BAD customer service. SYNAPSE
 

I hate to air my dirty laundry but I don’t know what else to do.

first the configuration:
The synapse diverter valve (DV) has 2 vacuum ports on top, A and B. I have had mine configured to recirculate and to vent to atmosphere at different times, but mostly venting to atmosphere just because of the sound.
I have since changed the configuration to recirculate the boost. Still not good. When on boost my AFR drops to 12 but as RPM’s go up so does the AFR until 6500 it hits 14.8!! it does this no matter how low I set the control pressure. I removed the DV completely and now my AFR stays at 12.1-12.5 at 6500.

The original problem:
My AFR’s where very lean at cruise. 16.5. so I was having to run it very rich to get them down to 15 and make it drivable. I was only using one of the ports at the time. I pulled the DV off and found BOTH vac ports were not holding vacuum and leaking to atmosphere. As soon as I plugged both ports together my AFR IMMEDIATELY went rich. It was down in the upper 11’s lower 12’s. something was still wrong because If I set the AFR’s up above 12.8 or 13, the car ran bad so I had to keep running it rich. (now i look back and think the DV was staying open). The engineer ,Peter, confirmed that it was open but says it is suppose to be and that was not my problem. More on that later.
I took the DV apart and found that the piston was rubbing on the valve body and had worn away part of the finish and perhaps metal and that was why it was leaking. See pics. One side had wear, the other had 2 “nicks” or grooves.

The warranty:
So I send it back to synapse. Short story, they tell me it WAS leaking but they put new seals in it and put grease in it and it was fine and it was tested at 65psi.
The problem with synapse, the BS and the lies:
So I sent the DV to them on 1/13. I call about 10 days later. They don’t have it and don’t know where it is even though they signed for it 4days after I shipped it. Several phone calls later over the next 5 weeks I am told the story above. It was tested to 60 psi and it is fine. I finally get it back on 2/23. 6 WEEKS!
I get the valve and first thing I notice is only 2 screws were put back in the top (see pic). Next thing I do is test the ports. Port B will open the valve and hold vac. Port A will NOT open the valve and will not hold a vacuum. So I call them back. At this point I am so madd I am shaking. I get, what sounds like a 15 yr old, Darden. He feeds all the crap that the thing was tested to 60 psi (remember this) and if they send me a new one it will just do the same thing blah blah blah. He finally agrees to send me one but want s me to put mine on my car to test it. ??? so I did. Once again I think it sent me down the wrong road because I had it vented to atmosphere and I think the valve was open at idle.
2 weeks later NO DV! I call and get darden. His response was: “I thought you were going to test yours on your car”. We go round and round about the port leaking vacuum and I complain that with the wear on the valve body and just putting Orings in it and grease was not a “fix” for a bad valve. I keep getting the “we tested to to 60 psi” and “how does it work on the car”. He says that if he sends me a new one it will just do the same thing???

Finally I get the engineer(CEO) on the phone (peter). Here is were the lies and BS really start to fly.
1. He tells me that I should not use port A alone. Either port B or port A+B. look in the manual for the DV. It says it can be configured A, B, A+B. what is correct? The manual or peter?
2. He tells me that when I plugged the leaking vacuum port, that likely opened the valve and made it run rich at idle(vented to atmosphere). He claims that at idle the turbo is pushing air out of the DV when it is open, thus less air is going to the engine so it is running rich. I don’t think this is true because in the manual it says you can vent it to atmosphere. Does that mean it is suppose to go rich at idle? How can ANY car run right if the metered air is not correct?
3. He tells me another DV is on the way. As of 3\23 I have no new DV. at least 2 weeks now.
4. He asks how am I testing the vac port. I say with a hand vac that has a gauge on it. He tells me that wont work. Why I aks? Because it does not pull enough vacuum. They use a big machine to test them and that both ports tested good. I tell him with a big machine and enough vac I am sure it does test good. But I can test port B and port B works. Also, I tested the DV when it was new because the manual sucked and did not explain how it worked so I could decide what the best configuration was. When I tested it new both ports would open the valve and both held a vacuum. I was even able to confirm at what vac each port opened. I have video of testing the2 ports but I don’t know how to put it on here.
5. I don’t remember all of this one. I was telling him I had it connected to recirculate and with the boost “pushing” the valve closed. He said that did not matter. Even with boost on the vac port it will eventually open???? (but yet it is tested to 60 psi). if it is connected with the boost pushing the valve open it will open at 7 psi. so how is it tested at 60 psi and it holds?????
So 6 weeks to tests a little DV and get it back and another month of BS and promises that they will send me a new DV.

