Pinking

The Oily Bits S1 Specific Topics
1

I’ve got the 190 upgrade, S/S exhaust plus de-cat, & I only fillit up with super unleaded.But, “under load” & below 3000rpm the engine “pinks”. I don’t think it pinks above that, but then it’s damned hard to hear any other noise other than the exhaust!Should I be concerned? Is there are fix?Thanks in advance.Pesky (worried about burning holes in the tops of pistons)

2

Pesky,Can you say how much pinking there is? If its only light pinking (the odd bit of crackle) then I’d say its not really anything to worry about. However, if its a lot, you might want to get it looked at… I had the same problem on my old Elise which turned out to be a knackered spark plug and I spent a lot of time investigating this problem. It can be caused by many things such as leaking inlet/exhaust manifolds, incorrect ignition timing, fuel mixture too lean (e.g. low fuel pressures), worn valve gear, incorrect grade of fuel, carbon build up in cylinders, overheating problems (e.g. airlocks in coolant system), incorrect compression ratio.Did it pink before the upgrade? I think Lotus do state that the upgrade may cause pinking once its fitted and that super unleaded should be used to ‘REDUCE’ the effect.Have you had the breather kit fitted as part of the upgrade?I currently have a standard Exige with Supersport exhaust, de-restricted air intake and cat rep pipe and I have no pinking whatsoever. The 190 kit is being fitted in a couple of weeks (should have been today, sob!) so it will be interesting to see what happens…T

3

Forgot to mention it could also be caused by something ‘dodgy’ with the fuel/ignition electronic system such as the ECU itself, the MAP (or other) sensor etc. The dealers may (should) be able to diagnose a failed sensor by plugging into the ECU…

4

TTThanks for your helpful reply. I only use super unleaded, & no, I’ve not had the breather kit.I shall get the car booked in at LRV, & see if the plug in diagnosis reveals a problem.Will let you know the result.Fingers crossed!

5

Pesky, I had this at first. Switching to pure super unleaded and never putting any normal unleaded in fixed almost the entire problem, but I still had a bit of pinking between 2000 - 3000 RPM under gentle load, usually when going up gently hills. IMHO the engine isn’t designed for much more than that at much less than around 3000 RMP anyway. However, with some hard use my pinking seems to have cleared up. As I understand it, pinking is detonation of the fuel caused by something other than the spark plug, which therefore occurs at inappropriate times. I believe pinking can be caused by hot-spots in the cylinder, which in turn can be caused by carbon deposits, which in turn could occur while running-in. It’s possible therefore that this was my problem, and that a good seeing to has cleared it out. Could this be your problem?

6

You’ll see from much earlier postings (last year) I had a huge problem with pinking…Had New map Sensor and New Fuel Pump (as mine was very bad)Now it still pinks under 3000 a bit but have been assured it is normal…The mapping for this engine is generally not great!!!Tim

7

I’d get it to your dealer (assuming you can find a competent one) to be on the safe side.MAP sensor may be the cause.(Oh, and if you ate less pies you’d put the car under a lighter load too [image]http://www.exiges.com/ubb/NonCGI/images/icons/grin.gif[/image] )

8

I have done 20,000 miles and had pinking problems, so I put the car on a rolling road. Under their load it pinked at 3500 / 4000 rpm if you put your head to the bulkhead (not sensible if actually driving!!)Dosed it with Octane Booster and got a reading of 172.5BHP (though I’ve had the 190 upgrade)Eventually diagnosed as having been supplied the wrong ECM when I had the 190 upgrade done. New one now fitted. Car livlier and has not actually pinked. New power run next week. Will advise.Car seems better now