Ok so excuse the moderator's ignorance... We need help sometimes too Would a sticking/broken wastegate cause 0 boost? I hooked up my boost gauge (front intake mani) and vac is ok, but when I get into it, at any speed/load I just get 0 boost. The car obviously performs like a dog, and the turbo is not spooling, but I have no smoke, no CEL, no dentist drill, no nothing. I still have yet to take the turbo inlet hose off to check the shaft. I just want to get some ideas before I remove the turbo altogether. Someone previously sugested that it's a bad wg arm or something that is common with 97's.

 

yeah that could def cause that. if the wg was working fine it should at least register 5psi of boost

 

Not if the compressor shaft is siezed!

 

Did you try clamping the pressure line going into the turbo then drive to see if you get turbo? That is the best way to tell if it is a problem from turbo back. If you get turbo by doin that it means the problem lies anywhere from the ecu/maf/n75/pressure leak. If you still do not it is wastegate stuck open/turbo seized/ Or cat blockage

 

How is clamping the pressure line going to tell me anything when there is no apparent pressure to clamp? I guess I don't understand that. If I had a boost leak big enough that it would not allow me to see even 1 psi of boost, I would hear the leak. There are no maf/n75 fault codes or any reason to suspect those things.

 

Good chance you wont get any codes like I didn't. By clamping the pressure line goin into the wastegate actuator you are making it mechanically impossible for the wategate to open. Therefore, if you clamp it and get turbo you will know your k03 has the ability to spool and your wastegate does in fact close and that you have no exhaust blockages. If you do this and you still have no boost then it is a turbo/wastegate/exhaust issue

 

and I forget exactly what your problem was when you clamped your pressure line?

 

I had no turbo at one point and did that to prove wastegate was not stuck open

 

if it was seized wouldn't no air be getting into your motor?

 

no it would just make it much MUCH harder for the air to flow. the turbo isnt a sealed pump where if its not working nothing would get past. exhaust would still flow over the non spinning wheel, and air would still be sucked in past the compressor wheel, but it would put a HUGE damper on airflow.

it could have also been the wg arm inside the turbo broke. like here... (no thats not a k03, but they sometimes break around where i drew the red circle.)