Here is the manual. Almost impossible to find on their site.
http://www.synapseengineering.com/support/faq/pdf/DV_manual_webres.pdf

i have video but dont know hos to put it on here.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1427119040.jpg
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1427119073.jpg
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1427119094.jpg
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1427119122.jpg
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1427119141.jpg

Videos need to be put in a video medium first like YouTube then embed it.
That's sad to hear. On a positive note , maybe that's been your problem all this time?
I know you've been tracking this issue awhile. A quick switch to a standard dv could fix it?

whats standard??
i have a RUF IC and K27 with euro CIS.

i just had my FD rebuilt. a big part was due to the DV. my FD did have a dimped metal shim or gasket but that was all that was wrong with it.
part of the indications i was getting that may have been due to the DV was when i would give it gas to accelerate (below boost) my AFR would go lean. that was part of why i had to richen it up. if i had my AFR at 15.2 and slowly accelerated, my AFR went lean to 16.2 or so. now it does not do that......but my FD has been rebuilt too.

then i called larry last week and was talking with him about why my boost AFR was going so lean.

i hate to have tp spend more $$ on something else. i dont know if the spring in it is weaker, or the fact that now i have been using the port that "has more pull" to open the valve sooner is effecting or if the fact that it has a port that leaks is a problem. i would like a GOOD one so that i can start over.
time to call him again......calm down.....calm down

I use a 965 dv. It's the same as the audi/vw dv's. They're plastic so not as pretty but they work. They're $50

4 years no issues
comes with different spring/rates for different tunes
cheap
Blow off valve : Porsche parts, FOR PORSCHE items in GOING SUPER FAST store on eBay!

quattro, is that the same one you use? do they all come with the different springs?

Here is the part on pelican.
1992 Porsche 911 Turbo Coupe - Turbos & SuperChargers - Page 2
Here is what it looks like.
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1427211091.jpg

I have no idea on spring rates. This part fits various Porsche, Audi and vow cars. It won't sound cool, and it will fail eventually. It I've used mine for 4 years. You can divert or vent to atmosphere.
It's cheap but gets the job done.

Doesn't venting to atmosphere with K-Jet/CIS cause an overly rich condition since the air metering arm travels further down thinking the engine is ingesting more air than it actually is?

BUTT maybe that's no big deal since it's only for brief moments?

Yes it does, I don't vent to atmosphere but will if I can finally get some flames!

Other than Mark's approach, what's the best way to get flames?

I'm not familiar with Marks approach. And I'm not the guy to ask though I want in on the conversation. Brian told me to vent to atmosphere or get another diverter valve, attached to I can't remember and it will work reliably. Flames every time you come off full throttle. I have a setup that I made for flames but it didn't let the engine run. I need to find a good vacuum source but I got busy with other things and forgot to ask.

`Twas my ham-handed attempt at Humor, Brandon...

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1390782213.jpg

HAHA. Hope he finds that funny

Too much information right thar, bro!

Didn't you see my garage? Now you should see my back yard. I only skimmed the surface. Have fun with those words.

I would shoot flames when I vented to atmosphere but I thought it was because I was sooooo rich.
Can the 965 one vent to atmosphere.
You say the one on ebay is not a good one


I talked to Peter again yesterday. Said he is sending a new one.
We talked about the port A again. He claims it will not open it????
I told him it was in his manual that you could run just port A.
Then said others run it on port A. Kind of got some double talk but his attitude was different about it.
I may sell the one he sends. Maybe buy the 2 mentioned here and test them both if it is not more money out of pocket.

The 965 one can be vented to atmosphere but you'd have to plug the 965 elbow intake hose.

i have 2 elbows. one for the DV and without.


i did some tests last night.
first i put up to 50psi of air into #4 cylinder. i set #1 to 60degrees ATDC which should have only one other intake open but the exhaust closed. i could feel a good bit of air coming out of the AFM. i soaked the intake with sopy water and did not find any leaks. darn. i was hoping.

then i checked the valves and did a leak down test. 2% for all cyclinders. thats with 100psi going in. i hope my setup is right. i am going to test my brothers hi mileage 930 to see. i still question my results.
i would really like to do a leak down at BDC just to see what it would be. that would require a lot of work.

then i did a compression test. it has actually gotten better since i got the car. new rings were put on right before a got it. originally the left side was all 110 and the right all 120. this made me check the cam timing. now all were at 120 with one maybe a little higher. but i only did one test on each cylinder since they wer coming out were i thought they should be. OE, nothing low.

any chance the ignition can make it run lean???


it still wants to run lean and is still not smooth.

i talked to peter, the CEO,last week on monday 3/23. he said he was going to send me another one. as of monday 3-30, no DV.

what makes this worse is look at the forst pic. they sent it back with only 2 screws in the top.
every time i talk to these guys i feel like i am dealing with 15yr olds.

i ordered the EBAY DV just because it had the springs. i looked at the DV on mybrothers car and it is the same design and his is from turbokraft. if i dont like it i will just get the 965 one....its only money right and thses 2 are still cheaper than the synapse.

just talked to darden today. peter was in a meeting. he does not know if one was shipped but if it was not he will ship one today.
peter is suppose to call me back.

Darden called me back later. he wanted to confirm my address to ship me a new one. said i would be getting a tracking number.
guess they were never serious before.
4/2

Well I finally got the synapse dv.
I don't know what I am going to do with it.
The other one seems to be working fine

Just give it to me. I'll test it.

Bareback?!?!?!

oh its gone down the tubes now....


not sure what i am going to do with it. thought about selling it to get some money back.

here is another on for you to run with.


its still in the box......