Supercharger/Dyno Disappointment

audioserf · 04-30-2009, 12:30 AM

I just got back from 3 hours at the dyno, and to say I'm pissed off would be an understatement.

These are my dyno results (no scanner at home). All SAE corrected. (Dynojet dyno)

1: 200.81/165.35
2: 200.99/170.15
3: 189.16/167.85
4: 192.47/172.09
5: 187.33/167.89
6: 184.43/168.99
7: 187.96/168.48
8: 186.97/175.27

Mods to 6MT 2004 TSX:
Injen short-ram intake, TopSpeed header, RT cat, Tanabe MT catback, CT Supercharger

Considering I was expecting to hit around 245/185, this is mind-blowingly bad.

Things we checked:
- belt tension is correct (1/2" drop from top of tensioner mechanism to top of spring perch, per CT-E instructions)
- proper boost is being achieved - we connected a boost gauge and the car is hitting 5-6psi at WOT
- a/f - this seems fine, car's getting into the 11's under WOT
- timing - is not going past 19-20, at most. This is a problem - DAYTA was with me, and said that during his baseline supercharger dyno, his TSX was hitting 21-22 at the high end.

The shop owner and I took a spin in my car, and immediately after leaving his shop, a CEL is thrown. I pulled the code, and it's P0325. Someone googled it, and found a thread on another forum which identifies it as the knock sensor circuit. The thread went on to discuss that the knock sensor has very frail/flimsy wiring that is sensitive to heat.

What I'm hoping:
That the knock sensor has been going bad for a while and that today it breathed its last breath, and that a new knock sensor will cure all of my woes. If not, I'm going to have to get a compression test done, because I don't know what else it could be.

ANYONE with input here, please let me know. I feel like I just got kicked in the stomach. I'm so bummed out.

- Matt

i2ide · 04-30-2009, 12:39 AM

ouch.... sorry to hear that bro. hope thing swork out for the better.

zildjonkim · 04-30-2009, 12:47 AM

looking at how each progressive run is getting worse and worse, i would say something is giving out. Crossing our fingers that the sensor replacement will get u up to some decent numbers.

iakonafuji · 04-30-2009, 12:50 AM

I have no experience with F/I, but was the knock sensor responsible for your admittedly lackluster gains from the S/C?

zhieson · 04-30-2009, 12:50 AM

Yeah man that sucks. With the SC, I would be pissed too. I'm sure it is something malfunctioning or breaking that's causing your low numbers.

TSX_WS · 04-30-2009, 12:57 AM

ouch... that is one big load of money that didn't make a big difference. I would be crying if it happened to me. Hope u fix it soon, man. Good luck !

2K6TSX · 04-30-2009, 01:03 AM

damn man sorry to hear about that, that's not much more than mine stock..good luck fixing it!

willy18 · 04-30-2009, 02:05 AM

Where are you located? Can you take it to another mechanic or maybe CT Engineering directly, to get it checked out? There's got to be something wrong. Other supercharger owners haven't experienced this, right.

AcidLotus · 04-30-2009, 02:14 AM

I bet it's not the knock sensor that is causing the problem. You're running too rich. I would suggest somewhere around 12:1 or 12.5:1, even 13:1.

Highrev1 · 04-30-2009, 03:05 AM

11.8 A/F is nice and safe. You should be able to tune on the dyno without the stock knock sensor and still be able to make a fine tune that would make more power than that.

Check the terminals that go into the connector, which connect to the sensor, make sure their crust free and its connected nice and tight.

audioserf · 04-30-2009, 08:13 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Highrev1

11.8 A/F is nice and safe. You should be able to tune on the dyno without the stock knock sensor and still be able to make a fine tune that would make more power than that.

Check the terminals that go into the connector, which connect to the sensor, make sure their crust free and its connected nice and tight.

Unfortunately, I wasn't tuning on the dyno (I'm on the Hondata reflash for the S/C, and not KPro). I don't know where to look for the knock sensor (does it relocate under the blower during the S/C install??) Going to ask Josh @ Excelerate to take a look at it and if need be, install a new knock sensor.

To the poster who asked if I could have CT-E take a look at it, that's unfortunately not possible as I live on the other side of the country from them.

nyc06tsx · 04-30-2009, 08:43 AM

wow sorry to heard that man.. only 200 hp with a SC...that is crazy.. i think i will be so mad that i will sale my car... but hope you can fix it and get more power out of it..

audioserf · 04-30-2009, 08:45 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nyc06tsx

wow sorry to heard that man.. only 200 hp with a SC...that is crazy.. i think i will be so mad that i will sale my car... but hope you can fix it and get more power out of it..

I'm not giving up on it now... I will get this figured out.

Reeeeeeallly crossing my fingers and hoping it's the knock sensor.

audioserf · 04-30-2009, 08:54 AM

This quote is about the Hondata reflash (regular reflash, not S/C, but worth reading):

Quote:

The TSX uses adaptive knock control. This means it will listen to the knock sensor and advance or retard the timing appropriately. This is good as it means the TSX will readily adapt to higher octane fuel and add a couple of degrees ignition advance. The TSX ECU only takes 3 or 4 power runs to adapt, and is constantly relearning. Unfortunately the side effect is that successive power runs can vary by up to 4-5 ft pounds of torque due to engine noise or knocking that is inaudible to the ear. If your coolant temperatures are too hot (>195 F) or the engine is hot from dyno runs, the ECU has a tendency to retard the timing.

- the engine was not hot for the very first run (which was the 200whp shot)
- power did progressively get worse from there, even with 3-4 runs for the ECU to "learn" (which I had already done earlier in the day in any case)
- unsure what coolant temperature was but the car did not overheat (per the idiot gauge, anyway)

I have scanned my dyno chart, but since I'm at work, I can't access any online file hosting services. If anyone would like me to e-mail them a copy of the pdf, please post here or PM me and I would be glad to. The engine is giving out at higher RPMs - at redline, the HP drops VERY Sharply around 200hp, and the torque curve peaks at 4k and then just tanks all the way to redline.

Timing issue? Seems like a bad knock sensor would definitely cause that, and the P0325 code I got indicates that as the problem.

Pacemaker_Guy · 04-30-2009, 09:04 AM

Does the car feel any different?

Could be a defect with the unit itself?