Turbo and Oil Problems

[Goodguy162000]

So, pulling apart some piping to do a boost test I find that there is oil all over. It's up and down my piping, in my intercooler, and sitting in both ends of my turbo. I don't want to admit to myself it's the turbo...although an upgrade would be nice... but, is there any other possibilities it could be something else? Another symptom, is HELLA white smoke out of the exhaust when driving. There are unusual sounds and my compression checks out okay... any help would be greatly appreciated.

 

[ddavisaf]

sounds like a supercharger or a jig saw? Your turbo is shot. If you're pooling oil in your LICP and intercooler you've got a bad turbo seal.

 

[Goodguy162000]

No, no unusual sounds really. I pushed on the blades a little and they didn't budge. Seems to be nice and sturdy inside.

 

[ddavisaf]

Wiggle it front to back
then side to side and up and down.
How much movement do you have?
Then give it a nice spin, does it spin freely?

 

[MrBoxx]

Your turbo is most likely shot if you're getting massive amounts of smoke out the exhaust and there's oil in your pipes. I doubt it's the oil residue from the valve cover recirculation hose going into your intake. To give you an idea of what might happen if you don't do anything about it, take a look at what happened to my compressor wheel:

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And for a close-up:

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[Goodguy162000]

Wow... Um, guess that means no driving 'til it's rebuilt. *sigh. This is already a rebuilt B16G with less than 5k on it... could somebody tell me, are they just not as reliable as a new one? Perhaps I should just fork out the money and go new... *sigh.

 

[sonicnofadz]

Ummmm...until you actually take off your turbo and inspect it, you will not know if the turbo is causing the problem. Other things could cause this same problem. Don't jump to conclusions until the hard evidence is staring you in your face. Due to all the silly emissions crap on these cars, alot of oil can be injected into the intake tract. Before you go buying a new turbo make sure the turbo is actually damaged.

 

[INNERCIRCLERACI]

If You Do Wind Up Going With A New Turbo The 16g From The Evo 3 Is A Nice Change Of Pace. A Friend Of Mine Got The 16g Ported And Clipped And His Tsi Is Sitting At 350 Whp. He Does Have One Or Two Other Nick Nacks Under The Hood As Well But Over All It Has Proven To Be A Good Change. It Only Ran Him About $650.

 

[Goodguy162000]

Ummmm...until you actually take off your turbo and inspect it, you will not know if the turbo is causing the problem. Other things could cause this same problem. Don't jump to conclusions until the hard evidence is staring you in your face. Due to all the silly emissions crap on these cars, alot of oil can be injected into the intake tract. Before you go buying a new turbo make sure the turbo is actually damaged.

Well that's what I'm asking here. What else could it be? Please elaborate. I did pull the pipes and I'm saying it's pretty sturdy in there. No movement short of the blades spinnin'.

 

[Goodguy162000]

Yeah, I just wanted to double check it because when I pushed on the blades I only did one direction... Well, this time I pushed everyway possible and sure enough, that thing is in there like a rock. So I'm still at a loss. Can my turbo be bad and still feel so sturdy? Or is it likely something else?

 

[MrBoxx]

Are you still running your crankcase venting line into your intake? That can run a little oil into your intercooler pipe, and maybe enough collected to seem like a leak. If you are, I suggest putting a Fram G2 or similar fuel filter in that line as a catch can. You'd be suprised how much junk that catches.

 

[sonicnofadz]

Yeah, I just wanted to double check it because when I pushed on the blades I only did one direction... Well, this time I pushed everyway possible and sure enough, that thing is in there like a rock. So I'm still at a loss. Can my turbo be bad and still feel so sturdy? Or is it likely something else?

Heres a tip: take off your entire turbo and inspect it for damage. Stop feeling for excess shaft play because this is only one thing out of many that can be wrong with a turbo. If your turbo turns out to be ok then its highly probable that oil is just being recirculated into your intake somewhere (or maybe your headgasket is fux0red).

 

[Goodguy162000]

Heres a tip: take off your entire turbo and inspect it for damage. Stop feeling for excess shaft play because this is only one thing out of many that can be wrong with a turbo. If your turbo turns out to be ok then its highly probable that oil is just being recirculated into your intake somewhere (or maybe your headgasket is fux0red).

Okay, perhaps I'm not being very clear... Obviously excess shaft play is not the only cause of turbo failure. Could somebldy please state something along the lines of... "Well, Mr. Goodguy162000, it could also be this, this, or this. Here's an easy way to check for these other possibilities. Good Luck" Because if somebody could, I'd be very appreciative.

 

[Goodguy162000]

Oh, and I do have a catch can mod. Thanks for your suggestion.

 

[sonicnofadz]

Oh, and I do have a catch can mod. Thanks for your suggestion.

Like I said before, excess shaft play is only one way a turbo can be damaged. The fan blades on either the intake or exhaust side could also be damaged by debris entering/exiting the engine. Also excess "coking" from burned oil and internal cracks can develop. The only way to check if your turbo is healthy is to unmount it from the manifold and examine it up close for damage. At the very least, take off your intake and check out the fan blades on the intake side.

 

[Goodguy162000]

Sounds like I'll be removing my Turbo this weekend... stupid rain. Okay, theres a few ideas. Thank you.