Ok – I have the pyrometer, turbo and tranny temp A-pillar gauges installed (THANKS MOTORHAVEN!) and it looks just great! Now…..can someone help me understand this pyrometer gauge please? I have the pre-turbo and I guess my question is – how do I actually know what my turbo temp is at, when all its reading is the exhaust going into the turbo. Does this gauge actually let me know when my turbo is cool enough to shut the truck off, or should I still be sitting there for a couple minutes to be sure the turbo has cooled to an appropriate temp?
THANKS!!!<O</O

 

The reason it is a good idea to put the probe in front of the turbo is that this is the temperature of the exhaust leaving the engine, and from what I understand; the pistons are the first to suffer from over heating during hard runs. The reason a post turbo probe is not a good idea is that the temp will be different depending on how much boost the turbo is making (the more boost, the more the temp drops). There is not any way to know how hot the exhaust is coming out of the engine and into the turbo without figuring in the boost created. Read, you want a preturbo probe, its more actuate.
For me, my average steady state temp is about 375 *F, so I let it cool down to about 400*F, then let it run for about 30 seconds more if the truck was not worked (I have to drive down a long parking lot where I park) and up to 10 minutes if the truck was run hard. You have to remember that the reason for the cool down is so that the oil does not cook into the bearings of the turbo. Since the turbo is a fairly large piece of metal, it will take longer to cool down that what the exhaust gas flowing though it does (this applies to both pre and post turbo gauges). Some might say that you don’t have to cool down as much, as I tend to be on the conservative side on this issue. Hope this helps
DeesO

 

Rodslinger,
DeesO did a pretty good job of filling you in. The exhaust from your motor is what heats the Turbo so that is why it is important to have it before the turbo. I suggest you run your truck down the road to warm it up, then let it idle for a few minuites. After is has idled for a little while look at your guage and that should be your "cool temp". This varies from truck to truck on some it is at 375 F and others like mine is at 400 F. The turbo is intercooled so it cools rather quickly at idle so I would go with the idea that when your pyro reaches your "cool temp" it should be safe to shut down, but like DeesO said it doesn't hurt to wait a few after that.

 

I know this is a little off the post.. but how high of a temp. should you go before you back out of the throttle... on a 6.0L

 

I have my Edge set to defuel at 1310. I try to keep it below 1200 99% of the time. However...once in a while, if I'm passing at high altitude or running hard up a hill while towing, etc. it can get really hot. My max temp so far that I've noticed has been 1425 degrees for a few seconds. If I run my truck hard and hot...I always idle it to at the very least 480 degrees or below before shutting it down to let the turbo cool.

 

Great info guys thanks!