vr6 underpowered

[The_Hawk]

From what I understand the stock gap of the standard NGK BKR5EKU is 0.028" or 0.7112mm and you have widened the gap to 0.05" / 1.27mm

From the vortex thread:

Well, we've had some success with some people widening their gaps, at a rate of 0.005" at a time. The end result? A 0.060" gap can be obtained before the engine begins to fail at firing. Of course, this is something you should play with yourself, and until we get more feedback from those running such a wide gap.

Until then, you should be able to run 0.050" to 0.055" without a problem, the VR6 is a strong engine with alot of potential, it just has to be found and unlocked.

I understand they are saying you can run a wider gap since you should have an increased voltage... have you considered lowering the gap to see what happens on the off chance your not getting a high enough voltage ?? (or swapping back in the stock plugs)

[mk3pete]

i havent, but the day before that i took off the original ones and cleaned them
they were beru ultra x they had a four point electrode
after close inspection out of the six, some had a noticeable difference in gap
so i put them back in, and my car was even worse

thats wat made me buy the ngk ones and it improved
but after driving it today there is still definitely a problem

i think il be checking the fuel next

[mk3pete]

well today i checked the engine after it was hot
as its come back too pretty much crapness again
after turning it off you could hear a slight hiss for about a second could that be due to a vacuum leak?
how does a vacuum leak cause performance issues anyway?

[glidn]

well today i checked the engine after it was hot
as its come back too pretty much crapness again
after turning it off you could hear a slight hiss for about a second could that be due to a vacuum leak?
how does a vacuum leak cause performance issues anyway?

I'm pretty sure you should be running NGK BKR5EKU not
NGK bkr6e-11 I'm pretty sure that means you are running one range colder so the car will be running like poo's as it's not burning the fuel correctly?

I did the same in one of my 3 VR6's i use to own. Changed to correct heat range of plugs, and boy did it make a difference.
Not my Fault, idoit at parts store could only get me the Wrong plugs at that stage.

But would still recommend checking out fuel pump, fuel pressure and fuel filter.

[sydVR6]

well today i checked the engine after it was hot
as its come back too pretty much crapness again
after turning it off you could hear a slight hiss for about a second could that be due to a vacuum leak?
how does a vacuum leak cause performance issues anyway?

You should probably check out this article: How Vacuum Leaks Affect Performance

You should also get the car VAG COM or V-Checker scanned so you can at least rule out the sensor/probe problems some of the posters here are mentioning.

As mentioned in my earlier post, check the fuel pressure regulator to make sure the diaphragm isn't leaking. You do this by removing the vacuum hose from the FPR and seeing if it is contaminated with fuel. The vacuum side of the FPR should be dry and not smelling of fuel.

The FPR is the little round object that looks like a bit like a shiny silver button, at one end of your fuel rail. If you're unsure as to the location or name/purpose of these things, you should consider purchasing a Bentley Workshop Manual for your car.

Perhaps also consider getting a professional to test the fuel pressure for you. This is done with a guage that hooks into your EFI system. If fuel pressure is incorrect they'll usually start by eliminating small items such as the fuel filter and FPR, moving onto larger items like the fuel pump and injectors. They can measure the 'current draw' on the fuel pump to see if it is working too hard, indicating a problem.

They'll also advise as to whether the injectors need to be removed and ultrasonically cleaned. This breathed new life into my both VR6's, once other problems were accounted for and crossed off the list as suggested above.

As mentioned above, the correct plugs for a VR6 are NGK BKR5EKU. Making the electrode gap larger won't really affect performance, but it makes your ignition system work harder. The reason for making a larger gap is so you get a longer spark, but unless you're running an uprated ignition system, there is no real reason to do this. </rant>

[mk3pete]

You should probably check out this article: How Vacuum Leaks Affect Performance

You should also get the car VAG COM or V-Checker scanned so you can at least rule out the sensor/probe problems some of the posters here are mentioning.

As mentioned in my earlier post, check the fuel pressure regulator to make sure the diaphragm isn't leaking. You do this by removing the vacuum hose from the FPR and seeing if it is contaminated with fuel. The vacuum side of the FPR should be dry and not smelling of fuel.

The FPR is the little round object that looks like a bit like a shiny silver button, at one end of your fuel rail. If you're unsure as to the location or name/purpose of these things, you should consider purchasing a Bentley Workshop Manual for your car.

Perhaps also consider getting a professional to test the fuel pressure for you. This is done with a guage that hooks into your EFI system. If fuel pressure is incorrect they'll usually start by eliminating small items such as the fuel filter and FPR, moving onto larger items like the fuel pump and injectors. They can measure the 'current draw' on the fuel pump to see if it is working too hard, indicating a problem.

They'll also advise as to whether the injectors need to be removed and ultrasonically cleaned. This breathed new life into my both VR6's, once other problems were accounted for and crossed off the list as suggested above.

As mentioned above, the correct plugs for a VR6 are NGK BKR5EKU. Making the electrode gap larger won't really affect performance, but it makes your ignition system work harder. The reason for making a larger gap is so you get a longer spark, but unless you're running an uprated ignition system, there is no real reason to do this. </rant>

cheers mate looks like the fuel pump is fine
pressure reg is fine couldnt smell fuel
it was the vacuum hose from the throttle body to the carbon canister
it melted to the side of the engine
i checked it a few weeks ago because i could hear a slight leak so i cut the end, put a new clamp on and no more leak.
so i ruled that out after i did that
so today i checked over the engine again and there it was
iv put a new hose on but il have to drive it for a few days to really see if its fixed it

im running the msd coil setup that effectivly gives 4 times the voltage over the standard coilpack
thats really the main reason why i wanted to gap the plugs
cheers guys for all the info im sure others will find this rather helpful to sort out there problems in the future