08 Service
Engine protection
Rev limit, oil, coolant, AFR, overboost and what the ECU will actually do.
6 min readUpdated 2026-08
Protection is a list of conditions and actions. Race Core will not invent your limits. If you leave oil-pressure protection off, it will happily hold 7 000 rpm at 0.4 bar of oil.
| Condition | Typical action |
|---|---|
| Hard rev limit | Spark cut (then fuel) at a hard RPM. Soft limit retard before that. |
| Overboost | Fuel and spark cut, wastegate duty to 0. Set a cap, not a suggestion. |
| Oil pressure vs RPM | Immediate fuel cut. A delay here is how bearings die. |
| CLT high | Progressive timing pull, then a soft limp, then a cut. Fans should have already been on. |
| AFR lean in boost | Timing pull then cut. Requires a trusted wideband — a failed sensor must not limp you lean. |
| Knock retard cap | Retard then a boost drop. If it is always at the cap, the map is wrong. |
Wire oil pressure. A 0–5 V or 0–10 bar sensor on a spare AV is the cheapest engine you will ever buy. Log it. Protect on it.