Has anybody used a Wrenchrat turbo kit?

[KWIKR 1]

That looks like it's going to be a cool little project .

 

[atomic 6]

Here is a quick shot of the kit I am installing on a 1965 Malibu.

On this install I am using two 6176 PTE turbos, only problem I have encountered was the downpipe needed a little work to go with the Precision exhaust housings.

 

[Turbo'dBuick]

Here is a quick shot of the kit I am installing on a 1965 Malibu.

On this install I am using two 6176 PTE turbos, only problem I have encountered was the downpipe needed a little work to go with the Precision exhaust housings.

Crazy! I have a 65 Malibu also I plan on building after the truck! lol...have to post a few more pics of that!

 

[atomic 6]

I'll post some more when I get alittle more done on it.

I'll say this, the kit fits very well in this car.

 

[KWIKR 1]

Here is a quick shot of the kit I am installing on a 1965 Malibu.

On this install I am using two 6176 PTE turbos, only problem I have encountered was the downpipe needed a little work to go with the Precision exhaust housings.



very cool . I was told you are better off going with a Garret or Turbonetics housings . you do not want anything more than something like 3"-3.2" from the center of exhaust housing to face of flange , because of the way the down pipe runs thru the collectors . if you look at the attached diagram of the Turbonetics 60 series housing . you'll see this measures out at 2.93" .

 

[atomic 6]

The pte turbos use a garett exhaust housing,so the fit is fine.
The problem I ran into was the Downpipe had a lip that needed to be taken down, because the exhaust housing did not have a register cut into the v-band for this lip.

 

[KWIKR 1]

The pte turbos use a garett exhaust housing,so the fit is fine.
The problem I ran into was the Downpipe had a lip that needed to be taken down, because the exhaust housing did not have a register cut into the v-band for this lip.

got it ...that's good that it wasn't to much of a problem . I always thought PTE manufactured their own housings and differed in the mentioned dimensions .as well from what I've been able to gather MasterPower turbos dimension is way over 3" and would be a hard fit with this kit .

 

[atomic 6]

It's funny you say that because.....

The housing you see in the pic above is a .68 ar masterpower t4 p-trim housing on the 6176 precision p-trim wheel turbo.

I can hold the precision exhaust v-band output up to the MasterPower exhaust v-band output and they are the same.

The older turbos like the 6176 like this have a garrett housing, I don't know about the newer turbos, but these are garrett.

Now I also have a PT63 and the t4 housing on it has a v-band exhaust that would not work at all with this setup. Too small, it may be a Precision exhaust housing.

That Turbo 5.3 Fairmont we built, we switched three different ar and companies housing on it(all were t4 p-trim hooked to the MasterPower t-70), one day at the dyno.

 

[KWIKR 1]

It's funny you say that because.....

The housing you see in the pic above is a .68 ar masterpower t4 p-trim housing on the 6176 precision p-trim wheel turbo.

I can hold the precision exhaust v-band output up to the MasterPower exhaust v-band output and they are the same.

The older turbos like the 6176 like this have a garrett housing, I don't know about the newer turbos, but these are garrett.

Now I also have a PT63 and the t4 housing on it has a v-band exhaust that would not work at all with this setup. Too small, it may be a Precision exhaust housing.

That Turbo 5.3 Fairmont we built, we switched three different ar and companies housing on it(all were t4 p-trim hooked to the MasterPower t-70), one day at the dyno.

That's odd . Steve himself from Wrenchrat told me about the housing not being able to go over 3"-3.2" in that dimension as mentioned . he referred to it as the "tangent measurement" . and from what I can remember any diagrams of the MasterPower exhaust housings I could find online that dimension was well over 3" . The kit I have is one of the first produced designs , maybe they have made a design change to the kit since I got mine allowing you to use the different housings such as a MasterPower .....not sure Keep us updated on your build .

 

[Turbo'dBuick]

well still waiting on the rest of my kit..no trackin info or calls...was suppose to get it last week..

 

[Turbo'dBuick]

Well was waiting for a call or email with trackin number...didnt want to call and bitch..but guess Ill be callin tomorrow...so far good product...bad service..



.I know I know there busy....then tell me up front so Im not waiting..lol for spending that kid of money I guess I expect more...sorry..just me

 

[69z28turbo]

Kit on the way!

