1985-1998 [Subscribe to Daily Digest] |
I'm currently taking stock of my turbo options for a 98 I just acquired. Smoking, and sounds a little bit like a very quiet blender. Diagnosis: shaft play and seal damage.
Now, before you spring for a rebuild, there are a few things to consider. I've been told that as long as the turbo still spins, there's hope for its revival. But regardless of this, here are some wear factors to look out for:
* Shaft play can be side-to-side, in which case the bearing journals are likely to need regrinding and fitment of oversize bearings will be necessary; in really bad situations, wear to the turbo housings can be beyond repair
* Shaft play can be parallel to the rotational axis (endplay), which is usually a simple matter of replacing worn thrust bearings
* If play is bad enough that the impellers contact either housing, they can be damaged, requiring their replacement
* Housings can sometimes develop cracks, which render them unrestorable.
* Shafts can get bent and/or scored, again requiring machining or replacement
Depending on the conditions, a turbo could conceivably be rebuilt only to exhibit the same symptoms soon afterwards if they were not carefully done, and all wear carefully examined beforehand. If your turbo requires extra work besides the "standard" rebuild kit, then you'll have to pay additional for those parts.
For me, I'm leaning toward going with either a new or professionally rebuilt unit (best price so far is from Eriksson Industries) backed by a known rebuilder with a good reputation. It's more expensive, but you have better peace of mind this way.
Not that I will do that, but I might. Have you learned more stuff and heard more recommendations? If so, please share them for all of our benefit.
Another pre-spending avenue is to check the health of your PCV system. A restriction in the works here will prevent the oil from draining from the turbo's oil galleries, and it will leak past the seals of a perfectly healthy turbo under these circumstances.
posted by 155.212.49...
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