How big of a turbo?

[turbowrenchhead]

Just wondering how big I can go and still have the turbo fit nicely and use the stock wastegate without hitting the hood? I will be putting on the tm V2 intake and ford i/c. Just looking for sugestions.

 

[turbowrenchhead]

ttt

 

[cool 84]

I have a TA64 in a stock 87 housing. By looking at how thin the housing is, I believe that's as big as you can go. It will go bottom 10s so it should be enough.

 

[turbowrenchhead]

How would that compare to a TE-64 that you would buy from say PT&E? Would that one flow better or spool faster? I have to ask because I don't know.

 

[TType84]

you dont need a te64 if his ta64 will flow enough for 10.0s man.. even a ta60 is pretty ****in huge compared to our hairdryers (390cfm) at 850cfm...

 

[national84]

I am in the same boat with an 84 gn going to the TM kit and a Ford cooler, everyone I ask recommends either a ta44 or a ta49. Don't forget that you are adding lag with all of that tubing and cooling space, a huge turbo will only make the problem worse. Lag should be your first concern if you are to drive the car on a regular basis. The 44 or 49 will be plenty of power IMO.

 

[cool 84]

A TE series will always flow better than a TA series all else being equal. My only reason for using a TA was I hadn't yet relocated the TB and the TE series have the inlet bell cast into them so it wouldn't bolt up.

It lags but considering I only have a 2,600 convertor it's not too bad. I can get 5psi on the brake. It spools great from a roll thanks to three things, Max Effort chip, moving the TB after the turbo, and a 3" DP with no elbow and no cat. I'm going to a 3,000 stall and expect to have no lag problems. It's not true that big plumbing and intercoolers contribute to lag. I went from no intercooler to a frontmount with a ton of plumbing and saw absolutely no difference in spoolup. I will prove this again since my Ford IC and 3" plumbing is almost done. The best all around turbo I've personally driven was a PTE 52 with a 2,600 convertor. It spooled very close to stock with a ton of top end power. I'm shooting for 10s so I went big. I admit the car isn't as much fun to drive around town as it was stock. It actually feels slower than stock until around 1/2 pedal when it's like someone hit a 200 shot. It's also cool to beat LS1s from a roll at only 10psi.

If I had it to do over again I would go with a TE62. I actually have one but it broke after 500 miles and Harry (PTE) basically told me to screw myself.

 

[WFO]

Originally posted by TType84
even a ta60 is pretty ****in huge compared to our hairdryers (390cfm) at 850cfm...

that's a fact.i compared my ta-60 to my stocker before i put in on,and the difference was huge.

http://www.gnttype.org/techarea/pictureguides/turboguide/TE44vsstock.html


this should give you an idea of the difference.keep in mind,that is a stock 87 turbo that is bigger than ours vs. a te-44 that is smaller than my ta-60.


as far as front mount intercoolers adding lag,that's bullsh!t.i've got a spearco front mount,stock location ported tb and had a stock d5 and my turbo spooled up right now.i am installing a pts 9/11 2800-3000 now with my rebuilt trans.

check sig for particulars.


later,sean

 

[Turbod]

My Experience

Hey Turbowrenchhead,

I thought I would post the email I sent you to give other people contemplating a TE series turbo an idea how tight things are on our hotair style configuration.

Email from Turbowrenchhead:
I just ordered the tm intake and going to put the ford i/c in. I was
wondering if the pt 54 is as big as you can go? You also mentioned that you cannot use a stock style wastegate. I would think that this would go for a terry houston style dp as well. You must have a Lee Thompson dp and crossover. How does the dp attach to the rest of the exhaust? I will be facing the same situation soon and am looking for the right path to take.

My Response:
I don't know how big the housings are on other turbo's. The PT54 is a tight fit, I think the TA54 would require less work and not require an external wastegate. Because the compressor housing on the PT is so large it hits the intake and would sit at an angle. So I shimmed the turbo shield/mount up a bit and also made an extra bracket that bolts to the intake where the stock turbo did. This allowed the turbo to sit perpendicular to the engine. Just didn't seem right all crooked. This in turn required the up pipe to be modified, I had to weld in about a 3/4" pipe vertically to get things lined up. I have the parts to make my own up pipe (more mandrel bent JCWhitney pipe) and will work on that as soon as I get things running right.

I didn't get a Lee Thomson crossover, I am just going to cut a 5/8" hole somewhere in the stock one and weld a piece of pipe and a flange on so I can mount the racegate. This is not a cheap way to go, The down pipe and test pipe form Lee was 325, the racegate was slightly less than 400, the flanges were 16 each plust the gaskets and other things I am probably forgetting. This setup (down pipe and wastegate) would probably end up running around 800 bucks. Lee's 3 piece downpipe is very nice, it was more of a pain getting the old stock one out in one piece than putting Lee's DP in. Surprisingly I didn't have to modify the DP even though the turbo sits higher.

Jay thought a TE (PT) style turbo would be the way to go but he didn't realize at the time how much bigger the compressor housing was. By the time I figured it out the turbo had already been ordered. Presenlty the turbo actually rubs the heat shield on the hood although the shield is loose (screws holes have been stripped I will fix soon) I think it will still be very tight.

So unless you wan't to do a bit of mokeying around I would go with a TA style Turbo. If you do get a TA sytle don't forget you will need an inlet bell. This car has turned into a real project and I don't really know the quality of the rebuild that happened 20k ago. Any time some fabrication is required it sure sets the project finish time back. The PT54 seems to be duable but, it may require a little head scratching.

As far as the DP to exhaust connection goes I used the 3" test pipe. I welded a 2 1/4 - 2 1/2" adapter to the stock exhuast and filled in the rest with weld at the test pipe connection. This is temporary, I plan on putting on either the hooker 2.5" system or the ATR stainless 2.5 or 3". I am hoping I will be able to weld an 86/87 sytle flange to the test pipe so the new cat back exhaust will be able to bolt right up. Will have to wait and see.

I hope this helped. I would think about the turbo a bit before ordering. You might want to post on TB.com and find out if anyone else has tried the PT series turbos on a hotair style configuration, maybe they have a better way. BTW the PT54 is supposed to support up to 620 hp, the TA54 615. They are both good for mid 10's. That's frickin fast. I wonder if the old hotair blocks can handle that...

Allen

Anyone else running a PT (TE) series turbo on a hotair configuration with a TM kit? How did you get things to fit?

 

[turbowrenchhead]

I just want to know what is going to be an easy install and will flow the amount of air I want. Will a TE60 clear the hood with stock wastegate? Or do I have to stick with a TA series?

 

[Turbod]

If you are looking for a relatively easy install and want to use a stock wastegate go with a TA series. The Max HP isn't much different between the TE and TA. I don't know if the 60 series TE compressor housing are any different than the PT50 series. I am assuming they have the same housing so they would have the same tight fit.