Tuning Feature: Nissan TB48DE Modified

"Comprehensive guide to performance tuning the Nissan TB48DE engine!"

We are frequently getting emails asking about the best TB48DE mods that work. So let us look into Nissan TB48DE upgrades and outline the best upgrades on this great engine and point out some problems along the way.

Let us examine the options for your TB48DE tuning and show the best modifications for your car. Nissan TB48DE are popular tuning projects and with the best modified modifications like a remap, turbo kits and camshafts you will positively increase the drivers pleasure of your car.

When talking about the optimum parts for your TB48DE engine, we are going to concentrate on the mods that give the best value for money.

Altering your TB48DE cam often will make a dramatic difference to your engines power band. Choosing a higher performance cam profile raises the power band especially at the top end.

NB: Fast road cams usually increase the bhp and torque throughout the rpm range, you may lose a little bottom end bhp but your top end will be better.

Motorsport cams, increase the top end band but as a result the car will not idle smoothly and low end power nearly always suffers.

For a road car one, ideally, need to optimize your bhp range to your typical driving style.

I'd be amazed if you have found a TB48DE Motorsport camshaft is a pleasure to live with when driving around busy urban areas.

Some TB48DE engines respond better to more aggressive camshaft durations so set your engine up on a rolling road.

The ECU mapping and injectors and fuel pump also will make differences on the power gains you'll hit.

Longer valve durations can alter the power band and on most engines the exhaust and intake durations do not need to match, although most cams and tuners use matched pairs there are some advantages to extending the intake or exhaust durations.

TB48DE Tuning Stages

Stage 1 TB48DE modifications: Remaps/piggy back ECU, Intake headers, Sports exhaust manifold, Panel air filters, Fast road camshaft, Drilled & smoothed airbox.

Stage 2 TB48DE modifications: induction kit, high flow fuel injectors, fuel pump upgrades, Ported and polished head, Sports catalyst & performance exhaust, Fast road cam.

Stage 3 TB48DE modifications: Internal engine upgrades (head flowing porting/bigger valves), Crank and Piston upgrades to alter compression, Competition cam, Twin charging conversions, Adding or Upgrading forced induction (turbo/supercharger), Engine balancing & blueprinting.

ECU mapping helps fully realize the full potential of all the upgrades you've done to your TB48DE.

It will usually give around 30% more power on turbocharged vehicles and you can expect to see around 15% on NASP engines, but the end result will differs on the upgrades you've carried out and the condition of your engine.

Forcing air into each cylinder is vital to any engine performance tuning project.

Air Intake manifolds transmit the air during the suck phase from the air cleaner and allow it to be fed into the engine cylinders.

The bore size, shape and flow characteristics of the Intake manifold can make a substantial change to fuel mixing and power on the TB48DE.

It's not uncommon that plenum chambers are in desperate need of an upgrade, although some manufacturers provide reasonably good plenum chambers.

Increasing the TB48DE valve size, carrying out TB48DE port enlargement and head flowing will also improve torque, and as an added benefit will raise potential for increasing the torque increase on other parts.

Turbo upgrades for the TB48DE

NASP engines need quite a lot of work when you add a turbo, so we have a separate guide to help you take into account the pros and cons of going this route on your TB48DE

The more air you can get into an engine, the more fuel it can burn and uprating the induction with a turbocharger upgrade makes superb power gains.

When the engine has a turbo already fitted upgrades are relatively easy and turbo charged engines already contain strengthened components.

However most engines have limits

It is important to find these limits and install higher quality crank and pistons to utilize the power.

It's not unheard of drivers spending a loads of money on turbo charger upgrades on the TB48DE only to watch the car go up in smoke when it's completed.

Bigger turbos tend to experience a bottom end lag, and little turbos spool up more quickly but do not have the peak end bhp gains.

Thanks to new tech the choice of turbo units is always moving on and we commonly find variable vane turbo units, where the vane profile is altered according to speed to lower lag and increase top end performance.

Twin scroll turbo units divert the exhaust gases into 2 channels and push these at differently designed vanes in the turbocharger. They also increase the scavenging effect of the engine.

It is not unusual that there's a limitation in the air flow sensor AFM/MAF on the TB48DE when loads more air is being drawn into the engine.

Going up you'll find 4 bar air sensors coping with quite large power gains, whereas the OEM air sensor was restricting power at a much lower level.

Adding a supercharger or additional turbo will make large performance gains, although more complex to get working. We have this feature on twinchargers if you want to read more.

Uprating TB48DE fuel injectors

Don't miss you'll need to increase the fuelling when you are increasing the bhp - it makes the car more thirsty. We would recommend you to over specify your injectors flow rate.

The accepted safe increase is to add 20% when buying an injector, this takes into account injector deterioration and allows you some spare capacity should the engine require more fuel.

We think this one is common sense, but you'll need to match your fuel injector to the type of fuel your car uses as well.

Best TB48DE performance exhausts

Only look to replace your exhaust if the current exhaust is creating a restriction in flow.

On most factory exhausts you'll see the flow rate is still fine even on modest power gains, but when you start pushing up the power levels you will need to get a better flowing exhaust.

Please dont run with the widest exhaust you can find this will reduce the exhaust flow rate - the best exhausts for power gains are usually between 1.5 to 2.5 inches. It is the shape and material more than the bore size.

Usual exhaust restrictions are traced to the catalyst and filters installed, so adding a freer flowing race alternative will help avoid this restriction.

Problems and issues to look out for on the TB48DE

The TB48DE engines, if regularly serviced and maintained, are generally very reliable and have few issues. {But if neglected they can cost a small fortune|When neglected they get very expensive to run|They can however be quite expensive if neglected| }

Regular oil changes are vital on the TB48DE, particularly when the engine has been modified and is putting down more power than the manufacturer intended.

For more information on Tuning your TB48DE engine please join us in our friendly forum where you can discuss tuning options in more detail with our TB48DE owners. It would also be worth reading our unbiased tuning articles to get a full grasp of the benefits and drawbacks of each modification.

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We really like hearing from our readers, and hearing about which parts were the most effective for them, it helps us improve our recommendations and articles to reflect current trends in modifications and ensures that our TB48DE guides and tips are kept up to date.

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This article is flagged for an update, so please pass on specific tips below that I can include. All articles, and content was written by me, Waynne Smith TorqueCars founder. Some outlines are just too general so I appreciate your feedback and suggestions. This entry was filed under Nissan. You can leave a response below or join our forum to discuss this article and car modification in detail with our members.

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