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Synapse Synchronic DV - Catastrophic Failure - Need Your Expert Advice!
Over the July 4 weekend the cast body and pull flange of my Synchronic DV failed catastrophically. I have attached some photos showing a crack in the upper half of the body casting, and the brittle fracture of the pull flange fingers. I would like your help to figure out what happened and why it failed.
I have run the DV for a little over a year in recirculated pull mode, port A only, on my daily driven Mitsubishi Evo 8 at 32 psig boost. This boost level should be well within the design limits and I do not believe it should have failed like this.
This is more than likely the fault of the retention rings that come with this diverter valve. I noticed that the notches in the sides of the valve that secure the retention rings for the inlet and output pipes can run a bit too small. I'm sure they do this to allow for a tighter seal, but it puts a lot of pressure on the surrounding metal as it creates a wedging effect on the opposite sides of contact, forcing them apart.
The notches in my valve body are wider than the tabs on the retention ring. (At least they are on my valve body). Since there was plenty of clearance between the tabs and the sides of the notches there was no wedging effect in my case, and so I doubt that this caused the failure. The pressure seal is actually formed by the o-ring between the adaptor pipe and the valve body.
The brittle failure of the edge of valve inlet, and the cracking of the main valve body casting looks like it may have been caused by a spike in internal pressure. I'm pretty sure my 32 psig of boost pressure couldn't cause it to crack like that!
I've logged a ticket with Synapse and will report back on what they say.
The notches in my valve body are wider than the tabs on the retention ring. (At least they are on my valve body). Since there was plenty of clearance between the tabs and the sides of the notches there was no wedging effect in my case, and so I doubt that this caused the failure. The pressure seal is actually formed by the o-ring between the adaptor pipe and the valve body.
The brittle failure of the edge of valve inlet, and the cracking of the main valve body casting looks like it may have been caused by a spike in internal pressure. I'm pretty sure my 32 psig of boost pressure couldn't cause it to crack like that!
I've logged a ticket with Synapse and will report back on what they say.
Good observation,
I also feel like these valves could have been made up of a better material, but i'm sure that would be reflected in the cost. I guess time will tell once I start running this valve. It's going to be seeing anywhere from 20 to 40 psi on a weekly basis.
Even if it was a bad Chinese sand casting, and even if there were some inclusions in the thin wall of the inlet, it would take one hell of an explosive spike in pressure to fracture the inlet wall and valve body like that. I just can't think of what would do that. My FP Green HTA is maxed out at 36 psi.
All I know is that one second I was accelerating at 30 psi of boost, the next there was an explosive pop like an intercooler pipe coming loose, except it was the DV inlet adaptor that got spat off the DV body.
Could bending of the inlet adaptor, caused by the curved rubber pipe feeding it, and multiple boost cycles over a year have caused it to fatigue? I didn't see any polished areas on any of the fracture surfaces so didn't figure it was caused by fatigue.
I want to say anything is possible, but realistically these diverter valve manufacturers should account for pipe bend and the side tensions caused by them because no two builds are the same. Over the course of a year or so with many heat cycles there may have been an opportunity to reveal any weak spots in the metal, but for it to just explode like that is unacceptable.
I think Synapse should definitely send you a new unit because you were using it for what it was designed for.
Synapse will prob send you a new one. I broke one like that trying to install it and they sent me a new one. Makes me hesitant to put the one I have on my car now.
Synapse are going to send me a new body. They said the problem was probably caused by a crack in the body casting - a manufacturing defect. They also mentioned that they will have a revised version of the body available in a weeks time, which should prevent this problem in future.
Synapse will prob send you a new one. I broke one like that trying to install it and they sent me a new one. Makes me hesitant to put the one I have on my car now.
Synapse are going to send me a new body. They said the problem was probably caused by a crack in the body casting - a manufacturing defect. They also mentioned that they will have a revised version of the body available in a weeks time, which should prevent this problem in future.
I had 2 crack the same way as you last year, I ended up scrapping the model BOV and went for the TiAL QR. Mounting the Synapse with TiAL flange lower to my upper pipe, and using a soft connection to my intake pipe cracked it both times. The upper pipe for all intents and purposes was stationary, but the intake would shift with the motor. Over time, fatigue equals a failed BOV. Took me to the second time to figure it out.
I was installing it on a client's car. I happened to have the one intended for my car in the garage, so I put mine on his car, then synapse replaced the one I broke. My car currently has a Tial QRJ on it.
I was installing it on a client's car. I happened to have the one intended for my car in the garage, so I put mine on his car, then synapse replaced the one I broke. My car currently has a Tial QRJ on it.
Thanks for the tip. Are you running the Tial QRJ in full recirc with 1.25" hoses in/out? If so how does the performance compare to the Synapse Synchronic DV?
I love the rapid activation of the Synchronic in pull mode during hard acceleration, and the complete lack of flutter in transition from vac to boost. I'm interested how the Tial QRJ compares.
Thanks for the tip. Are you running the Tial QRJ in full recirc with 1.25" hoses in/out? If so how does the performance compare to the Synapse Synchronic DV?
I love the rapid activation of the Synchronic in pull mode during hard acceleration, and the complete lack of flutter in transition from vac to boost. I'm interested how the Tial QRJ compares.
I'm running the QRJ in VTA. It sucks. Transition from boost to rolling off throttle it flutters bad, it flutters at partial throttle. It sometimes flutters at WOT when the turbo is on the whip. Basically, it flutter, a lot. I've just been lazy about installing the synapse DV to test it out. I bought an entire upper UICP section from ETS so I can switch back if I don't like it..
Was there ever any update on this? I can't seem to get any response from Synapse on any update.
Synapse is absolutely terrible about customer service. I have 3 open tickets with them
My DV has not cracked yet, but I did manage to strip the mounting threads even though I tried being super careful, the new cast body is just way easy to strip.
Jul 5, 2016, 12:23 PM
