Red turbo light

[Bat21]

The Red turbo light on my 80 has decided to flicker occasionally the last few times we have been out.

It only seems to be happening around 2,000 RPM.... is it letting me know of an imminent melt down or should I just ignore it?

 

[adrianr]

doesn't the red light indicate overboosting?

 

[Bat21]

That should be it's purpose, but I've seen all the dash lights flashing randomly before due to a bad connection on the back of the alternator.... but never seen the turbo light doing it on its own

If it is genuinely overboost, what would cause that?

 

[Rob]

Sticky wastegate actuator/valve? Leak in one of the pressure houses that control the wastegate maybe?

Sent from my GT-I9100 using Tapatalk 2

 

[Roger Fairclough]

If you can, beg, borrow,steal or buy a boost gauge.

Roger

 

[Gav Peter]

Muxley did this for a brief period; changed the air filter after a panicky chat with JW from a lone hillside near Betws y coed when it started & it stopped doing it with the new filter fitted...

 

[Bat21]

As this is only happening at low RPM I'm guessing it is an electrical fault similar to the spak attack that the whole dash displays sometimes

Having said that, the air filter has done 2 trips to Morocco, 15,000 miles it total, so I might swap that out this weekend

 

[Rob]

Are you sure your alternator is working properly? Random dash lights usually means the alternator is playing up.

 

[Bat21]

I could do with popping the plug off the back and having a poke.... it did this a couple of years ago but affected all the dash lights back then.... if it is that again, it only appears to be affecting the Red turbo light this time

 

[Rob]

Does anyone know how dangerous overboost is on these engines? On lesser engines made by other manufacturers you usually end up with bent conrods.

 

[Towpack]

I've heard/read of these engines running 20psi reliably when tuned and with an intercooler but thats usually with a bigger turbo as the standard unit struggles to produce that sort of boost. There's quite a bit on this subject over on the ih8mud forum. Overboosting without an IC would almost certainly increase the EGT's so in that sense it would be bad for the engine.

 

[Mal Eade]

Hi Paul

My light is Green and I thought the red light was the charging light.

Does it change from Green to red then ????.

Keep that one good eye on it if I were you. PMSL

 

[adrianr]

the earlier 80's had two lights green for normal and then red for over boost.

the later one just had the red un.

 

[Bat21]

Yes two lights, Green on the left of the tacho and Red on the right.

I removed the plug on the back of the alternator today and 'pinched up' the spade connections and sprayed it all with WD40. So far it seems to be okay.... I'll keep you posted

 

[Neil Stone]

mmmm my red turbo light (well, looked more orange to me) came on today when towing and stayed on for the remainder of the drive (a further 20 miles) but went off immediately on restart .
Mine is the later model with only one light.
So the question is, on the later model (one light versions) what does the red light signify?

 

[Kiwipete]

The Red turbo light on my 80 has decided to flicker occasionally the last few times we have been out.

It only seems to be happening around 2,000 RPM.... is it letting me know of an imminent melt down or should I just ignore it?

It could be the start of a very common problem and one I have experienced twice in the past 12 years... the last time I am confident that it will not happen for sometime to come.

The plug in the back of the alternator is your problem and the contacts.. the last time I unplugged it and carefully squeezed the contacts in the plug and added some contact lubricant..

When these get really bad the whole dash will flicker...

If you are worried about it over boosting - Don't to much - but you could get a boost gauge to keep an eye on it...

 

[Crushers]

higher boost means more air and less fuel into the chamber, usually this mean lower EGTs, not higher.
if you had increased the fuel as well as the boost then the EGTs could be higher.
overboosting (14 psi or greater) without an intercooler usually means the boost is doing very little since the heat being generated by the turbo also equals expanded volumn which means less air getting into the chamber, redundancy.

if i remember correctly the red light comes on at 12 psi factory, if that is the case then a flickering light COULD mean you are bumping past the 12 psi. or it could mean a number of other concerns as mentioned earlier by others.

i have seen 1HZ running 20+ psi but i don't recommend over 14 psi for long term reliability ... each to their own. i believe G over on Mud is selling a turbo that produces 27 psi for the HDT/1HZ.

is the red light coming on only on hills and acceleration or even on the flats under normal driving styles? if on the flats then you should take a close look at the waste gate and other suggested concerns.

a leak in the line from the pressure side of the system over to the waste gate DOES NOT increase boost, a leak will make the waste gate open sooner. the pressure line keeps the gate closed, not sucks it open.

 

[Bat21]

Thanks for all the informative replies here chaps

My Red light issue is down to the alternator or the connector on the back. I have removed the block connector on the back and 'pinched' the spade connectors up a little, now the flickering only appears occasionally, about once or twice during a 100 mile trip.... but now all the lights on the dashboard flicker in sync

 

[Kiwipete]

Thanks for all the informative replies here chaps

My Red light issue is down to the alternator or the connector on the back. I have removed the block connector on the back and 'pinched' the spade connectors up a little, now the flickering only appears occasionally, about once or twice during a 100 mile trip.... but now all the lights on the dashboard flicker in sync

Yep it is that connector on the back or another prob with the alternator... But you are getting close, get that plug out again and spray some WD40 or CRC in there and put it back... Mine was like a disco at night on the dash before I did that... good luck

 

[Bat21]

....get that plug out again and spray some WD40 or CRC in there and put it back... Mine was like a disco at night on the dash before I did that... good luck

Tried the WD40 twice now..... it calms the 'disco effect' down but it hasn't eliminated it altogether