Two blown turbos, less than 500 miles on each, what's happening?!?

[Fayt]

I just checked today and my oil seals on my Big 16g are gone. I've leaked a LOT of oil into my intercooler, and has been smoking between shifts after boosting for a while.

My first turbo was an Evo III. The oil return line was kinked, and backed a lot of oil into the turbo seal. Of course, it got destroyed. Sent it out for a warranty rebuild, but they took forever and I bought a B16g to drive with.

The oil line was still kinked, as I show in this thread
http://www.dsmtuners.com/forums/showthread.php?t=248283
however, I fixed that kink. The turbo itself leaks oil now, the line doesn't at all. It isn't kinked, and neither is the feed line.

Low and behold, after I port and install my B16g, the Evo III shows up at my doorstep completely rebuilt. Perfect condition. So, even though I have a blown B16g, there is a new Evo III sitting in my garage, that I guess has to go in now.

Could the oil return line being kinked for those 200 or so miles mess it up? It boosts perfectly fine now, pulls very hard, has no shaft play, and can handle 16psi EASILY. Just, after I boost it smokes hardcore. I want to make sure for certain there isn't anything else that will ruin my turbo that quickly, because I don't have the money to buy a third turbo in 2 months. I have all supporting mods (shown in profile) to run both the Evo III and B16g.

 

[eclipsh]

pagosa dsm had a problem with his new E316g turbo blowing right away. His problem ended up being that he wasn't getting enough oil to it right away when it started dry. PM him about how he fixed it as I don't entirely recall the details.

http://www.dsmtuners.com/forums/member.php?u=50655

 

[Fayt]

None of the turbos were started dry. I always pulled the engine fuse and cranked the motor for about 5 seconds to prime it, let it sit, then cranked it again before turning it over completely.

 

[BISHILVR]

Just make sure that you dont have any debris in your oil, (I would use new oil and filter with synthetic oil being best) and if your return line is not kinked and you have oil pressure at the feed line, then you should be good. Maybe your smoking issue is valve seals and not the turbo.

 

[mavisky]

Where are you feeding the oil from?

 

[Fayt]

Oil is being fed from the oil filter housing, on the right side near the fender.

Just make sure that you dont have any debris in your oil, (I would use new oil and filter with synthetic oil being best) and if your return line is not kinked and you have oil pressure at the feed line, then you should be good. Maybe your smoking issue is valve seals and not the turbo.

Feed line has pressure, return line isn't kinked. Valve seals wouldn't cause oil into my LICP though... right?

It's trace amounts, but it keeps getting pushed though, barely enough to cover my LICP, no pools of oil either. However, I keep getting it up THROUGH my intercooler, and it goes through my BOV and back into my intake. I know a little oil is ok, but I don't think I should have that much oil. On the bottom of my intercooler there is maybe 1 capful of oil that sits there, and when the air hits it, it probably gets forced up.

I can pull my BOV off and there is a small amount there. But, if I take off my bov recirculation hose, there is a coating on there as well.

I may be crazy, and this is all normal. I guess I just assume there shouldn't be any that far up.

 

[mavisky]

Are the wheels touching the housings or is it just leaking a little oil?

My dry center housing 18g was leaking oil into the exhaust side when fed from the filter housing, after a talk with Robert at FP I switched the stainless feed line to the cylinder head and the smoking stopped instantly. You could possibly be "over-oiling" the center cartridge. It's a cheap fix to try.

 

[Fayt]

I'm pretty sure the wheels aren't touching the housing at all, it just leaks a little. The wheels might be hitting the plastic piece NEXT to the housing, which might cause something. I'll check for wear tomorrow.

If I were to feed it from the cylinder head, where is a good place to tap/feed it from?
Picture would be very helpful

Weird idea, but sounds like it could be probable. I have no oil catch can on my valve cover breather line. Could oil be going from there, to my intake, to the compressor side, being forced up into the j-pipe from the turbo spinning so fast, through the IC system, and when I'm boosting, the air moves so fast, it is catching some oil with it, taking it through the UICP/BOV (hence why my BOV recirculation hose has a light coating), through the throttle body/intake and burning it? It sounds semi-logical for the amount of oil, and the time it happens. It'd burn after boost (mass air flow) and then come out the exhaust.

If that is completely not possible, please, let me know.

 

[oldman]

Do you have excessive crankcase pressure? Are your PCV and breather disabled and VTA? Does your dipstick pop out? If so did you pinch off the dipstick tube? Have you done a compression or boost leak test lately? hint..hint...

 

[Fayt]

My PCV and breather are both functional, my dipstick doesn't pop out and isn't pinched off.

After christmas I'll do compression test. Boost holds fine, 20 psi no problem.

 

[andymoraitis]

MHI turbos don't like lots of oil pressure and that's what you're giving it from the filter housing. Either add a proper restrictor or follow Kyle's advice and feed it from the head. Any turbo made for low oil pressure will blow the seals after a given period of time.

 

[thornton22050]

Not to scare u or anything but i blew my 25g on my sti twice same way your talking about. i cracked 2 piston rings causing excess oil to come through the pcv valve back into my intake causing my turbo to blow. my motor could hold 26psi of boost ( thats my daily boost pressure) but the rings were cracked and it was sending tons of oil throug the pcv valve right into the intake every time i would boost. i highly recommend a catch can they can save ## turbos life

 

[SleeperG]

one thing i might point out...

I blew a 14b back in the day... turbine wheel actually broke off and shot out my exhaust.
and like you i had a puddle of oil sitting in the compressor housing and in my charge pipes.
i too was blowing smoke out the exhaust of course.



i bought a brand new SBRg50 botled everything up primed everything just right, had a -10an return line.
and everytime I would go wot it would blow smoke still.

i didn't understand it at all.
it pissed me off so much. and it was only at higher boost pressures.


So then i got to thinking about the copious amounts of oil lost into my charge pipes,
I decided to take my intercooler off,
Lo and behold there was still oil in the bottom of it,
I flushed the shit out of it with a water hose, then i put about a gallon of gasoline in it and agitated it, drained it all out, flushed it with water again and i let it dry out.


Bolted everythign back up,
and walla...
No more smoke.
I suppose the high volume of pressurized air woudl stir up the oil in the bottom rows of the cooler.


So my suggestion to you,
Is take your intercooler and any contaminated charge pipes off and clean them.

 

[SleeperG]

MHI turbos don't like lots of oil pressure and that's what you're giving it from the filter housing. Either add a proper restrictor or follow Kyle's advice and feed it from the head. Any turbo made for low oil pressure will blow the seals after a given period of time.

If you look down into the oil feed threads on the top of the CHRA, you will see that MHI turbo's have an integrated flow restrictor.

But true, water cooled turbo's don't need nearly the oil pressure or volume to operate that would be supplied fom the filter housing.

 

[Fayt]

So, tap it off of the block? I have a restrictor right before the feed line meets the turbo, the middle hole is about the size of a pea.

I've cleaned my pipes, but it still comes back shortly after I boost. Like i said, there never is much oil there, but always a light coating, and maybe 1/2 to 1 full capful of oil at the bottom of my IC.

Tomorrow I'm going to walmart to get a few of those $3 Fram fuel filters to put in-line.