Turbo Lag

[Cowboy Dave]

I can't say that I understand all of this learning that the vehicle does, but I do recall the brochures saying that it learns your driving patterns and responds/adjusts accordingly. Actually on looking it up it has more to do with the transmission - see below:

brochure snip.jpg

I suppose though that inevitably (in an auto at least) the gear that the vehicle is in will effect your rpm which in turn probably effects your turbo. If it changes up too early then it will be a bit of a slug whereas if you boot it in the guts every time it might get used to giving you what you wanted and keeping the gears lower, revs up and boost up?

[shendaikary]

Have been monitoring my vehicle over the last 3 weeks and my findings are

in the cool of the early morning the lag is almost nill
in the heat of the day and a rolling start (20-40 kmph) it gets stuck in 3rd (even at full roar) then sever two stroke syndrome
at its hottest it was randomily performing a 2nd gear starts

i have tried to program the trany by driving hard (tried auto 1st then manual 2nd) for a couple of seperate days (no real change)
but have noticed that at idle there is sometimes a sound like a holy exhaust and also sometimes rather tappetty under light power

dear dealer here i come again

[borngeek]

block your EGR first off and pull out the stock air filter and replace with unifilter or k&n hi flow filter (both washable, and wont void warrantee..)

This will reduce the lag to almost nil.
It is especially prevalent in the auto tranny.. as the auto has a lag of its own (well the ML one does anyway, MN's have a diff auto possibly the lag is worse??)

The reason you dont get it while cold is the ecu is set to close egr valve until the engine is hot.

the tappity is shitty diesel fuel (very common in oz apparently) try caltex vortex diesel or pref bp ultimate diesel (when they start stocking again in may)... My brother is a truck driver (b-doubles east coast) and they are told which servo's they are allowed to use by the service dept inhouse at linfox... They even train the drivers to check the fuel filter and empty periodically! He said sometimes theres orange sludge and water filled in there and he can feel the loss in power. I dont know anything about truck engines but assume they are massive versions of our engine?? I know he can adjust boost depending on load and they have ridiculous amounts of power, its like a spaceship inside these modern ones...

be aware of limp modes with egr blocked (theres a great thread in tips & tricks!). Some get more than others but the heavier footed of us dont seem to have many of them
theres ways round this issue...

but as patto says give em hell anyway!

good luck

[Cowboy Dave]

does anyone have a part number for the air filters that fit the MN? Last time I looked neither K&N nor Unifilter were up to the new 2.5HPs. Or is it just the same size as the ML and I don't need to worry?

[sierra]

does anyone have a part number for the air filters that fit the MN? Last time I looked neither K&N nor Unifilter were up to the new 2.5HPs. Or is it just the same size as the ML and I don't need to worry?

Just took my filter out to get the part number.
Mine is the ML 2.5CRD and the same filter as the ML 3.2.

1500A098 Denso

Took 30secs to remove it.
What's the number of your filter?

[Cowboy Dave]

1500A098 Denso

Took 30secs to remove it.
What's the number of your filter?

is that the genuine one?

[sierra]

Yes, the one that was fitted new and hasn't been replaced yet.
Is your MN the same?

[Cowboy Dave]

yeah the MN appears to be the same part.

as well as the paper type cartridge filter, it has a layer of white stuff, sort of like a foam filter but more bristly and rigid and not soft and foamy like an oiled filter, attached across the bottom of it. does yours have that? it's about half an inch thick and sort of wiry and rigid, not sure how to describe it better than that.

[borngeek]

same airbox, same part, same soft foamy thing at the bottom...

$70 for one of the stock ones you will get 20k's from max, washable uni or k&n about $130 delivered with 1million mile warrantee (for k&n). can feel the diff, and i am seeing very slight economy improvement.. (but nothing to write home about) the best improvement is reduced 'dead spot' (better pickup).

[sierra]

same airbox, same part, same soft foamy thing at the bottom...

