I read pretty much every archived post even written here on the forum about Nitrous and didn't come across any posts about a "forum member" blowing their engine up due to it.

The reason I'm asking is because I just purchased a NX wet system and plan on installing it within the next few weeks and want to hear about anybody's bad experiences. I am going to use all the safety features (Walbro fuel pump, Bottle warmer, window switch, purge, blow down tube, ect..) and use only the 100HP jet.

I read a lot of peoples posts about how bad the stuff can be due to the fear of running lean and melting pistons.........but has anybody HERE ever done it, I could care less about "a friend of a friend once...blaaa, blaaaa, blaaaa".

I'm new to this stuff and want to learn as much as possible. :)





[Modified by Mr. Magoo, 1:03 PM 3/13/2003]

 

I have.. :D Back in '94 when it was still pretty 'new' .
I had it running on my '87 TA. I have NO idea how much NOS it put in, but It backfired and literally blew my carburetor off the manifold... :lol:

That was my only, and last use of NOS....

 

Two seperate Ntrous related incidients:

First, on a stock LT1 motor I blew out a ring on a 150 shot. I think at the time I did not have any internal engine work done, not even swapped sticks (cams). Dyno made 373/480 on the 150 shot. It ran fine but I found one of the rings was not providing a seal right after the dyno and was getting over 75% blow-by. Since I only used the 150 at the dyno I am sure it was just that session that did it. I was able to pull the head, pull the piston, inspect it, put in a new stock ring set, and reinstall everything and all was fine. Of course I put a Hotcam in at the same time since it was apart and ported my own heads a little plus new valves, etc. Had the motor for about another 5K miles and swapped it for my 396 Stroker.

Secondly, I blew up my built motor. Got detonation on a 200 shot and 93 octane. I blew it up around May-June 2002. And yes, I do have all of the safety features, but had the RPM window switch and WOT switch bypassed plus the fuel pressure safety switch was set to shut off at 35psi (any higher and the Nitrous would pulse). If I had everything in place I would have probably still blew the motor, but who is to say. I was running a stock pump through stock lines making over 560 rwhp/680 rwtq. I attribute the blow to both the stock pump and running 93 octane with a 200 shot. I did completely melt ringlands on 3 pistons.

Rebuilt it with better pistons and now have a fuel system that will support over 1000hp. Since I blew it up, I have only used to Nitrous on the dyno once, on the street for about 10 seconds, and at the track for 4-5 runs. I also relocated my FPSS further away from the fuel solenoid so that I can set it higher without it shutting down the Nitrous, although I am in serious doubts of ever leaning out again. (running 2 in-tank Walboro 340GS pumps through the stock lines and a new 6an feed line that feeds directly to the Nitrous and then empties into the driver side fuel rail.

Glad I can work on my own car.

Just remember the addage, if you can not afford to fix it if you blow it, do not put the nitrous on it in the first place.

 

on another car....I go though head gaskets on a regular basis...but it's a large shot with high compression....on a motor that is closer to stock I have had troubles with rod bolt stretch and stretching of the rods themselves (150 shot)....but that was before I learned how to correctly tune for nitrous

 

Just remember the addage, if you can not afford to fix it if you blow it, do not put the nitrous on it in the first place.

Excellent conclusion Chris! That goes for HP and TQ also when you're hooking. There is a fine line to cross. For some of us: Some day's you're the dog,and some you're the hydrant :D I've been the hydrant WAYY too many times hehehe

 

My car should be red rather than blue as much as I have been the hydrant! :rofl:

Chris

 

Wow! :eek: sorry to hear about some of your misfortunes.
Hopefully I want run into any of those problems but one can never be sure.
I plan on using my Nitrous ONLY at the track, I'm really not interested in street racing. I've lost some family members due to street racing. :(
Before I even attempt to use the nitrous I plan on checking how my Air/Fuel ratio is behaving. I had some problems last year when I took my Vette to the dyno and I was running dangerously lean. Since then I replaced my injectors with SVO's added a fuel pressure regulator and replaced my fuel pump with a Walbro GSS307M Pump. If anything I think I'm now running rich. :crazy: :lol:

 

I didnt install a WOT switch on my 87 trans am tuneport.....I was racing and ran into traffic, hit the brakes and forgot to turn it off......Kaboom.....Dont spray a 100 shot at idle :)

 

I put a dry nitrous kit on a friends car. He has a little Suzuki Swift that he road races. I know I know it's rice but with almost 180hp and only weighing like 1600 lbs it's quick. Anyway we put a 60 shot dry on it and then I took it for a drive. When I hit the juice it bogged down bad. I let up on it and parked the car. It was running real bad. Found out I toasted an exhaust valve. Not sure if it was his fuel injector dieing or the spark plug but something died because of nitrous and killed an exhaust valve. After pulling it apart pistons were fine and so wear the rings.

