Buying an eclipse with a holset?

[Outdorsman]

Eclipse 1999 gst

The car has no receipts as said by the owner. Some of the upgrades seem restrictive which worries me. Also, from the pictures it seems the holset is internally gated which I heard is bad, although I'm basing this on the fact that it has no visible external wastegate, and it comes with an obx manifold which I've heard cracks. 2.5 exhaust seems restrictive and 650cc injectors seem too small for the turbo.


Was told by the owner that is running 21-22 psi.
The manifold to turbo looks weird. As if its not bolted on. I can see the fans are on the opposite side of the radiator.

What do you guys think? Should I jump on it? Think I could get it for 3k?

 

[eligst21]

Don't know much about holstet turbos, but it either looks like it is bolted down from underneath or maybe it has studs that go downward. If any of that makes sense. If you are skeptical, I would just hold off until you feel right about a car. Seems like you aren't to sure anyways.

 

[combs-dsm]

^^^ kinda beat me to it, but Im wondering why he wouldn't have receipts for anything. without that then how is he to prove the ANY of those internals are in the engine. you cant just take peoples word these days. is he a member on here? maybe we can see his profile. but even if you are skeptical I would still post here asking the same questions and look for advice also. but if those parts on his list are in the engine, how many miles are on the parts alone, the obx mani kinda looks like an ebay mani in my opinion. I don't think there bad manifolds though. I see a lot of people running ebay manifolds, hell I have before as well. but I don't think 3000 would be to low to offer if its cash in hand.

 

[Outdorsman]

These are just my observations from the pictures. I plan on seeing it later today. Plan to do a compression test and the usual procedures to gauge engine health and whatnot.

 

[WES_393]

The 2.5" exhaust isn't really a huge deal, but the 650cc injectors are. Your correct, they're way too small for that turbo and probably close to maxed out right now. I'd ask him for a recent datalog to see how things are setup. If you look at it in person, check the fuel pressure and get a datalog while driving. The fans are just setup as pushers, no big deal so long as they work. I know for a fact that catch can is junk, but again not a deal breaker. Also be sure to check the wiring to the battery.

The turbo looks weird because he is using an adapter plate. It's really a poorly matched setup, it should either have a T3 manifold with that housing, or BEP housing with that manifold. Fixing that whole mess would be costly either way. It's also water-cooled, which is very rare for a Holset. So be skeptical of it's authenticity.

Overall it looks OK. I'd say the car was obviously built by someone who had a clue, but also seems like it could be badly rigged in many ways. If it's a good deal for you, I'd at least check it out in person.

 

[Outdorsman]

Thanks for the reply. Hell its something I can use to lower the price! . I have a spare 16g that I could probably bolt on while I get the other things sorted.

Also, I asked if he had a restrictor from the oil filter housing since thats where its being fed from and he doesn't know. I've heard if its being fed from the OFH that its necessary?

 

[WES_393]

Yes, Holsets typically require a restrictor, but it really depends on the oil pressure range of the engine. The drain is important too, so make sure it's not all bubble gum and masking tape. But all you can really do is check for signs of oil in the housings and watch for smoke during cold start or WOT.