FWD - Ball bearing or Journal Bearing?

[jaday]

Is a ball bearing turbo really worth it on a fwd dsm? I am looking at the SCM5031, but am yet to invest in all of the good ole' traction items. I will get everything: tires, suspension, lsd, motor mounts, etc... along the way, but it may be awhile. Thus, I am wondering if it is worth the extra couple of hundred bucks for a ball bearing turbo. My car is never going to be a daily driver, and I will use it more at the track... I don't want to pay the extra if all its going to do is let me spin easier with no added performance because I will have to feather the throttle to hook up.

 

[Zex4g63]

It won't matter which one you go with. On a fwd with street tires and the proper tune it will burn the tires off. The initial spool of a BB versus a journal in that turbo will be within a few hundred rpm. Boost recovery is where the BB will really shine. Just depends what you want to spend.

 

[daren_p]

Like was said, on street tires either turbo will just spin the tires on a car making descent power (know this all too well). I run the FP3052 which is a Garrett GT3076 BB turbo, I haven't run a similar sized std thrust bearing turbo but I can say I like the way this spools much better then the evoIII I ran. The boost is much more linear on spool up with the 3052, its starts building boost around 3000 rpms (or slightly less) & hits full boost abit over 4000 rpms. Where as the evoIII felt more like no boost to full boost in a split second, defently not ideal for a fwd. Like mentioned a BB will also have much quicker boost recovery after shifts, which is a good thing at the track (or DD'ing for that matter). My boost recovery is basically the same as the evoIII was. My vote would be for BB & ofcourse slicks

 

[NATAS]

Spending $1000+ for a turbo that can't even be rebuild (new chra that's it) is a big commitment. If you're just starting out I'd suggest a journal bearing turbo. On FWD lag is good anyway. It gives you time to hook up before full boost hits. The performance of a ball bearing turbo is undeniable though and you can get really quick spool on a large(ish) turbo.

 

[daren_p]

Spending $1000+ for a turbo that can't even be rebuild (new chra that's it) is a big commitment. If you're just starting out I'd suggest a journal bearing turbo. On FWD lag is good anyway. It gives you time to hook up before full boost hits. The performance of a ball bearing turbo is undeniable though and you can get really quick spool on a large(ish) turbo.

Have to remember you can replace the whole CHRA which is around $400 I believe but also take into consideration alot of times you may have other damage such as a fin eating a compressor cover, etc., so a std thrust bearing rebuild can easily cost you just as much. Plus BB's tend to be more reliable to begin with.

 

[NATAS]

Have to remember you can replace the whole CHRA which is around $400 I believe but also take into consideration alot of times you may have other damage such as a fin eating a compressor cover, etc., so a std thrust bearing rebuild can easily cost you just as much. Plus BB's tend to be more reliable to begin with.

Yep, check my post I was aware that you could replace the whole CHRA to rebuild a ball bearing turbo. I really have to say that if price is an issue the journal bearing is going to win every time. I'm not arguing at the ball bearing turbo's performance at all. Of course turbos can munch wheels and what not, but that's a problem both turbos share regardless of what type of center section they have. As for ball bearing turbos being more reliable; I've never seen or even heard any data on that before, but would be happy to see whatever you have on it. I can see how it makes sense though.

 

[Defiant]

No turbocharger uses journal bearings. They're slippers, and are the key to how they work at all.