Particularly noisy wastegates on start

[ronnyek]

If the handoff here is noise wastegates on startup, or lag... I'll take the noise, but I've just started noticing the wategates are particularly noisy... clatter clatter clatter and part throttle against a centerbarrier I can hear it quite a bit... almost sounds like pinging.

[Mark M]

What is the mileage on your car?

Speculation here....but mine use to have a bit of that 'clangy' wastegate sound at idle when it was brand new. However, now she has ~6000 miles and I no longer hear any noticeable 'clangy' noises.

My armchair theory is that as the car gets some mileage on it there is slight carbon deposits inside the turbos and these small carbon deposits 'dampen' the sound of the gates so they are not as noticeable.

However I could be wrong, but on my car I no longer have the noise and have never had a software update or tune.

[ronnyek]

15k miles

[amsfoto]

I have the noise too...it's something to do with your build date and progman version on the new MSD81 ECU. I believe there is a new version out that should fix the wastegate chatter, there are hundreds of threads on this here on 1addicts and on e90post.

I'm guessing your car was a spring-summer 08' build?

[ronnyek]

4/2008, and I have 32.1 I beleive. It actually was better before that... so the newest flash seemed to be better about lag, worse about wastegate noise, just want to make sure I am not assuming all is well, when its not. =)

[Mark M]

Personally, I would rather have reduced lag and slight gate noise.

If at the stop light idling someone questions why your car is pinging, just tell em it is the optional BMW popcorn making machine in the trunk and offer to give em some.

[RedVert135]

I've been in the shop 2 times, totallying 3 weeks, during the last 30 days, with a wastegate problem. It manifests as the "Limp Mode" engine light, upon full throttle acceleration from low RPM (around 2000 rpm) -- such as you might do on a freeway entrance ramp when you are not driving aggressively but want to accelerate in top gear. 42,000 miles, but it's done this since 'new' at 12,000 miles. At first they replaced the HPFP, which seemed to 'fix it'. Then it started happening again.

To date we've done:
* software upgrade
* actuator adjustment
* disassembly and cleaning

[randomquickness]

my waste gate is rather noisy too...I plan to eventually adjust it per the DIY on n54tech