Pre Tune checkup list

Greetings all,

From what I have seen so far as a beginner, that tuning requires a stable mechanical system before starting, but I never found a proper check list for testing primary mechanical systems and the proper way of testing, does anyone use such a strategy?

for instance how to test wastegate and turbo health?

Highly appreciated replies!

You're right, you need a solid base to begin tuning from. A complete list is probably pretty hard to offer you. Many times the checks really come down to 'Is the car running well prior to tuning?'. Is it leaking fluids, is it blowing smoke, is it using oil? These considerations are probably the most important.

A compression and leakdown test is a good place to start with engine condition. As far as wastegate operation, this really needs to be tested by running the car and ensuring it can control boost pressure. Turbo health can be checked by checking the core assmebly for play in the bearings and confirming there is no oil leakage past the seals.

It all really depends on the customer/ vehicle.

If they are a joe bloggs off of the street then I always start with a visual inspection, as Andre says, check for leaks, smoke and anything not right, if it's all good then for mechanical checks I usually do a compression test, leak down test and smoke test.

I don't normally test wastegates and turbo's as these will show up issues on the dyno but if you're wanting to check them then the basic tests would be to pull of the intake pipe and check for excessive play and free spinning of the turbine, you can test a wastegate with a regulated air supply or hand pump such as the mityvac, I normally only do this if there's issues

You could also go to the extent of testing oil and fuel pressures, I've a fuel pressure kit on my dyno which I'll only install if I think there is an issue with fuel supply. If there's oil pressure issues the damage will have been done, it's just a matter of how much, most cars have an oil pressure warning switch which activates below 1 bar of oil pressure, if a car comes in with this light on then it's a major red flag and I'll refuse to tune it without testing the oil pressure to prove a faulty oil pressure switch.