Acceptable shaftplay in a Evo3 16g

[Trigger Jack]

I've tried searching, and have found dozens of threads talking about this, and while some people seem fully adamant about requiring turbos to have zero shaftplay, others say some is normal, etc. I'm going to assume that zero is ideal, but at what measurement, does it become unacceptable? I apologize in advance for a question that's been asked many times, but searching only left me more confused than I was when I started.

My question, stems from me purchasing an Evo3 16g that was described as no shaftplay. When I received, it does in fact have some. I called the owner, and he said the turbo has less than a few thousand miles on it, does not smoke, etc, and that the shaftplay will go away when there's oil run through the turbo.

However, from what I know about turbos, once you install them, it primarily gets rid of side to side play; not in/out. Of which, I have 1/32nd of an inch (or just less than 1mm) of in/out play. Side to side, there's a slight amount, but no matter how I move it, the wheel does not touch the compressor housing.

So, should I go by face value, and say that since his claim was that it had none, that I should demand a refund; or is the amount of play that I have within an acceptable limit?

 

[rich3389]

I would say its fine.

 

[daren_p]

Side to side play is normal (& has to be there), as long as it isn't touching the compressor cover & this play will be taken up with oil pressure. In & out play is not normal & will not be taken up with oil pressure. If you paid next to nothing for the turbo, sure run it & expect it to need a rebuild in the near future. If you paid the going rate for a "excellent shape" turbo, you probably got ripped off. With that being said, there may not be much you can do now.

If the turbo has that much in/out play, the seller is either lying about the milage or he had an oiling issue. I ran my evoIII for two summers & probably had 20K on it when I sold it & it did have zero in/out play.

 

[Trigger Jack]

So, that's one vote for acceptable, one for not.

I paid $350 for it and the o2 housing....which isn't next to nothing, but it's not as much as I've seen them go for, either....

That's why I'm somewhat on the middle of the road. I didn't pay enough to feel completely ripped off, but also didn't pay so little that I can just say "screw it" and throw it out.

I called a performance shop in Atlanta (I'll withhold the name, but they're quite reputable), and they gave me roughly the same answer....some of their brand new turbos have 1mm side to side, AND 1-2mm in/out, and they've run them for several seasons on the track, no problems at all. And some of the used ones they get, have no play, and blow up after a few runs at relatively low psi.....so ultimately, he said he didn't know what advice to give, but to run it, and see what happens.

One other thing, which may or may not be a deciding factor, is that I only intend to run between 15-18 psi. Not sure if the psi I run would directly link to the stress I'm putting on the components, and allow for more variances; but I thought I'd bring that up, in case it does.

 

[RedTalon95]

The turbo should have next to NO in and out play. As stated before, side to side is expected.

 

[Trigger Jack]

Alright, so the side to side is okay; and we're now 2 to 1 on whether the in/out is okay.

Thanks for the input so far. I guess I'll see about getting my money back....

 

[Trigger Jack]

Called one of the vendors listed, however, and they said that while not ideal, it's still perfectly acceptable, and at my psi range, it should last, no problem.

So....A wiseman on one side, a vendor on the other.

 

[JusMX141]

http://www.dsmtuners.com/forums/tur...-what-worry-about-when-buying-used-turbo.html

Read #1.

 

[Trigger Jack]

That certainly answer that. Thanks!

Leads me to wonder why several vendors have said it was acceptable......but I'll definitely be working on getting my money back.

 

[dieseltech]

Why not invest in a rebuild kit and rebuild it yourself. Turbos have very little moving parts. You will have to scribe housings for alignment and take your time. With the digital age taking pictures is easy and fast. I've rebuilt them before and found them to be extremely simple, the clean up was kind of a pain though.

 

[daren_p]

That certainly answer that. Thanks!

Leads me to wonder why several vendors have said it was acceptable......but I'll definitely be working on getting my money back.

Did you tell them you had just purchased the turbo & paid a descent $ for it? They may have thought you had a spare turbo laying around, picked it up for next to nothing, etc. So it would be alright to install but the longevity of the turbo would probably be in question. With a turbo like that, you may get a descent amount of use out of it or it could be shot tomorrow (I would bet more towards the later). Basically with something like that, I'd base my paying price on figuring the turbo needed a rebuild.