Date: 29 Sep 2004 14:18:53 GMT From: Dave Hinz <DaveHinznospamcop.net> Subject: Re: 99 9-5 Turbo questions
On Wed, 29 Sep 2004 01:51:56 GMT, Bill Jackson <wjacksonnospamesterdotrr.com> wrote: > It appears that mine is going. Car has 100K on it. It's making a blue puff > on startup and has recently started knocking alot when the car is getting > warmed up. The dealer said that the seals on the turbo were going and it > would need to be replaced. I'm not sure how that correlates with "knocking", if you mean predetonation. > 1: how hard is it to change this thing? Do you have to take half the car > apart to get it out or will it fit out without (for example) taking the > radiator out? Assuming you mean the 2.3 Liter 4-cyl engine, it's right there, but yes the radiator probably has to come out. Shouldn't be a biggie. > I did the turbo in my Volvo 242T a few years back and it > wasn't all that bad. Other than the turbo, what else do I have to have on > hand to do the job? Get some penetrating oil (Kroil if you can find it) on those bolts _now_, give it time to get in there. Re-apply every couple days; might as well make them as easy to get out as you can. > 2: Are there aftermarket sources for the turbo? It's made by Garrett so I > suspect that someone sells these things. A neighbor just had a tractor turbo (also a Garrett) rebuilt by a place in Chicago - I have the impression it was a Garrett authorized shop. I've rebuilt Garrett turbos; if your comfortable with, say, a brake master cylinder, it's about that complicated and uses mostly the same tools (snap ring pliers, that sort of thing). > 3: Can they be rebuilt? I know that lots of turbos, especially for trucks, > are rebuilt all the time. Can this one be rebuilt? See above. > I can live without the car for a few weeks if I have to send the turbo off > to be rebuilt, so that's not an issue. Sounds like pulling it, shipping it to a rebuilder, and re-installing it is the plan then? Seems solid, if in fact it needs rebuilding. Can you describe the "knocking"? Is it a whine or a howl coming from the turbo, related to boost, or what? Knocking doesn't reconcile with a turbo failure, I can't imagine. Dave Hinz