Boost Leak
 

I think I may have some boost leak. Is it normal for the blow off valve to have air coming out of it at idle? IT doesn't seem to have air coming out if I rev the engine, but I think I may be leaking boost from somewhere else. I checked the couplers by putting my hand around them and revving the engine and they dont seem to have air coming out, but maybe thats because the boost doesn't go high just revving in neutral? One of the bolts looks a little loose on a coupler but i would have to take my front bumper off to tighten it, should I try this?
I just think I have boost leak because my engine isn't boosting as high as it used to in the summer. The weather is colder now, and the turbo is older. Will a turbo stop boosting as high after it gets some wear on it? When I bought the car it was already turbo'd, and I'm planning on swapping to a EVO III 16G turbo next month, but i'm looking for the reason for this first.
Also when I hit about 6000rpm, i lose alot of power. IT used to pull really hard around 6-7 but now I have almsot no power there, is this because I could be leaking boost or is it because of the weather, or do I need to get my engine tuned? The engine has only been tuned once and that was about a year ago, what do you guys think?
Any information would be really appreciated
Thanks

RE: Boost Leak
 

Do you have a boost gauge? Easy way to find if you have a leak is to boost and see where it goes.

You will not find a boost leak by revving the engine. Build a leak tester and use that. Google boost leak test, should find a few hundred answers.;)

RE: Boost Leak
 

Ya I have a boost guage but how can I tell if it's leaking by using the guage?

RE: Boost Leak
 

if your guage said X-psi before, and now it says somthing else lower then X-psi, you have a leak, if not, its just you

RE: Boost Leak
 

Ya my boost did go lower so i turned up my boost controller. It's still not as high.
What I'm asking is could this be because of the colder weather, or my egnine needing a tune? Or is it for sure boost leak?

RE: Boost Leak
 

Are you sure you turned up the boost? Or did you turn it down? I wouldn't be messing with boost until you find out where its leaking. Check all your vacuum lines and your charge piping.

RE: Boost Leak
 

Yea i turned it up, why would I not be sure? But it still isn't as high as it used to be.

RE: Boost Leak
 

Then you've answered your own question. Build a boost leak tester and find your boost leak.

RE: Boost Leak
 

In your signature you said you had big boost leak, where was it coming from? Did you ever fix it?

RE: Boost Leak
 

Every setup is different, you need to pin down your own problem, and fix it. This is why we tell people to do lots of research before jumping into a boost project. In the three days that this thread has been going, you could have already had the issue fixed, rather than hanging in limbo grabbing at straws.

Go over all your couplers and make sure they're all secure. Check vacuum lines and connections. Probably a good time to run a compressoin test as well, since you're losing a good amount of power up top.