 

I have used nitrous for years on my 91 with stock internals. I use a 150 shot and have blown two head gaskets. I know that one of my heads has some core shift and a water jacket is into the metal ring on the head gasket. I believe that my problems are more related to the head than anything else. My car ran through more bottles of nitrous than I car to think about. I put nitrous on that car when it had about 60k. I lost my second head gasket on the dyno at 111k. The engine was getting some blow-by but it was still running. I also drove the car 60 miles home after that. I am now in the middle of rebuilding that car, and YES it will be on the bottle.

 

I HAVE!!! And I've been running and tuning the stuff for 10 years... It happens, particularly on cast/hyper piston applications which is what happened with me. I had a stock bottom end L98 in my 1990 with heads/cam and SuperRam intake. I ran an NOS 5151 plate system and with a 150 shot the car ran a 10.80 at around 127... I got greedy one night at the track (determined to win both the Vette shootout we had AND King of the Hill); I had a little too much timing and smoked #8 piston to the point where it DESTROYED the block!! I've heard some bad experiences with the S/R and the plate systems; apparently the rear cylinders are often starved of fuel. I don't know whether this contributed to the boom, but I don't think it did because I ran it for a long time like this...
-Jeb Burnett

 

a very close friend who im usually with every summer except for the last one.. blew his LS1. he had a 99 vert and had no mods except for a 350 shot.. only lasted a run. Parts of the piston came through the oil pan, a rod went halfway through the block and destroyed the heads. he rolled through the last 50 feet but got a 11.3 @ 127 , lol. thats on hre 19/20 street tires. funny thing is the dealer replaced it under warranty and he sold it. he now has a viper... seems he had enough money to spare when he went with the no2 ! :yesnod:

:cheers:

 

wups it was a 250 not 350. :nonod:

 

Add me to that list. The 150hp shot got to my engine. I've been noticing white smoke for a while, finally had it tested. Not good, tested 4 cylenders in a leakdown test one was 90% two were 80% and one was 50%. The engine is now at the shop getting work done for a fully forged 383.

 

Yup...Just like I said; you're living on borrowed time with cast/hyper pistons and a 150 shot! You could have plenty of fuel and never have a ounce of detonation but when that cylinder pressure spike hits that soft top ring land a number of times you'll go POOF... All you have to do is take a look at the BMEP readings from a dyno test of a nitrous motor and you'll understand exactly what I'm saying.
-Jeb Burnett

 

I spun a bearing.

I was running a 100 shot for sometime, not too big of a deal. Moved to a 150 shot and it just felt too strong, I knew it couldn't last.

I had heads/cam installed, dynoed about 10 times w/o nitrous and it was done.

I don't know if it was the nitrous, but considering the motor had less than 40k miles, I'm assuming it is.

Here comes the 396...

The only real safety precaution is to throw the 150 jets in a locked safe :lolg:


[Modified by Hammer, 11:17 PM 4/18/2003]

 

I'll be running 100 jets, my 150 jets can stay in the little baggy they came in. :yesnod: :lol:

 

Hmmm.... what cam was in the car? Sounds dangerously close to what I'm going to be doing when this thing is back together. :)

 

Bulletproof (until you run a 150shot) low 12 combination...Had it on the '90 for several years and might even be driving it still if I had left the 150 jets out of it:
113 heads (D-port L98's) heavily ported by me, 2.00"/1.56" valves, shaved .010". Thin headgasket. Custom ground Crane Hyd. roller I "came up with"...It's really TPIS ZZ9 grind with a lot faster ramps; 214/228 @ 050" on a 112 lsa, .528/.560 lift with 1.6 rockers. Edelbrock TPI base mainfold, port matched, bone stock SuperRam and a 52mm t.b. 30 lb inj., 1.75" LPE headers, true dual 2.5" with no cats (no smog in AR.)...
In a 1990 six speed with d.r.'s it went a best of 12.10's at 115 in the 1/4 and 10.8's consistently on a 150 shot.
-Jeb

 

Thanks for the list. I don't want to hijack Magoo's post, but this is what I have going right now. Well actually I'm in the middle of replacing the #6 piston after a freaking bolt somehow got into the intake the last time I pulled the superram to replace a stuck injector.

I have yet had a chance to tune it to see what she'll do. First time to the dyno we couldn't get the pocket programmer to burn the chips (had to upgrade the software for the flash chips). Then I spun a bearing because my oil pickup came loose and moved up out of the oil. Replaced the 350 and got her running again. 2nd trip the dyno shop couldn't get a good O2 reading (leak in the exhaust). Then I went to the track and my ECM decided to fry after my 2nd run. The 1.5 hour trip home in limp home mode with no overdrive sucked. Then I get the ECM fixed and that injector hung open. Replaced the injector and ended up with that bolt in there. It destroyed the piston and bent my heads.

I got the heads repaired and ready to go back on. I just need to find the right GM piston. The shortblock in the car now is a 4-bolt 350 out of a van I put in when my original 350 spun the bearing. Of course the part # on the piston is no longer valid so I have to chase down the correct superceeded # and get one. Blah what a horrible year for "luck" this has been....

Ok I'm done now. :rant: