I have a 2000 A6 2.7 with 90k miles. I have upgraded the DVs and check for turbo leaks. I didnt find any leaks.

My question is, What is the stock PSI for the 2.7t motor? I thought it was 1bar or ~14 PSI. My car with my new boost gauge is only reading a max of 6 or 7 psi and a vacuum at idle of -12 PSI. Is this a normal range?

I am fearing that i may be close to a turbo failure but i want to rule out any other common problems if possible. (No smoke from the exhaust and no loud noises during boost) I found minimal oil in intercooler piping of passenger side turbo, but i was told that oil here doesnt neccessarily mean it is near the end of its life.

Any chance an N75 valve or other part could be restricting the turbo output?

thanks
-Aaron

 

No, 7-8 psi is correct for a stocker. But, at idle you make inches of mercury, not pounds per square inch. Just one of those weird things that fouls up our thinking.

No problems found here!

 

Yeah i knew about the vacuum being measured differently, just didnt make much differnce to me. But thanks for answer.
I guess it means ill need to get the chip sooner rather than later.

Does the APR or GIAC chip increase the boost? I read that the APR values are something like 14-15 PSI, does that seem reasonable?

 

Yeah chips increase the boost. Pretty sure they just handle the boost controllers so more psi is retained in the turbo rather than being release through the wastegate. From what I have read, most stage 1 chips bring the boost up to 1.0bar or a bit higher. Pretty sure GIAC produces more boost than APR...I have heard that the stock 2.7T KO3 turbos can handle up to 16psi without issues. I have also read 20psi but 16psi seems to be the more commonly agreed to reliable max boost level for stock KO3 turbos.

 

Thank you, that was the information i was looking for.
And i agree with you that the GIAC produces a little more power, but i think i like the ability to switch on the fly from the APR. Also, im not going to mod this car too much more so the safer chip is more appealing to me. thanks again for your help.

 

I installed my GIAC at around 80k and now have 157k on the vehicle. Did the DV and TBB at the same time. I accelerate conservatively but drive it fast. No problems with the GIAC. When it kicks in around 3500 rpm, it is still impressive, especially in the lower gears.

 

I have heard good things about both of them, i just like the idea of switching between programs from the cruise control stalk. Also APR has a special from their website right now with all 4 programs and a load of other features installed for $600. thats a pretty good deal!

 

Any of the major tuners have very reliable/safe power. They all increase boost, as well as fuel, and work on a more agressive ignition timing curve. APR in my experiance is much smoother with a gradual transition into higher boost, my GIAC tune was downright rude and aggressive when coming into boost. Just depends on what you want to experience while driving. In the end they get to the same place, they just do it in different ways.

 

From what i have read i agree with your comments. "Smoother" is what i am looking for, so it seems that APR is the easy choice for me. Thanks for your input.

 

Just adding to Nothing 77's post. GIAC is " down right rude" but I loved it. It's how it should be. So did all my friends. I added the stock program when I flashed the car with the 93 oct program. Honestly, I never used the stock setting. Maybe once in awhile.

Why would you want to change to stock mode while your driving (shrugs shoulders)?

GIAC FTW

Find who is the closest dealer to you. And go from there. I only chose GIAC becuse I live minutes away from AWE Tuning and their an authorized dealer. Plus, I know I was going to go stage 3 minus and APR does not offer a stage 3minus program. But GIAC does. And it's, Filthy!