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Okay, so I returned to the dyno today, used boosted's map as a base and right now I have a pretty cool curve going with a 12:1 AFR, so thats all fine now. The problem I'm having currently though is that my Temp. Gauge is skyrocketing at different times. The guys at the shop tell me its because the turbo is so hot and I do notice that as long as you keep driving the temp gauge will bounce around, growing really high, then dropping down slightly, then back up a bit, then back down to half, a little under half, then backup and it makes this little seasaw. It usually only hits the H when I come to a dead stop and there telling me its because the turbo isnt cooling so all the heat is being read by the sensors. So my question is, is there a way to fix this or is this a sign of a bigger problem... (/sigh) if it is. BTW, this problem was happending before I lowered the AFR and is still happening.

 
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Get yourself a koyo radiator our stock radiators blow especially since your boosted now. And just to be safe make sure you didn't blow a headgasket accidentally. Overheating issues is not a good thing. Maybe also invest in some slim fans, they work really well.

 
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Its probably not the radiator. I know plenty of people boosted with stock radiators. You either have a bad sensor, blown headgasket, or low coolant/air pocket near the sensor.

 
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the possible blown one you are referring too would be on the exhaust manifold?

 
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no headgasket is the gasket between the block and head, usually it is the first to go under boost. If it is, invest in ARP head studs and get the gasket changed or do it yourself.

Do as 02fp said and check the other things it could be, worst case being the head gasket. The gasket blows because of excess pressure and head lift. The stock head bolts cant handle the added pressure and allow the head to rise, people have had this issue since day 1 with boosting the d17 and most if not all remedy the problem by upgrading to stronger headbolts.

For the sake of an PITA weekend job, I hope its the sensor or an air bubble.

 
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headgasket. between the head and block. its blows and goes unrepaired and you ruin your motor.

 
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How can I check the sensors/air bubble thing?

Figuring how my luck has been going with this setup - it probably is the gasket, which I dont understand how would go bad at 4 psi is beyond me, the weird thing is that as long as I'm driving normally it doesnt get hot, its only when I'm stopped for awhile or drive for like 10-15 mins and then go park the car. Thats when the temperture gauge starts to rise and rise and rise and then it eventually falls and sits back at its normal position.

 
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The HG usually blows if the tune sucks. There's plenty of people running around for a long time on stock head bolts without issue, myself included.
To get the bubbles out, turn the heater on, open the radiator cap and turn the car on. let it run for a while keeping an eye on the level in the radiator. if it starts dropping add more.
Drain the coolant and the oil, see if there's coolant in the oil or visa versa. it looks milky/nasty.

 
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Do I need to check the oil/radiator fluids before I try to clear bubbles?

You know at this rate, im going to have to buy another car just to make sure I can get too and from work without concern , anyone have an estimate on how long I can run without replacing the HG - if that really is the problem - any ideas as to what a shop would charge to do it for me (expensive as hell?)?
Another thing to add is that this didnt start happening until I had them run a oil pressure gauge + turbo filter.

 
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well the reason your car does not get hot when driving normally is cuz the air going through the radiator is cooling down the coolant. If your head gasket is blown then it is pooring hot hot oil into your coolant which then causes your coolant to heat up. So obviously if the oil is heating up the coolant then it goes through the radiator and cools down again you wont notice anything, but when your stopped there is no air traveling through the radiator to cool down the coolant that is being heated up by the oil spilling over.

 
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I had a simular problem on one of my cars in the past. It was my thermostat that was sticking. May want to check that first since it's much cheaper if you didn't notice your oil and coolant mixed together. If the thermostat is sticking it will not allow the cooler water from the radiator to reach the engine. Usually your car will heat up when you come to a stop because there is no outside air passing around your car and the water pump is spinning slower at idle. Then when you start driving the water pressure will build and help pop the sticking thermostat which causes a sudden change on your temp guage because its now reading the cooler coolant from the radiator instead of the hot coolant stuck in your engine. Eventually it will get worse until your alway overheating. I would check this soon because sudden changes in your coolant reaching your block can crack it. Hope this helps.

 
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might be the head gasket, get yourself some ARP Headstuds if your going to change the head gasket. This might be a good time to change your timing belt and water pump as well.

Also check to see if both your fans are working, I had a similar problem myself and turned out to be a fuse was blown for one of the fans.

 
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well i just had the oil changed, radiator flushed and tranny serviced. Now oddly the car wont go into boost, but I havent seen the temp. gauge go up yet. I do hear this high whistle noise now, I thought it was a vaccum hose or something but they all seem tight and shouldnt need to be messed with for a fluid change? The boost gauge is going to zero, but it never goes higher, the AF gauge is reading high elevens - 12's. However I have less oil pressure now than I did before.

