Tuning Feature: Nissan VG30DET Modified

"Comprehensive guide to tuning the Nissan VG30DET engine!"

We are always getting posts requesting information on the greatest VG30DET mods that work. So let us look into Nissan VG30DET parts and outline the best mods that work on this great engine and point out some frequent tuning mistakes along the way.

Here we detail the best approach to VG30DET tuning and outline the ultimate upgrades. Nissan VG30DET really good project engines and with the optimum tuning upgrades like remaps, turbo kits and camshafts you will dramatically increase the drivers experience of your car.

Just because particular upgrades are appear in lots of VG30DET projects it doesn't mean its worth having, we will concentrate on the greatest upgrades to provide your VG30DET with the biggest power gain return for your cash.

Significant power hikes can be made on engines, and the VG30DET is no exception, through cam upgrades. Altering the cam profile alters the intake and exhaust durations on the engine and can dramatically change the bhp and power output.

NB: Fast road cams normally increase the performance throughout the rev range, you could sacrifice a little low end bhp but high end rpm power will be higher.

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

A Competition camshaft won't do well if driving in heavy traffic.

You should ideally match your torque band to your cars usage so for a car driven daily stick with a shorter duration VG30DET camshaft

Different VG30DET engines respond better to different cam durations check your engine on a rolling road.

The ECU mapping and fuelling also have a large bearing on the torque gains you'll hit.

Altering valve durations can alter the torque 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.

VG30DET Tuning Stages

Stage 1 VG30DET modifications: Drilled & smoothed airbox, Fast road camshaft, Remaps/piggy back ECU, Sports exhaust manifold, Intake headers, Panel air filters.

Stage 2 VG30DET modifications: high flow fuel injectors, Ported and polished head, fuel pump upgrades, induction kit, Sports catalyst & performance exhaust, Fast road cam.

Stage 3 VG30DET modifications: Crank and Piston upgrades to alter compression, Competition cam, Adding or Upgrading forced induction (turbo/supercharger), Internal engine upgrades (head flowing porting/bigger valves), Engine balancing & blueprinting, Twin charging conversions.

ECU mapping allows a tuner to to establish the full potential of all the upgrades you've done to your VG30DET.

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 often vary depending on the upgrades you've done and the condition of your engine.

It is the whole point to any engine tuning task to force more air and fuel into your VG30DET

Intake headers transmit the air during the suck phase from the filter and allow it to be sucked into the engine cylinders with fuel for the squish phase.

Design and flow rate of the Intake manifold can make a large improvement to fuel mixing and power on the VG30DET.

I usually find intake are in dire need of performance upgrades, although a few car makers provide reasonably good intake.

Adding a VG30DET larger valve kit, doing a bit of port work and head flowing will also raise power, and significantly will permit an improved power increase on other upgrades.

Turbo upgrades for the VG30DET

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 VG30DET

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

If an engine is turbocharged, parts are more reliable and most turbo engines are built with many forged and stronger components.

There are practical limits for every engine, with some being extremely strong and some only just able to handle stock power

Discover these restrictions and install stronger pistons, crank and engine components to cope with the power.

It's not unheard of drivers spending a lots of money on turbocharger upgrades on the VG30DET only to have the VG30DET throw a rod on it's first outing after it's first rolling road session.

Big upgraded turbochargers tend to suffer low end lag, and little turbochargers spool up really quickly but won't have the top end engines power gains.

Thankfully the range of turbo units is always moving on and we now see variable vane turbo units, permitting the vane angle is altered according to speed to lower lag and increase top end bhp and torque.

Twin scroll turbo units divert the exhaust flow into a couple of channels and feed these at differently designed vanes in the turbo. They also improve the scavenging effect of the engine.

It is common that there is a limitation in the air flow sensor AFM/MAP on the VG30DET when a lot more air is being fed into the engine.

We see 4 bar air sensors coping with quite large power gains, whereas the OEM air sensor sapped bhp at a much lower level.

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

Uprating VG30DET fuel injectors

Don't dismiss the need ramp up the fuel system when you are increasing the torque - it makes the car more thirsty. It is important to over specify your injectors flow rate.

The accepted safe increase is to add 20% capacity when fitting an injector, this accounts for injector deterioration and affords 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 VG30DET performance exhausts

Only look to replace your exhaust if your current exhaust is actually causing a restriction in flow.

On most factory exhausts you should find that the exhaust flow rate is still good even on modest power gains, but when you start pushing up the power levels you will need to get a better flowing exhaust.

Sports exhausts increase the flow of air through the engine.

But if the exhaust is too big, ie: over 2.5 inches bore, you will lose a lot of the exhaust flow rate and end up sapping power and torque.

Common exhaust restrictions are traced to the catalyst installed, so adding a faster flowing sports alternative will help avoid this restriction.

Problems and issues to look out for on the VG30DET

The VG30DET 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 VG30DET, particularly when the engine has been modified and is putting down more power than the manufacturer intended.

For more information on Tuning your VG30DET engine please join us in our friendly forum where you can discuss tuning options in more detail with our VG30DET 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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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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