After a couple anxious hours, got the confirmation that my kit was shipped.
Steve is a good guy to work with. The CarCraft write up must keep him on the phone with new business, unfortunately keeps him from taking care of existing customers as well as he'd like and should. Understandable, especially for a relatively new company and a windfall of business from the magazine. I can't attest to the quality of the kit just yet, it'll be a month before the boat gets here.
Rest assured, Steve has never failed to get back to me, been a little slow but I'm sure when the dust settles it will get better.

 

[Turbo'dBuick]

I finally got the rest of my kit..so far looks great...will finish test fitting....see how it goes..so far thumbs up.... Im sure he will smooth things out as he goes...

 

[GNXkid]

Make sure to keep us posted with pics.

 

[KWIKR 1]

Make sure to keep us posted with pics.

x 2 ....... Glad to hear you guys are getting your stuff in . I think the quality is there in the kit . I was just a little "iffy/picky" on a few of the welds on mine . I guess nothing that a good tig welder couldn't fix . maybe the quality of the welds have gotten better since I got mine .

 

[GNXkid]

Any updates anyone with the Wrenchrat kits? I'm excited to see how one of these kits turn out on your vehicles, before I purchase one.

 

[atomic 6]

I got some parts back from the powdercoater, and made a little progress.

I could not find any where that someone had posted a pic, or idea on how to do the oil dipstick.

So, this is what I did, and it seems like a easy way to make the dipstick work with this kit.

TransAdapt SBC #8142 flex dipstick, with half trimmed off of the mounting tab.

downpipe and turbo housing are coated now, and still working on the wiring for the EFI.

 

[KWIKR 1]

atomic 6 looking good . Nice idea on the dip stick . where in the pan did you put the turbo oil return , did you use a welded bung or put the "tubes" in as wrenchrat suggest ? I plan on welding in a set of - 12 an male bungs in . is there anyway of running the oil returns to the fuel pump block off plate ? Please keep the pics and info coming . you may want to think about drilling out the wastgate flanges (blow off tube flange) bolt holes and bolt/nut them . They maybe a big PIA to get out at a later date if you ever have to if they are threaded thru .the high heat may eventually seize the bolts.

are those Tial F41 wastgates ?

 

[atomic 6]

atomic 6 looking good . Nice idea on the dip stick . where in the pan did you put the turbo oil return , did you use a welded bung or put the "tubes" in as wrenchrat suggest ? I plan on welding in a set of - 12 an male bungs in . is there anyway of running the oil returns to the fuel pump block off plate ? Please keep the pics and info coming . you may want to think about drilling out the wastgate flanges (blow off tube flange) bolt holes and bolt/nut them . They maybe a big PIA to get out at a later date if you ever have to if they are threaded thru .the high heat may eventually seize the bolts.

are those Tial F41 wastgates ?

Yeah, I read about them seizing, I put anti-seize on them, but even if they do get stuck, I will unbolt the wastegate from the header and then slip off the pipe from the downpipe, leaving the wastegate exit pipe attached to the wastegate, kind of the reverse of the install.

I have a plan for the oil return, basically the same as the old vortech oil return. punch a hole and then tap it. I have been practicing on an spare oil pan, and I know it will work, but I will only get one chance to do it right and it is getting to where I can't put it off any longer.

I don't think the fuel pump block off plate will work, but maybe. And I am running 10 AN returns, exactly like on my Twin Turbo Wagon. NO need to run a 12 AN, wow that is huge.

 

[KWIKR 1]

Yeah, I read about them seizing, I put anti-seize on them, but even if they do get stuck, I will unbolt the wastegate from the header and then slip off the pipe from the downpipe, leaving the wastegate exit pipe attached to the wastegate, kind of the reverse of the install.

I have a plan for the oil return, basically the same as the old vortech oil return. punch a hole and then tap it. I have been practicing on an spare oil pan, and I know it will work, but I will only get one chance to do it right and it is getting to where I can't put it off any longer.

I don't think the fuel pump block off plate will work, but maybe. And I am running 10 AN returns, exactly like on my Twin Turbo Wagon. NO need to run a 12 AN, wow that is huge.

your more than likely right about the return size . I figured the bigger size wouldn't hurt . Finding a -12an x 1/2" npt fitting shouldn't be to hard . The stock turbo oil return tube ID on a GN may even be bigger than a -12an from what I remember . . Keep us posted .