Wow, what a difference. It fires off immediately -- right with the first or second compression stroke. No misfires as it is warming up. No clouds of gray smoke from partially burned fuel. It holds a rock steady 83 to 85 degrees. And best of all, it runs like a scalded dog. (Well, maybe a very old arthritic dog... with three legs…and hip displasia.) It still has that annoying rhythmic oscillation at idle, even with the new motor mounts, engine shock mounts, & rack damper pin. Maybe I'm expecting too much? (The engine shocks themselves felt like they were filled with semi-frozen molasses, so I am assuming they are good. But I hate assuming things…)

There is an amazing difference in the level of torque & power. It's almost too good to be true; and in fact it is. I immediately noticed that the Turbo was significantly louder. I had previously readjusted the waste gate to get a peak of 12 pounds of boost. Being the suspicious type, I put a pressure gauge on and went for a little drive. Any votes as to how long one of these engines can survive at 17+ pounds of boost? My gauge only reads to 15, and it was pegged well past 15 - so who knows how high it really is. The overboost protection circuit may or may not have engaged - I couldn't tell by the way the car felt (I guess that I would expect some surging as the overboost solenoid dumped the pressure signal to the ALDA).

It's obvious that now with the engine working properly, there's a lot more exhaust energy for the Turbo to feed on. Bon Apetit.

RTH

P.S. Yes, of course I’ll fix it before the cylinder head bolts shoot through the hood…