We've all been there. You have a 14B or 16G with a leaky turbine shaft seal or a little bit of shaft play, and you're contemplating whether you want to spend a ridiculous price to rebuild a turbo that is not worth the cost of the rebuild.
This is an instructional demonstration (with photos) of how to rebuild your turbo as inexpensively as possible!
I will follow-up this tech post with rebuild procedures for other popular DSM turbos such as the T25 and some T3 Garrett Hybrids.
Get ready, you're going to get
DIRTY!
- Lets begin by describing the tools needed for this procedure. You'll need:
- Long handled, thin-tipped needle nose pliers.
- Internal snap ring pliers.
- 3/8" ratchet with a 12mm socket.
- 1/4" ratchet with a 10mm socket.
- 12mm 12-point box end wrench (or 14mm for those rebuilding TD06 turbos).
- Medium flat screwdriver.
- Tiny flat screwdriver or pick.
- Dead-blow hammer or regular hammer and a block of wood.
- Here's the candidate for today's lesson- a 14B. These turbos are a great example because they can be acquired for next to nothing and really aren't worth paying outrageous prices for a shop to rebuild. This rebuild procedure will be the same for any TD05H or TD06 turbo.
- Begin by removing the wastegate actuator using the 12mm socket on the 3/8" ratchet.
- Once the actuator is removed, use the 10mm socket on the 1/4" ratchet to remove the locknut on the v-band holding the center housing to the turbine housing.
- The exhaust housing will almost NEVER come apart on it's own! You'll need to strike the housing using a dead-blow hammer or a regular hammer and a block of wood.
- This photo illustrates the housing once it's removed. Pay close attention to the locating pin! It normally stays in the exhaust housing, but occasionally sticks in the center housing. This little pin is easy to lose track of, and is important (but not crucial) to the assembly process.
- Notice how the turbine wheel and backplate appear wet...this is a prime example of a leaking turbine shaft seal.
- Now, using the long-handled needle nose pliers, remove the large snap ring which holds the compressor housing to the center housing.
- Gently lift upward being careful not to catch the compressor wheel on the housing.
- Here is the center housing removed.
- Take note of whether the locknut on the compressor wheel is left-hand or right-hand threaded! Many older 14B's and some TD06 turbos are right-hand threaded, while most modern 16G's are left-hand threaded to prevent the nut from loosening during operation. If you look closely at the threads in this photo, you'll see the turbo I'm working on is right-hand threaded.
- Using the 12-point 12mm (or 14mm) open end on the turbine wheel, remove the compressor locknut. The locknut can be 10mm, 11mm, 10mm 12-point, or 3/8" 12-point.
***If your turbo has balance grinds on the locknut, it was balanced on a VSR after the entire turbo was assembled. This does not apply to some older 14B's like the one pictured. It is crucial that you mark the alignment of the shaft/nut/compressor upon disassembly if your compressor locknut has balance grinds.***
- The compressor wheel should slide off the shaft easily.
- Once the compressor wheel is removed, the turbine shaft can easily push out the opposite direction....often with the journal bearing still on the shaft. Look at the oily mess left by the leaking turbine seal!
- Remove the worn turbine seal from the shaft by "walking" it out of the groove with your fingers. Be careful, the worn seal is often very sharp! Use a tiny flat screwdriver if you cannot get your fingernail underneath the seal to initially lift it out of the groove.
- Demonstration of "walking" the seal out of the groove.
- Using the internal snap ring pliers, remove the snap ring that holds the oil shield in place.
- Once the snap ring is removed, gently lift upward on the lip of the oil shield with a flat screwdriver.
- Now you must remove the o-ring from the center housing before the thrust plate can be removed.
- Once the o-ring is removed, gently lift the thrust plate upward using the flat screwdriver, and remove it.
CONTINUED IN PART 2.
