GenV ALV40 Anti-Lag Valve

What is Anti-Lag?

The concept of anti-lag is to reduce or eliminate turbocharger lag. Turbocharger lag is generally considered the time it takes for your engine to produce a boost. Note that we say time – Not RPM. Anti-lag is an improvement in response. It will not make a large turbo create “boost” earlier in the RPM range on a dyno (as an example), but a sound setup system will ensure you maintain boost between gear changes and dynamic (On / Off) throttle situations as seen in motorsports such as drifting, rallying and such.

How does Anti-Lag work?

There are a couple of Anti-Lag strategies based on your engine, vehicle, and ECU. The Turbosmart ‘Fresh Air’ ALV40 is the basis of a complete bypass system where the valve opens when the throttle is closed and allows compressed air from the turbocharger to be directed into the exhaust manifold before the turbocharger – effectively ‘around’ the engine. This compressed air requires an ECU strategy of additional fuel and adjusted ignition timing to effectively ignite and control a burn in the manifold right before the turbo. This burn creates energy, which can maintain turbine speed, also known as ‘boost’.

Is this all I need to get going?

Not really. This valve is specifically designed to do this job. However, to actuate the valve, you must operate it via a boost or vacuum. Either of these will require a charge canister to hold the boost or vacuum ready for use. Although there are many ways to do this (we recommend talking to your tuner before you decide), a common way to activate the charge canister is via a check valve/system. Then, once your canister is charged, you can use a 4-Port electronic solenoid to control the two sides of the ALV40 actuator.

Is this just an External Wastegate?

No. The Turbosmart GenV External wastage architecture did make this product a reality – However, there is a small but essential difference between a wastegate and an ALV40: True Twin Port Control. The valve may be capable of handling exhaust gas temperatures; however, in an anti-Lag application, you are passing much cooler, compressed air (rather than exhaust), as normal External wastegates do have much hotter exhaust gas. They run a relatively large tolerance on the valve guide. While this design feature is necessary on an external wastegate, we can engineer a tighter seal on an anti-Lag valve. This ensures much more accurate and higher levels of valve control.

Is this the same as throttle kick Anti-Lag?

Not at all, no. There are a couple of crucial differences, and yes, you require more hardware to do it. Throttle Kick style Anti-Lag has been a feature on most aftermarket ECUS. Fresh Air Anti-Lag, however, has several distinct benefits. The first is significantly lower EGTs during Anti-Lag operation, which means more excellent reliability of your turbocharger, manifold and accessories. The other use is around vacuum-boosted brake systems. Vehicles fitted with these braking systems (most cars) will lose braking assist when kick-type Anti-Lag is activated as the engine does not run in a vacuum. However, a Fresh Air Anti-Lag system has a vacuum and maintains all vacuum bases and boosted accessories when in operation.