S13 SR20DE-T detonation pics [Archive] - SR20 Forum

: S13 SR20DE-T detonation pics


McCoy
11-25-2009, 01:16 PM
So tonight I finally decided to crack the motor open now that I have the 240 running again with the redtop DET.

S13 SR20DE head off.
http://www.prmsg.org/albums/album107/SR20DE_head_off.jpg

#3 cylinder wall, facing towards the exhaust side.
http://www.prmsg.org/albums/album107/SR20DE_head_off_no3_ex_side.jpg

#4 cylinder and piston... looks ohh so familiar.
http://www.prmsg.org/albums/album107/SR20DE_head_off_no4_ex_side.jpg

#4 cylinder head
http://www.prmsg.org/albums/album107/SR20DE_head_off_no4_valves.jpg

A little background. I ran the car last year at a track day with temps in the mid to upper 90's. Boost was set at 12psi and I was running the S14 T28 at the time with a JWT ECU and 91 octane (best we got around here). Just before noon I started to notice a miss under boost, which got worse as I got through the lap. I pulled in and started looking for the boost leak that I thought I had. When I didn't find anything wrong, I decided to pull the plugs and found #2 partially melted and #3 and #4 mostly gone. Wanting to finish my day, I threw in a new set of plugs from napa and ran the rest of the track day at 10psi with no problems.

Spark plugs I pulled...
http://www.sr20forum.com/gallery/data/959/medium/aug_08_track_day_plugs.jpg

Fast forward to this past spring, I finally got around to doing a compression test and found that #2 was down by a good 20psi from #1, and #3 and #4 were down by 40-45psi, dope! I still ran the car another 2 track days this year before getting the redtop freshened up and did the swap over the past 4 months... it could have been faster if I wasn't old and decided to throw the back out.


I need to get the pistons out and clean up the mating surface to see how bad things really are. I'd like to reuse this block/head, but well see once I get it torn down some more.

Nyc Sr20PowerD
11-25-2009, 01:40 PM
all of that looks normal minus the plugs that is....pull the pistons and see if the ring lands are broken

McCoy
11-25-2009, 01:58 PM
all of that looks normal minus the plugs that is....pull the pistons and see if the ring lands are broken
Ummm, no it's not... there is clearly signs of detonation. Take a good look at the 2nd picture again (12 o'clock), the cylinder wall/mating surface at the exhaust side is pitted from detonation. Same goes for #3 and a little on #2.

Closeup of #3.
http://www.prmsg.org/albums/album107/SR20DE_head_off_no3_ex_side_closeup.jpg

I'm pulling the pistons tonight, but I could see detonation on #3 and #4 on the exhaust side of both pistons so I'm sure I'll find a damage ring landing too as I was having a lot of oil blowby at boost and the low # on the compression test.

McCoy
11-27-2009, 01:11 AM
Pistons are out...

#2
http://www.prmsg.org/albums/album107/S13_SR20DE_detonation_piston2_side.jpg

#3
http://www.prmsg.org/albums/album107/S13_SR20DE_detonation_piston4_side.jpg