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Blow off valve testing, it really works!

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Old May 25, 2003, 11:22 PM
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Thumbs up Blow off valve testing, it really works!

First let me say that I am not now, nor due I have any future plans to sell any performance car parts, this info is just FYI gleaned from my own garage tinkering. When I initially read posts here about the blow off valve possibly leaking and costing HP it sounded like BS to me, but after doing my own testing it seems to be true!

Before explaining my testing methods and results, I will give you my take on blow off valve operation and function, (if you’re already up on this you may want to skip this paragraph). A blow off valve basically has a spring-loaded valve that is controlled by a piston type actuator. The actuator is driven by the intake manifold pressure/vacuum located after the throttle body. In this way under acceleration the manifold pressure combined with the actuator spring tension keep the valve closed. When you lift off the gas and the throttle plates close, essentially removing the turbo pressurized air from the motor intake, a vacuum quickly develops after the throttle body. This vacuum is routed to the actuator piston causing the valve to open providing an alternate path for the turbo pressurized air. The blow off valve prevents a pressure surge in your turbo system by giving the pressurized air a place to go when the throttle plates are closed. As I understand it this valve function has two benefits; for one, surging could potentially damage your turbo and two the surge could slow the turbine causing more turbo lag.
So the ideal blow off valve would have a large enough opening to properly vent the turbo pressurized air, and it would open immediately after the throttle plates closed (you lift off the gas) and would close utterly and completely the nanosecond that you step on the gas.

Using two air compressors, a hand actuated vacuum pump(with a gauge), and a bunch of hoses and fittings, I began testing the characteristics of the stock blow off valve. Simply putting air pressure on the valve without applying similar pressure to the valve actuator will not give you an accurate indication of what the valve is doing in the car under acceleration. The stock blow off valve does have a fairly heavy spring loading and the actuator piston is larger than the valve area, giving it an appropriate mechanical advantage, so far so good. So I apply 19 PSI to the valve and the same to the actuator, now with the actuator pressure and added spring tension this valve is as closed as it is ever going to get, but it still leaks. The problem is with the valve/valve seat, it is just plastic on plastic and it simply does not make a good seal. While the leak is not huge, it is more than you might think (I would say comparable to a3/8” hole in your intercooler). After seeing this I decided to get an aftermarket valve and do more testing.
Most after market blow off valves have are larger valve area (good so far) and generally use a much heavier spring loading, this last part is good in that it should let the valve close faster when you step on the gas, but it also means the valve will not open as fast when you lift off the gas. This last part could cause some surging/drivability problems at part throttle, especially in a system like the Evo using an air flow sensor. From my own engine tuning experience, most engine hesitation and bucking is cause by the engine running to lean.
Consider this scenario, you’ve got your after market valve with a very heavy spring tension so it won’t open easily especially at lower engine rpm’s where the vacuum level may not be enough to overcome the spring tension. Under part throttle you lift closing the throttle plates but the blow off valve does not open (or opens but not enough) so you get a minor pressure surge. This surge causes the airflow meter to see even less air flow than it normally would using the stock blow off valve, even though the engine is still getting the same amount of air the computer starts delivering less fuel than is really needed in this situation and you run lean. This is what causes the engine to stumble and hesitate. My thinking at this point is if you get a valve where the actuator piston surface area is larger than the valve area you should not need to use a heavy spring tension to get the valve to close quickly and completely.
So now I go to my local after market supplier buddy and tell him that I am looking for a blow off valve, but it needs to have dimensions similar to the stock Evo valve, I want the piston actuator to be bigger than the valve area, oh and I would like it to have some sort of rubber o-ring seal for the valve. He tells me that I just described the Greddy type-s, I look at it, it’s kind of pricey but it did meet all of my criteria, so now it’s back to the garage for more testing.
I had to make my own hose adaptor but I am sure someone out there makes the right adapter for this car. Anyway the valve is bigger than the stock unit, good so far, accept that the actuator fittings were leaking a bit, I put some Teflon tape on and tightened them, no more leaks. This valve seals completely even with as little as 6 PSI on the actuator and 20 PSI on the valve, absolutely no leaking (excellent!). Next is the vacuum opening test, the stock valve starts opening at around 16” of vacuum, even with the spring tension adjustment all the way out the Greddy needed almost 22” of vacuum (this could be a problem). I install it as is and sure enough there is increased hesitation, in fact coming to a stop the engine almost wanted to stall a couple of times. The nice part about after market valves is that you can take them apart and easily rebuild them, so I decide to take it apart and see about getting a softer spring for the actuator. I get it apart and low and behold there are actually two springs (one slightly smaller sitting inside of the bigger one) pushing on the actuator, and it looks like you could easily use just one. I did testing using each spring by itself, one is heavier than the other, with the smaller lighter spring the valve seals with 20PSI on the valve and 14 PSI on the actuator (that works) and now the valve starts opening with only 8” of vacuum on the actuator(sweet!). With the larger individual spring the valve remained sealed with 20PSI on the valve and 12PSI on the actuator, under vacuum the valve starts opening at 12” of vacuum (still better than stock). I decided to go with the heavier of the two springs since even it opened sooner than the stock unit.
I install my slightly modified valve in the car and went for a drive and all I can say is wow! Talk about smooth, the car drives even better at part throttle than with the stock valve, very cool. Even stock I noticed the part throttle drivability was a little jerky once and a awhile, this new valve seems to smooth that out quite a bit. By putting this valve in I essentially richened up the part throttle fuel a little.

