a tune or this particular BMW can or can't handle it.



As mentioned above the car can "do it". It's still not good for it though. Your downpipes and their ceramic coating are irrelevant. Engine load and heat are internal in the combustion process. Of course this could naturally increase EGT's but that was the least of my worries looking at the whole picture.

Good post. I'm assuming by low revs you mean under 3.5k-4k, shouldn't AT downshift when you hit the kick down switch.

[Jdub679]

Originally Posted by Jeff@TopGearSolutions

My recommendation to avoid WOT in 6th gear has to do with basic principals of driving any vehicle. This practice is followed by enthusiast, engine builders, tuners and racers.

For anyone that knows how engines work and how load translates into the internal pressures of an engine they would tell you that on a turbo car especially, it is not good practice to load up top gear at low RPM. This creates extra load on the engine, resulting in higher internal combustion temperatures and pressure on the rods and crank. Some vehicles can take this abuse better then others.

Does this have to do with the gearing of 6th? If so, is there a difference for the manual 6th gear? I honestly don't even know if the gear ratio for 6th is the same between the manuals and autos.

[Beer Brewer]

Thanks all for the interesting and informative posts! Great info here.

Pete