 
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wow you have issues, the iol pressure is lower becasue of the draw from the turbo. the only reason you wouldnt be getting boost is from a boost leak. i would check all your clamps and connectors first thing

 
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yea, the issues im coming up on now is starting to annoy the living daylights out of me. Now I just drove the car for like 10 miles (distance to work) it didnt get any hotter except for after i parked the car and idled it for like 3-4 mins, then the temp. gauage crep up a bit (1-2 ticks), then settled down, now I have a CEL again about 1374 & 1106, i figure since the car isnt making any boost then the extra gas isnt getting burned and its running too rich for the sensors. Where would I start looking for a leak? All they did was change the oil,flush the radiator and change the tranny fluid - how do you get a boost leak from any of that?

This really really really suxs

 
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boost leaks arent always apparent right away. a small leak could turn big in a little amount of time. as well think that the mechanic could have bumped or mistakenly taken off the clamp if he wasnt fimiliar with a forced induction vehicle. i would go through and tighten/check all your charge pipes to see why your ot getting boost. if everything is ok go to the wastegate next.
it really does sound like the gasket is already going. even with the turbo sitting on the radiator in my old truck i had no problem with overheating even using a efan to replace the stock engine driven unit which had a higher cfm.

even though 4psi doesnt seem like a lot of boost it raises the effective compression ratio greatly. this is what causes headlift and head bolt stretching. there is not set point for 1 vehicle. every car is different. you can use antoher persons information as a base for your vehicle but no 2 vehicle are the same and you will require a new tune to get the correct AFR's and such.

 
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P1106 is caused by the injector correction being too far apart on the tune of the e-manage.

P1374 is 3X Reference Circuit. Not sure about that one.

When you have a turbo car, it is not wise to let it sit in idle for excessive amounts of time (3+ mins). A simple 1-2 minute idle for cool down and warm up is sufficient.

The problem your having is definitely cooling system related. The previous posts have some great info you should consider.

 
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Def check the small stuff first. Like Civic07dotcom i also had a blown fuse and my temp would sky rocket after driving cause my fan wouldnt turn on. Check to see if it runs after driving around, you should be able to hear it turn on.

 
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Boost leak more than likely is from a loose coupler exposing a charge pipe or something of that nature. I am doubting anything catostrophic.

 
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well i managed to sneak out off the office laid on the cold ground in my khakis and leather jacket and reconnect the chargepipping that had slipped off - I hear the beautiful bov once again and it holds pressure - whoopie - now I'm probably going to have to replace the HG - doh....

The only good thing about this is that I have to put the car in the shop to get my R34 front put on, they already told me that replacing the gasket/pump/belt is like 200 if done together - labor wise, so i figure I can do them all together.

BTW paul, thanks for that map you sent me, it worked like a charm on the dyno, those ignition timmings make the car run really really rich, so we just pulled gas out and my AFR is like a straight line hovering around 12 , Ill post up the charts a little later. Power is about 130, but i gained 4lbs of torque, its now like 140.

and I must have wrote that code down wrong - the code I got stated excessive material in exhaust. I bought that Autogenuity ODB2 scanner, thing works great. That P1106, I've cleared it but it keeps coming back, the correction im running with now is 240/310 - thats almost an 20% correction and the numbers MAP voltages arent off by much, the widest ive seen them go is like .7 at WOT, although I consistantly get a CEL when I just put the key in, but as soon as the car starts it goes away. <-- Is that the thing that the other website was saying you need to correct for at 0-3 RPM?

 
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Glad that map worked out for ya. That was one I did on a local here on the streets.

BTW, tighten your correction to 270/310. This will richen up the AFRs a bit and you may have to take out some fuel, but you need the variance below .5V for the ECU to remain happy. The closer, the better.

 
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just drove the car home, boosted real hard like 2 times - just testing it out, mostly cruised through traffic and the temp. gauge didnt move. I even idled the car for 2 mins when i pulled in front of my house and still it didnt move. I'm crossing my fingers that it stays put for a couple of weeks or so, at least until I get my bumper done. I'm wondering that if part of the charge piping was loose and I had some boost leak prior to it popping completly off - could that be one of the reasons that the engine was running real hot at idle (after running for a bit that is)?

 
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Possibly. Who knows how long that may have been like that. I wonder if it was like that on the dyno.

 
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if you still plan to do the HG then you should also highly consider using ARP head studs when re-installing the head

 
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ill probably do the HG\waterpump\timing belt at some point - probably before summer and Ill order the ARP studs from dezod, Im just hoping everything stays okay while I recoupe from this install...