The customer gained ~20whp and ~35 ft lbs of torque across the board.
It is also worth noting that the original OTS plot was taken with 17 degrees F (8 degrees C) cooler boosted air temperatures compared to the Stratified final map plot. In cooler temperatures gains will be greater as the higher air density really helps out the small K04 turbo. Now that it’s summer and this customer’s BATs were peaking at 130+ degrees F, we know this car has 300whp in it during the winter with a nice fat power band.
This tune was completed by the new member of our tuning team – Brad!
We had a request come in for a custom tune for a CX-7 from Russia. This car has a built motor, Garrett GT3071R turbo, FMIC, exhaust and intake manifolds … the works.
As some of you may know the CX-7 shares the 2.3L DISI Turbo motor with the MazdaSpeed3, MazdaSpeed6, and MPS3/6 vehicles. VersaTuner offers an excellent interface for tuning the 2007-2009 CX-7 so we went to work and hope to get this Russian beast around 400whp when done. Will update later with final results.
At Stratified we have recently launched a product called the Guardian Angel which is an overboost protection device for any gasoline fueled turbocharged vehicle.
We get a lot of questions about what such a device does and how it is better than the fuel/ignition cut that is available in most ECUs – so I thought I’d highlight how such a device can be effectively used.
The first thing to remember is that this device is DECOUPLED from the ECU as well as the boost control (both mechanical and electronic) system installed in the car. This makes it a true safety net should something happen.
For example, if a wastegate line pops off, the control system may reduce wastegate duty cycle, may initiate fuel cut, or may do both. However these responses often have delays built into them and do not IMMEDIATELY release boost pressure at the manifold which is what the Guardian Angel does. Whether your wastegate is not working, lines pop off, or you’re playing with the car’s tune and miss a number, theGuardian Angel will always be watching over the vehicle’s boost and preventing a catastrophic condition which often leads to a blown motor or bent rods. The rods below were bent from a 30psi boost spike on a Mazda DISI motor. The ECU just couldn’t react quickly enough to prevent the damage.
We’re not all expert tuners and most importantly we all make mistakes (even the pros) with the installation of parts and tunes. Parts fail all the time – at my most recent dyno day we had a wastegate line pop off that caused a 30psi+ spike – not something healthy for the motor. The last thing we watch at a track day is the boost gauge and this is what the Guardian Angel is constantly doing. It takes the worry out of driving the car in all conditions, installing new parts, and modifying tunes.
The Guardian Angel is easy to install and it works with any ECU or turbo configuration as long as the car is equipped with a push type/piston or diaphragm bypass or blowoff valve. So you can take this from a Mazda to a Honda to a Toyota and it will work the same way. If the device is triggered, you get a visual indicating (via the LED) and the overboost protection is a very gentle one. The ECU can only cut fuel/spark which is very hard on the motor and drivetrain. The Guardian Angel reduces boost but still allows you to keep your foot in it should you be in the middle of a pass for example. Last thing you want is to lose all power with incoming traffic. The Guardian Angel gives you the option to investigate the overboost condition when it is safe. See it in action in the videos below.
As an additional feature, we offer a external trigger for the Guardian Angel. Water/Methanol injection users that have failsafes try and reduce boost using the wastegate if the system fails or tank runs dry. This can be slow and if the wastegate fails it will be ineffective. Instead, you can attach your external trigger wire to theGuardian Angelfrom the WMI controller or any other ECU.
There have been a few independent review and install articles for the Guardian Angel and these are posted below. Remember that this device is universal to all turbocharged gasoline engines. If you have any questions, please Contact Us.
Had the excellent opportunity to go down to So Cal for a MazdaSpeed Dyno Day at Church’s dyno facilities! The guys and gals there are a great group of enthusiasts and hosts and we all had a blast. Below are some pictures and sheets from the event.
First up was a Big Turbo MazdaSpeed6. This car was running a Precision 6031 turbo at 24-25psi, external wastegate, and a host of supporting mods including pre and post turbo water/methanol injection. He was getting tuned by Dustin Jones at PERM tuning and they were wrapping up VVT advance tweaks when Derek did his initial dyno pull. He put down a very healthy 405 whp. With just a couple of tweaks to timing and VVT advance Derek walked away with 431whp on the stock block which is very impressive. This was the highest horsepower car at the event – great job on building this beast Derek! It’s a mean street machine, sounds and looks the part.
Notice the Stratified Guardian Angel below watching over any overboost conditions and keeping the engine safe.
A few Gen2 MazdaSpeed3’s dynoed as well. The car below is John’s bolted Speed3 and this is the first iteration of a Stratified Custom Tune on his car. No E85 used here and he hit an even 300 whp and 370 ft lbs of torque on California 91 octane fuel.
A mild 25% mix of E85 does wonders on the MazdaSpeed cars. The following car is another bolted second generation MS3 with a Stratified E85 Custom Tune. This customer was able to hit 400 ft lbs of torque and 338whp! This is still on the stock turbo and engine.
All in all, a great time was had by all, and I thank the Nator group of enthusiasts of So Cal for the gracious hosting and excellent times! Hope to be back there soon. A couple of more images below!
Winter time is a wonderful time for many reasons … and one of them is if you have a turbocharged vehicle. They absolutely love cold air. In Vancouver our winters are mild (without much snow) and we recently tuned a local and very clean 2007 MazdaSpeed 3 with the following set of modifications:
Cobb Tuning Products:
Access Port vs2
Turbo Inlet Hose
XLE BPV – bypass valve
Short Ram Intake
Downpipe
Current map – Stage2+”Intake”+TIH 94 v210 <– (i think its 210 or 220 – basically the newest)
T1R products:
Carbon Fiber Oil Catch Can (used for the Cobb PCV fix to stop oil from burning in exhaust)
The car was well setup and on one of the COBB’s latest off the shelf calibrations. As I mentioned in previous posts, Vancouver fuel quality leaves a lot to be desired, so the tune had to strike a good balance between power and safety for the modifications installed.
The Virtual Dyno graph attached (click to enlarge) shows the progression from the beginning of the day (RED – COBB OTS Stage 2 map) to the final BLUE – Stratified tune. Lots of midrange power was gained (+35 ft lbs of torque, +10 whp) … but unfortunately the top end was robbed by poor fuel quality. The stock K04 just won’t flow up past 5500 RPM so the only way to make power is through timing advances and our fuel just won’t allow it without knocking. In the name of safety we had to keep timing conservative compared to the OTS map.