On the Greddy valve there is another fitting underneath the actuator, all I can figure is that you could connect it to the manifold before the throttle body so that the pressure differential would allow the valve to open sooner even with the heavy spring loading. I have to strongly advise against this though because with that configuration under acceleration/boost you would have the same pressure on both sides of the actuator piston, then the only thing keeping the valve closed would be the spring tension. Even with both springs installed it is not strong enough to keep the valve sealed at 19 PSI. This fitting does see the same air as the valve when it is open so I put a rubber vacuum cap on it for good measure. EDIT: better to leave the cap off, it works either way but...

I could not tell from my butt dyno if the car was actually making any more power with this valve but it certainly drove better. A few day’s later I went back to my local dyno were I had already done some initial testing (see initial testing thread)

https://www.evolutionm.net/forums/sh...t=MUSTANG+DYNO .

I had a few items to do some testing on (I will post separately on those later), one of course was the blow off valve, and now here is the best part! When compared back to back runs with the stock blow off valve the dyno actually showed an increase of about 3 HP with my modified Greddy valve! So here’s a modification that improves drivability, power, and possibly reliability since the turbo does not have to work as hard to produce the same boost. Like I said I am not selling anything here, I am sure there are probably several valves that would work just as well, given they meet the above mentioned criteria and you get the spring tension right.

One other note regarding the valve modification, when you take the actuator cap off it is spring loaded, so when you get to the last one or two screws make sure you hold it good so that everything doesn’t go flying, it’s really not that hard to do assuming you have at least some mechanical ability.

I have gotten some good info off of this site, I hope this helps you guy’s out.

Eric

Last edited by SILVER SURFER; Oct 25, 2003 at 08:05 PM.
Old May 26, 2003, 01:32 AM
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Damn, now that's what I call a learning experience! I haven't turbocharged my Lancer yet, but I'll keep this post in mind when it comes time to decide on a BOV. Awesome work with the testing too!
Old May 26, 2003, 03:39 AM
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Good post, thanks.
Old May 26, 2003, 03:50 AM
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Great post! Thanks!

I've been playing with a BOV myself right now, and I'm pretty frustrated..

I've gone through a bunch of different springs with different tensions, and have also played with adding shims...

The only way the BOV (Forge's vented to atmosphere) will run without bogging the engine is with the softest available spring and no shims.. However, it still does not feel as responsive and strong as my stock recirculating valve.. it's that simple.. It's cool with the sound and everything, and I did get it to work properly, but the power just isnt there when compared to the stock one..

However, when having harder springs in there, it felt like the car was stronger (thus holding the boost better).. but then I had to live with the bogging.. my car even died completely at a stop sign one time!

Therefore, I'm going to go for an aftermarket recirculating valve instead.. Namely the Forge.. It's more solid than the stock recirculating valve, but still keeps the drivability in check!

After talking to several professional tuners, it is also clear to me that there is absolutely no advantage to a BOV (vented to atmos) vs. a DV (recirculating valve) as far as performance goes... as long as the recirculating valve is not leaking (like you were saying your stock one did in your test)...

Thanks again for the nice write-up!

Old May 26, 2003, 04:07 AM
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so basically, all one really needs to do is remove the smaller of the two springs from inside the greddy, install it, and adjust it accordingly? I had a greddy type s on my evo, and i thought that the greddy was leaking at lower rpm, part throttle driving, and thus the reason for the hesitating and stalling problems.

question 2) so is the reason that many stock evo 8s, can't hold 19psi of boost due to the BOV leaking at top end or heavy throttle? I thought that this was due to the stock boost solenoid.
(kinda off on a tangent, but related to a little of what you mentioned in your post).

what is your greddy type s spring adjusted at (adustment screw/nut on top). Is it say half way in, very tight, etc....
did you end up leaving the lower nipple alone, or was it plugged with a vaccum plug i know you mentioned something about that earlier on in your description of your testing.

thanks!!!
Old May 26, 2003, 04:15 AM
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Re: Blow off valve testing, it really works!

I wonder if you can use a 1st Gen DSM blow off valve on a Lancer? They are constructed out of solid aluminum. I can't believe Mitsu uses a plastic valve on the Lancers
Old May 26, 2003, 09:15 AM
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"so basically, all one really needs to do is remove the smaller of the two springs from inside the greddy, install it, and adjust it accordingly?"

