Hey, there everyone. So my friend got a 89’ JDM 180sx with the CA18DET engine in it and well the mods that came with it were to the engine was SRAI, and 3" cat back exhaust, that’s all that I can tell with it but when he got it he had a greedy electronic boost controller, and that worked but be didn’t know how to change the boost to lower it, until it got broken into it and got stolen so no more boost controller, so anyways we got a manual boost gauge and since he got the car 1.5 years ago its been running according to the boost gauge (13 PSI) in all gears, everyday, and night when ever he hit over 3K rpm. I heard that its 7psi stock but is 13psi hurting it??? Thanks.
well it doesnt seem to be detonating or pinging or anything so you should be fine. The worst that will hurt you is the temps. Boost isnt what damages your engine, its the amount of power your engine is making.
13 psi on a stock side mount with that little turbo is a little more than id feel comfortable with. And actually that isnt true, it usually isnt the amount of power that an engine is making that will kill it, but detonation. There really isnt a whole lot you can do to lower boost levels in a car other than getting an aftermarket adjustable wastegate. Id tell your buddy to get a front mount intercooler just to help with intake air temps to help to avoid some detonation. Then it should be good to go.
I believe that it is not safe to go over 14 psi on the CA
the power is nice, but i would stick with around 10 or 11psi for longevity sake. When you upgrade your cooling and/or internals more, then turn up the boost.
you guys r pussies…ditch the bov’s and crank the boost to 16psi…!!! who cares about a stock turbo blowing over time. just and excuse to get a bigger hair dryer…if u hear pinging then its too much (obviously).the stock injectors will be fine, its only when u upsize the turbo to a s14 or larger will u have fuel issues…just use your ears and listen to your baby at w.o.t.
Thats what I did, cranked my BOV as tight as it would go,and let the boost fly. But then again, car is dead in the driveway with a blown turbo…
then buy a T25G for $200 and get it running again…
If you still want a alittle more info on this i sugest reading the stickies on the CA forum on www.nicoclub.com
Everything you will need to know about the CA is there.