VGT Actuator

[matt204]

I have a 06 F350 and would like to clean my VGT Actuator. Is it hard to remove? Does the turbo have to be removed as well? Any tips would be great! Thank You

[Galaxie]

Why clean it? Is there an issue? More than likely it is the actuator solenoid the vane control (unison) ring that sticks, and without completely disassembling the turbo, you are not going to clean that.

[matt204]

Whats happening is that sometimes when I take off from a stop I feel a quick lag and loss of power. It goes away quickly and does not do it all the time. Its almost like a turbo lag but does not feel or sound normal. It also sounds like the exhaust is being choked when it happens but then comes to life quickly. I thought maybe the vgt actuator is sticking and needs to be cleaned. Any Ideas?

[a2elvis]

Most likely going to be an issue with the VGT vanes or unison ring... The actuator very rarely has an issue.

[Eric@PTP]

You most likely need to clean the vanes on the turbo, and that requires removal.

[2004tonner]

Cleaned mine when I was installing my egr delete. Maybe something to think about doing (egr delete) if you haven't and are taking the turbo off to clean it anyway. I just used a wire brush and did my best to get the soot off of the surfaces that the vanes come into contact with. Seems to have worked fine, although a little tricky to reassemble. I should mention that I didn't appear to be having any issues with the turbo before I cleaned it, but there was quite a bit of soot built up (100k at the time). Turbo isn't too tough to remove if you're mildly mechanically inclined. Just my .02 Good luck!

[Eric@PTP]

Ford sells a cleaning kit for this by the way, all you need is an electric drill.