Yes

"question 2) so is the reason that many stock evo 8s, can't hold 19psi of boost due to the BOV leaking at top end or heavy throttle?"

No, the stock computer drives the seloniod you mentioned, and it is specifically designed from the factory to taper the boost at high RPM.


"what is your greddy type s spring adjusted at (adustment screw/nut on top). Is it say half way in, very tight, etc...."

The adjustment screw should be almost all the way out , there is a round plate that the spring sits in, the adjustment screw sits in an indentation on that plate. I put the aadjustment screw in far enough to keep that plate centered, that plate is what compresses the spring. You never want to get that adjustment screw down to far because it begins to limit the travel/opening of the valve.

"did you end up leaving the lower nipple alone, or was it plugged with a vaccum plug i know you mentioned something about that earlier on in your description of your testing."

Yes, I capped that fitting.


"I wonder if you can use a 1st Gen DSM blow off valve on a Lancer? They are constructed out of solid aluminum. I can't believe Mitsu uses a plastic valve on the Lancers "

I don't know about the 1st Gen DSM valves, but just because the stock valve is plastic, in and of itself does not necassarily make it bad. If it had a rubber seal for the valve seat, it would work just fine. I also tested a different valve that was all aluminum, it had a very poor design and leaked just as bad as the stock unit.
Old May 26, 2003, 09:48 AM
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"After talking to several professional tuners, it is also clear to me that there is absolutely no advantage to a BOV (vented to atmos) vs. a DV (recirculating valve) as far as performance goes... as long as the recirculating valve is not leaking (like you were saying your stock one did in your test)... "

This is true, some people actually like the sound of a blow off vented to the atmosphere, too each his own. The main reason I comment about this is because it touches on something I neglected to mention. The Greddy valve setup as I have done does make some noise, it sounds like a bird chirp when you lift, especially noticable at light throttle lifts, and this is with the stock air box.
I don't think it's a big deal, it's just another noise this car makes, just like turbo spinning up. I don't think there is much that can be done about it anyway.
Old May 26, 2003, 02:42 PM
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All factory blow-off valves are designed to operate within a specific pressure range only. Consider it a safety feature. I would expect that you guys are going to need to replace your BOVs (along with your gas ) to attain higher boost.
Old May 26, 2003, 03:03 PM
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yeah... i'm kinda a sucker for bov's too... call me a ricer... but i'm not gonna have it if it means a loss in performance or drivability though..

i could probably play around with it a little more and get it to work better... but nah.. not worth it.. i know the Forge DV works awesome and i dont have worry about anything.. so that's what i'll do...

thanks again!

Old May 26, 2003, 04:17 PM
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Nice to see people getting out into their garage...
Old May 27, 2003, 09:17 AM
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Hi Silversurfer,
You mentioned that the stock bov might be ok with a rubber seal on the valve seat it would work just fine. Is this a mod that could be easily made? I have not yet disassembled the bov.
Cheers,
Old May 28, 2003, 12:36 AM
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Well,, you might be able to come up with something, but easily??? The stock valve is not really designed to be rebuilt, so it would kind of be like building one of those model ships in a bottle. The other thing is that the plastic valve edge is sharp and the spring tension is high, so comming up with something that wouldn't possibly come apart under operation becomes an issue. For me spending $100 to $200 for and aftermarket valve just seemed to be a better/easier way to go.
Old May 28, 2003, 04:06 AM
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At the very least, a first-gen DSM valve would be a great way to go. They start blowing open around 18 psi, but they have no surge at all and blow off easily.

Obviously, you're going to want to run more boost than that. If so, there's two ways to run more on a first-gen DSM valve:

1. Crush it. This is a pretty simple procedure. The downside is that now there is more spring tension so it doesn't blow-off quite as freely. This may or may not be a problem for you. Obviously you don't wanna get too crazy with the crushing.

2. Add an assist barb that keeps pressure equalized on both sides of the valve when under boost, but allows it to blow off normally when necessary.

You can do one or the other, or both. If you don't want to mod the valves yourselves, Dejontool sells them modded for you.

http://www.dejontool.com/dsm-misc.htm

There's also some test data in a link from that page.

Dejontool's page is a bit confusing on price, as is typical for the smaller shops, but they're a legitimate company that DSM guys have been ordering from for years.

Why run this valve? A few reasons:

1. They blow off nicely. If you saw the graphs in SCC this month, you'll note that almost all of the aftermarket valves had SOME amount of pulsation on throttle lift.

2. The sound is loud, but not chirpy or silly in any other way. It sounds like a blow-off valve should sound.

3. Inexpensive.

Why NOT run this valve?

1. You need to hold mondo amounts of boost, surging be damned.

2. You want something loud/chirpy/obnoxious/shiny.

3. You have money to burn.

4. You don't want to add a flange to your intake piping.
Old May 28, 2003, 08:11 AM
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Mine is in the mail...


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