Losing power in bends

[terra_australis]

Last trip I did I noticed an odd behavior in my Patrol. I was going uphill on a winding road and noticed that on the bends the engine just seemed to lose power even if I put my foot down more. It was gradual loss, not like when limp mode kicks in (which I have experienced a couple of times). When the road straightened out, power returned. Quite an annoying effect.
Has anyone else experienced this? I was wondering if somehow gravity was stopping the fuel pump from working at its normal rate or something like that. Interestingly it seemed to happen on both left and right hand bends.

[the evil twin]

Need more info mate... engine, transmission, mods, fuel etc?

[Robo]

Humm a suss fuel filter and or fuel pump/ pressure can be a cause of this sorta behavior.
when was the filter last changed?.
that would be my first pick.

[Bigcol]

as per ET
what engine, fuel, mods, Transmission

what road............. Bulli Pass, the A32 up to Katoomba

these will help..........

[BillsGU]

I have seen this happen when people accidently leave their vehicle in 4 wheel drive on the bitumen. After a while you will get transmission wind up and your truck will lose power - especially around corners.

[Robo]

I have seen this happen when people accidently leave their vehicle in 4 wheel drive on the bitumen. After a while you will get transmission wind up and your truck will lose power - especially around corners.

you'd also notice it's harder to turn corners especially in tight spaces.

[terra_australis]

Ah sorry guys, yeah. It's a 2014 GU Ti 3.0L CRD. Previous owner fitted a 3" exhaust, performance chip (CMD if I remember correctly) and a Pedders 2" lifted suspension setup. I fitted some BFG 285/75/16 AT tyres when I acquired the vehicle. No other drivetrain mods that I am aware of. The particular stretch of road was Macquarie Pass up to Robertson... long winding uphill for several kms. Was definitely in 2WD, so I do not suspect windup was involved.
Have not noticed the problem since although my daily drive is pretty much all flat.

[terra_australis]

I did the same drive today and the same thing was happening. Most noticeable on the hairpins where you have to drop down to second gear to slow into the bend, then accelerate again. Midway through the bend it just seems to struggle to push the car until it is on the exit side and you've been traveling in a straight line for a couple of seconds then power returns and it's business as usual. To me the effect is like trying to drive a petrol sedan up a steep hill in 4th gear - starts the bottom of the hill fine but then just slows down as it loses momentum.
Definitely not direction dependent as I can confirm it happened on both left and right hand bends.
Didn't happen coming back down the hill at all so I don't think there's anything in the drivetrain binding up although I'm running auto hubs... what would be the effect if they were malfunctioning?

Hmmm... I wonder? http://www.nissanpatrol.com.au/forums/showthread.php?30518-Y61-Traction-control

[terra_australis]

I did some testing this afternoon and I think it may be the TCS doing it. When I turned the traction control off I had no problem with power on some similar tight bends. I'll do some more testing tomorrow on a more winding road. I thought the slip light on the dash was supposed to light up if TCS kicked in?
Now I'm wondering whether my lift or bigger tyres may be throwing out the G force sensors or wheel speed sensors output.

[BillsGU]

Does your TCS also engage a diff lock? That would give the sort of symptoms you are describing.

[terra_australis]

Does your TCS also engage a diff lock? That would give the sort of symptoms you are describing.

It would but probably not in the space of moving only a couple of metres. I was doing some reading about the traction control in the newer GUs and it seems it actually controls engine speed as well as operating the brakes on individual wheels. That would certainly explain the power loss.
Anyway, I just went for a drive up the mountain with the TCS turned off and magically the problem did not present itself so that seems to be the reason.
Question is... why does it think the TCS needs to be activated when I'm not losing traction? Perhaps my higher suspension and subsequent higher centre of gravity is causing more tilt around the corners?

[nipagu7]

i don't have TCS but , if it can be turned on and off , should it normally be turned off until needed ? EG; muddy tracks , steep climbs .

[terra_australis]

It is automatically enabled whenever you start the car. You can then disable or re-enable by pushing a button. For the amount of time I'm going uphill on winding roads it won't cause me too much grief although I think driving on winding roads is a time when you would probably want TCS to be enabled, as long as it isn't activating unnecessarily.