Out-of-order 16G upgrade dilema

[kenamond]

My turbo just croaked (more of a loud squeal) - 78k miles was all she wrote.

I'm not prepared to dump all 11 steps of the Stage 1 upgrade path worth of cash into my car to get to the 12th (turbo upgrade) step all at once, but I don't want to buy a new stock turbo only to eventually replace it.

I already have an adequate, upgraded clutch, but that's it.

It's my daily driver, too, so I need a ride fairly soon.

I was thinking of a small 16G turbo, but I don't know if I'm opening a big can of worms by skipping ahead in the upgrade process. Am I hosed? Is there a bare minimum set of steps that I must do before the turbo upgrade, presuming I intend to do the rest as income permits?

 

[DSMcamaro]

As long as you keep the boost down and dont go beating on it all the time I would think you should be ok. I would get a logger first if you dont already have one so you can watch whats going on and just to be on the safe side.
edit- just noticed your a 2G, have you thought about a t28?

 

[g63tawd]

No if you don't have to stick to that direct sometimes basic repairs are in order and without the turbo you car will not run well. Besides a small 16g isn't a huge differance from what you have now with the now. If you are going to dump the cash and depending on your goals you may even want to look at the evo 16g I had one and enjoyed it quite a bit. But thats just my 2 cents but you don't have to stick the the upgrade path excatly you can stray as long as you don't try to push it you will be fine.

 

[Pure92TSi]

As long as you keep the boost at the stock levels you will be ok for now. But get your fuel mods as soon as you can so you can raise the boost.

 

[andymoraitis]

Your maximum limit on a 16G variant without fuel upgrades would be in the neighborhood of 14-15psi. When funds allow, add a 190 fuel pump and you can go to 17psi, but you'll likely hit fuel cut before you can enjoy that level of boost. 550's and some method of controlling them will net you 20-22psi on the stock sidemount (if you have 93/94 pump available).

You're not hosed by going out of sequence. Just be careful and invest in a logger to check for dips in timing that would indicate knock.

Good luck!

Andy

 

[kenamond]

Thanks alot!

Well, first thing's first. Today, I was driving my non-boosted, crippled ride at about 25mph floored in 2nd (to make the modest incline) - by now, the turbo wasn't making any buzzing or whining sound like it was last time I drove it and was probably not rotating at all - and I got a sudden impressive (depressing) belch of white smoke from the tailpipe and immediately pulled over. I suspect that I blew a seal in the turbo bearing and started dumping oil into the intake or exhause (or both). First off, how bad is this? I probably drove 50ft like this, idled backward down the hill, then had to drive 30ft into a parking lot. Second, I didn't sniff the exhaust and am assuming it's burning oil and not coolant, as I doubt I cracked the housing such that coolant would enter the intake or exhaust stream. I guess it doesn't matter one way or another, since I'm replacing the turbo.

Anyway...

I think that I'll go with an FP Big T28 instead of the 16G based on what I've read about them.

I have one small concern about surge. I'm going out of order, so I still have the stock intake and the associated poor VE, and I'm not sure if the T28 will surge at a higer VAF than the stock T25 at the same PR. I guess I could track down the compressor maps for both and try to find the stock VE, then compare the two.

I've found a few guides on changing out the turbo, and I think I'll go ahead and port the manifold and O2 housing while my car is up on jackstands. One thing the guides didn't mention was any concerns about flushing the oil lines. Is there anything I should be concerned about considering what happened to my turbo today?

Also, one of the guides mentioned heating/cooling the exhaust manifold while using PB Blaster to help loosen the turbo/manifold bolts/nut. I'd fill the neighborhood (and my garage) with burning oil smoke if I did that now (and I'm not sure how much oil I'm pumping into my IC and possibly into the cylinders running it in this condition). I guess I could try to bypass the turbo and connect the in/out oil lines just to warm the manifold, but that sounds like a pain just to get the turbo and manifold separated. Should I expect it to be that hard?

A dumb question: Is the T28 truely bolt on? I don't need anything else other than the gaskets and washers (and maybe the 4th bold for the turbo/manifold)?

Okay, that was long. Sorry. I'll try to keep it shorter next time (yes, there will be a next time )

 

[kenamond]

Just ordered the FP Big T-28 and gasket set. No turning back now!

 

[DSMcamaro]

have you thought about a t28?

congrats on the T-28. Were you looking at them b4 my post?

 

[kenamond]

I wasn't looking seriously at the T28 until you mentioned it, so I did some searching on the forum and convinced myself that the extra cash was worth it. Thanks for the suggestion!

Found out today that my AAA expired, so I called in and had it renewed so that I can get my car towed back to my garage. My backup ride - 1974 Ford F100 pickup - is disabled (tire rolled off the rim trying to get it out of it's hiding/parking spot), so I'll have the tow truck pull that up so that I can put the spare on it. Then I get to start tearing apart my at a more leasure pace.

Thanks again for the T28 suggestion!

 

[chicagoavenger]

Couldn't you of disconnected the wg and ride around like that.

 

[titogs95]

WOw that was a quick decision. but it won't be a hassle installing it.
You will love it....

 

[kenamond]

ChicagoAvenger: It was dumping oil into the intake, so I was leaving a quite impressive and quite illegal smoke screen.

She's safely parked in my garage, so I can start disassembling, cleaning out the oil, etc. I got my pickup truck running, so I can take my time and (hopefully) do this right.

 

[zippyshoe]

The one step in the Stage 1 upgrade that you may want to consider along with your turbo upgrade is to at least upgrade your BOV (to a stock 1G or aftermarket). The stock 2G BOV will probably start to leak even at 14-15psi - your new turbo will be working harder than it needs to in order to maintain your boost pressure while the stock BOV will be leaking your boost. Hope this helps!