Turbo kit component thread

In another thread I posted saying I would start a turbo kit component thread, well here it is. The point here is to look at the individual components of all the main kits out there 1 by 1 and compare them. What I'd like to see is just the facts no "MY kit is better than your kit BS comments" so basically if you don't know don't post. Here are the rules

1. ANYBODY can post just make it helpfull whether it be facts or a question
2. If there are any stupid pointless posts Christopher blow them away.
3. Lets do say 1 part per week then move on not beat it to death
4. Lets limit this to the main manufactures that anybody can buy
5. When its done we won't be declaring a winner but you should be able to decide what kit is the best fit for you and why

So here is a rough outline.

First off what kits are we going to include? I say

1.Impulse
2.MCX
3.Powderlites
4. MPI
5.Alpine
6.Boondocker
7. Ulmer
8. Push

Any others?

Part 2 Components

1. Turbo charger the life blood
2 .Intercooler design
3. Fuel controller and supply
4. Plumbing
5. Exhaust side
6. Overall fit and finish


Am I missing anything?

M5

Smwizzz

Thats basically what Im after but for this week I was planning on just talking about the differences in the turbos so I'll start it.

Basically all the kits out there use either the Garrett GT line or a Mitubishi turbo. The main differences bertween the two are first off the Garrett is a ball bearing turbo and the Mitsu are journal bearing turbos. Garrret has a good description in the link below. read it.:

http://www.turbobygarrett.com/turbobygarrett/journal_bearings_vs_ball_bearings

Cooling, Now I could be way out to lunch here but all of the MCX sleds I've worked on use the Mitsu turbo but when MCX builds the kit they don't use the water cooling option on the housing. I'm sure the mitsu can be cooled but the MCX uses the entry for mounting the turbo. Most of the other kits I've seen out there cool the turbo with something other than oil ie water. That said it does make for a simpler install but brings up the question of turbo life. I know guys who have needed to redo the seals in MCX Mitsu turbos in fact I should probably do my Nytro, no biggy its a cheap job. You might need to look at it after say 5-8k miles.

If you read the Garrett site above you'll now know that the ball bearing turbo is a way better unit for response so chalk one up for Garrett.

Housings. Another bad thing about the Mitsu turbos used are the exhaust housings are tiny in comparrison to the Garretts. For example a 19T has an affective A/R right around .49 where a GT2860 is either .64 or .86. What this means is the Garretts have way more capacity to get rid of heat all be it at the expense of spool. This is why you won't see a front/mid mount kit with a Mitsu turbo, with a rear mount the exhaust cools enough by the time it gets to the turbo that its not that big of an issue. Remember turbos spin because of exhaust pressure ie heat not because of exhaust velocity a common misconception, so you want just the right amount of heat, the pressure needs to be balanced with the compresspr side ideally at 1 to 1 so 15 lbs of boost should have 15 lbs of exhaust pressure. This is where the kit design can make it for you or kill you, don't use too small of a turbo or too big of one either.

Internal/external waste gate and exhaust housings. Anybody who is into this level of turbo kit already knows this. The Impulse kits with the Tial housings and external wastegates are the mac daddy end of discussion. Anybody who is reading this probably isn't considering one of those although you probably should if you've got the $$$ and you want to make stupid big power.

Compressors: They all do the same job but some are beter than others. For example Mitubishi 15G vs Mitsu 16T they look basically the same right? Wrong, the 15G is the heavier older style wheel and is slower spooling and clips faster at the top end so basically a cheap turbo which is why they are cheap to buy brand new. Strike 1 against MPI if you ever plan on turning up the boost past 8 or so, IMO the 15G is a pretty crappy turbo. With a Garrett you can get any combo of compressor and exhaust housing to fit your needs you just have to be honest about what your goals are.

Garrett GT2554 385 CFM 2.0 bar
GT2860rs 529 cfm 2.0 bar
GT2871 661 cfm 2.0 bar
GT2876 705 cfm 2.0 bar

Mitsubishi
15G 6cm housing has a/r .41 428 cfm at 2.0 bar
16T 7cm housing .49 A/R 435 cfm at 2.0 bar
19T 7 cm housing .49 A/R 500 CFM at 2.0 bar

Summary: IMO the Garrett is a better turbo all around so why look at any kit using a Mitsu? Later.


Feel free to correct anything I have wrong here or add your 2 cents worth.

M5

BOOSTIN-BAYOU said:

im running a powderlites rear mount turbo learning more every day so my question is heat is your friend am i losing heat between the motor and the turbo via exhaust header to turbo which is exposed under tunnel or not enough to worry about more question when you talk about intercoolers i i think this thread is a great idea thanks

Click to expand...

In the purest sense yes you are losing heat, does it matter not really. I've known Dave and dealt with him for quite a few years, he's a very very smart guy and his kits are all designed and tuned to take into account all that using a bunch of different means so in answer to your question no don't sweat it on a Powderlites kit. You could insulate the pipes but I doubt you'd notice any real differnce. I'll explain more on the topic when we get to plumbing and exhaust.

M5

Thats why I asked I just didn't think of them all.

M5

Relax boys. You obviously misunderstood my comment compeletly, honestly. When I said "Later" I wasn't sayin over and out Later I meant I'll tell you later why its a valid choice, one thing at a time stay on point. Read the rules I was the first one to say no "My dads sled can beat your dads sled BS" so you won't hear that out of me. If I write something confusing or unclear that can be interpretted 2 ways take it as the objective way. Yes I have an MCX Nytro and its been the most reliable sled I've ever owned I'm not dissing MCX so chill out.

SOOOO right now we are only talking about the turbo charger, its not the kit its just the turbo lets save the what I like about this kit or that kit till we've examined every component individually then we can objectively talk about any kit out there. Once everybody is up to speed on the turbo we'll move on to whatever is next on the list, I can' remember. Once all the turbocharger ??s are answered we'll move on. Agreed? Fawk me this is like herding cats.LOL

M5