Aftermarket Turbos

[Turbonics]

I'm nearly blind now after reading all the posts that came up after putting "TURBO" in the Search option.

After all that research, a basic question remains:

Why don't aftermarket turbos last seemingly any where remotely close to the average lifespan of the factory turbo?

Lots of EARLY failures...disintegration of components, leaking, premature wear...the archives are FULL of these reports. Why?

 

[azgn]

the obvious answer to your question is most aftermarket turbos are upgrades from a stocker and are run much harder

that means things can happen in the motor that will adversely affect the life of a turbo...like, for example, a blown head gasket...with stock gaskets there is a lot of crap that goes into the oil and thus thru the turbo......the turbo may not fail for a while, but it will eventually fail

if you wanna go fast, you gotta pay! If you want a warranty, buy a new car!

 

[Turbonics]

Originally posted by azgn

... things can happen in the motor that will adversely affect the life of a turbo...like, for example, a blown head gasket...with stock gaskets there is a lot of crap that goes into the oil and thus thru the turbo......the turbo may not fail for a while, but it will eventually fail

All of the above can and do happen to stock turbos, and they still endure more longer before failing.

A person's driving style (how hard they whip their car) is usually the same whether in a Civic or a Z-06, so an aftermarket turbo would not necessarily be beaten much differently than the stock unit.

 

[Turbonics]

TO THE TOP

 

[boredguy77]

this is might sound like a stupid answer, but it is just a guess.

1.) reliability cost money, and most of us won`t pay extra for a turbo that is more reliable, we want power #'s.
2.) you are putting wheels in a turbo that was not made for them.
3.) all of the work to put the wheels in are done by a human (prone to error)
4.) Whether you want to believe it or not, most people that put aftermarket turbos on their cars are gonna drive it harder than a stock car.
5.) stock turbos do brake, it is just that people expect don`t fuss about it as much.

just some guesses, some are probably wrong, but it is better to try and be wrong, then not try at all

 

[azgn]

blow a headgasket with a stock turbo and run some dirty oil thru it and it'll fail as quickly as any other turbo

run a stock turbo at 20+ lbs boost and its life won't be any longer than any other turbo

I question your premise that aftermarket turbos are any less reliable than stockers.......of course, there are stockers running around with 100k miles on 'em, but I seriously doubt those turbos have been stressed (or they wouldn't still be stockers.......)

no doubt there have been some lemons created in the aftermarket, but they are the exception, not the rule

 

[Two Lane]

Originally posted by boredguy77


just some guesses, some are probably wrong, but it is better to

try and be wrong, then not try at all

Amen, Buick bro'!!

 

[Crazi]

Add me to the list...

of aftermarket turbos that last far less then they should... 23k mi, a little over a year, oil changed religiously every 2k mi either pennzoil or delvac 1300...

 

[JDSfastGN]

I'm gonna have to agree that stockers have and always seem to outlast the aftermarkets. There are very few that can go to 150,000 like the stocker on our 86 and over 200,000 like the stocker on our 85. Oh well most of the aftermarkets are pushed pretty hard but i think that the stockers are a reliable workhorse that are flat out better made.

 

[1badTTA]

Someone already made a really good point, that stockers are only being run with 15-20psi as opposed to the bigger turbos pushing 25-30psi. I would have to guess there is a big difference in the amount of stress on that bigger turbo that is still efficient at say 28psi than a stock turbo that is blowing hot air at 22psi.

Craftsmanship and luck play a big part too.

 

[OneLethal87GN]

Not replacing the dirty stock oil feed line contributes to a shorter life as well. I also believe that since most people don't use a BOV, and since aftermarket turbos flow so much more air, you hurt an aftermarket turbo more when you lift off the throttle suddenly after a WOT blast. I'm no turbo expert by far. This just kind of seems to be a no-brainer though. JMO.

 

[Two Lane]

Originally posted by OneLethal87GN


...since most people don't use a BOV, and since aftermarket turbos flow so much more air, you hurt an aftermarket turbo more when you lift off the throttle suddenly after a WOT blast.

Others believe the very same!

 

[turbo buicks]

yes, "others"