$70 for one of the stock ones you will get 20k's from max, washable uni or k&n about $130 delivered with 1million mile warrantee (for k&n). can feel the diff, and i am seeing very slight economy improvement.. (but nothing to write home about) the best improvement is reduced 'dead spot' (better pickup).

Where can I get the K and N for $130 delivered?

[borngeek]

sorry $146 delivered ($16 delivery)
http://cgi.ebay.com.au/ws/eBayISAPI.dll ... 0614604481

i bought a pro vent at the same time so got combined postage.. my bad!

still pretty good value..

i also got the 'recharge/cleaning' kit.. another $24
http://cgi.ebay.com.au/K-N-AIR-FILTER-R ... 4360833471

cheers BG

[sierra]

Thanks for that BG.
I need all of those too, so $345 all up.

[borngeek]

yep around that (will have to check statement when it goes thru..) i just rang them paid by credit card...

[Cowboy Dave]

is the K&N as good as the Unifilter or is it better or does it not much matter so long as it's not the genuine one?

[daryn]

is the K&N as good as the Unifilter or is it better or does it not much matter so long as it's not the genuine one?

That's the $120 question, who really knows, I have the uni and gave no qualms at all.

[Cowboy Dave]

I looked on the unifilter website and they seem to have different part numbers for different engines - I know that sounds stupidly obvious, but we seem to have worked out above that some of the different engines all have the same OEM filter and it was being suggested then that the ML K&N would work in the MN. All a bit hard for me frankly so I've emailed the unifilter people to ask if they have one for the MN. Will post any info received in due course. Might be easier to just go with the K&N given the handy ebay links above.

[Cowboy Dave]

okay, here's the response from the Unifilter people:

"Hi David,
Thanks for your email. I believe the filter is the same as the previous year. The part# is “TT220 220S” RRP $92.50. This is a square flat panel filter.

Kind Regards

Myles Gooch
Manager

UNIFILTER AUSTRALIA"

I guess this makes it a bit cheaper than the K&N.

[borngeek]

i dont think you will have any probs with either! They are both reputable brands and will far exceed the stock filter in both cases. I cant see one being significantly better than the other
good RRP price for unifilter. at that price you may be able to save even more online?
i just went with a mob that had all i wanted at the same time is all

[shendaikary]

had the car to the dealer for the bigwig to look at
was told that my car was doing everything that it is susposed to

also asked if fitting a hot chip would be ok and was told it would work but the warranty then becomes affected and lease company no likey

on a brighter note was told that the new chalanger has even worse lag
so tell all your friends to be aware

has anyone tried a Hyclone yet
i had one in my old courier 2.6 petrol and it made a world of difference to econamy and power
will also give the air filter a go when the budget allows

[karloss]

have turbo lag before 2000rpm whats the best way to overcome without affecting new car warrenty.

[biggibbo]

Buy a different truck!
On a serious note search is your friend.

That said there's alot of mods you can do to improve performance however most have the potential to void your warranty if detected (eg. Chip-it, EGR Bank etc). Just depends on how much your really willing to take a risk.

[Steane]

Without potentially affecting your warranty. Probably the safest bet is the Sprint Booster.

Check out this thread http://www.newtriton.net/phpbb/viewtopic.php?f=56&t=5906

You won't change the MN lag, but you'll get a handy improvement in the way your truck performs.

Best fix for the lag is a chip, but they will potentially cause you issues with warranty.

Have a read through that thread, an MN owner or two are reporting worthwhile results and its not a terribly expensive mod either.

[Kegsy]

The wastegate and chip are both the offenders of turbo lag, and both are things you can't change without potentially risking warranty claim issues.

[sam]

have turbo lag before 2000rpm whats the best way to overcome without affecting new car warrenty.

Buy a 3.2 ML instead .

[ag9111]

have turbo lag before 2000rpm whats the best way to overcome without affecting new car warrenty.

Buy a 3.2 ML instead .

What, buy yours Sam. You dont seem to be satisfied with yours, but I'm wrapped in my little 2.5 motor.

An aftermarket chip is your best bet but the dealers do not look favorably upon them