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Old 12-30-2008, 08:00 PM   #7 (permalink)
cfg83
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1999 Saturn SW2 - '99 Saturn SW2 Wagon
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Christ -

Quote:
Originally Posted by Christ View Post
Water injection IS used to counteract overheating in lean conditions... see turbo/Nitrous motors.

Yes, you can use a thermal sensor to check exhaust temps at each cylinder... but that's 4 more gauges to watch, and averaging the temps won't help you, b/c engines are mass produced - no two combustion chambers are the same.

There are things you can do to make it easier to run lean though, if you're rebuilding your engine... one of which is cleaning the cast marks and sharp edges off the piston faces. Fuel/air mixtures prefer a clean (not shiny, but clean) piston face. Same w/ the combustion chamber... you can clean the combustion chamber/valve faces up if you ever do a head gasket... do not attempt to clean the pistons unless you can take them out of the block though.
Couldn't you put one high-temp sensor in the exhaust? The idea would be to monitor the combined engine exhaust temp under "normal" operating conditions, and then monitor it under lean burn.

If yes, then I think you could use something like this to keep your engine safe (installed using weld-in bung adapter?!?!?) :

(Jaycar Electronics) High Range Adjustable Temperature Switch with LCD
Quote:
- Measures to an incredible 1200 degrees celsius
- Switch devices on or off at a set temperature
- Digital readout
- Use it to:
Display any car temperature: oil, exhaust gas, coolant, intake air, brakes, etc
Trigger alarms, warning lights, fans, etc, at a selectable temperature.

CarloSW2
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