I bought an 87 T this year that had a TE-51 installed in 2000. (8 years and 30,000 miles ago). Previous owner ran the car @115mph on 24psi and alky.
Other than a bit of lag and flutter at 10psi, there are no symptoms anything is wrong with the turbo.
I recently took it off to check the passenger header for leaks and saw some compressor wheel damage inside the exhaust housing. The area of the fins closest to the center section have small bits missing from the leading edges (almost like chipped teeth). The rest of the fin structure looks ok & there is very minimal shaft play.
I've read some of the troubled history of this turbo.... does this sound like what I should expect with this model, or has mine just eaten some foreign material at some point? I'm guessing this throws the balance out of whack, and will cause the bearings to wear faster than normal.
Will the small missing bits on the turbine wheel significantly impact the turbo's performance? (I'm sure it increases lag some, but is it 2% or 20%)
The car feels very strong now....
Can this be repaired with a turbine wheel replacement? If so, where and how much would this cost? Can it be retrofitted with ball bearings during a rebuild?
I'm sure this is wishfull thinking, but hey.. it doesn't hurt to ask:
Any warranty 'recalls' still in effect for this model so I could trade it in/up?
Thanks,
Other than a bit of lag and flutter at 10psi, there are no symptoms anything is wrong with the turbo.
I recently took it off to check the passenger header for leaks and saw some compressor wheel damage inside the exhaust housing. The area of the fins closest to the center section have small bits missing from the leading edges (almost like chipped teeth). The rest of the fin structure looks ok & there is very minimal shaft play.
I've read some of the troubled history of this turbo.... does this sound like what I should expect with this model, or has mine just eaten some foreign material at some point? I'm guessing this throws the balance out of whack, and will cause the bearings to wear faster than normal.
Will the small missing bits on the turbine wheel significantly impact the turbo's performance? (I'm sure it increases lag some, but is it 2% or 20%)
The car feels very strong now....
Can this be repaired with a turbine wheel replacement? If so, where and how much would this cost? Can it be retrofitted with ball bearings during a rebuild?
I'm sure this is wishfull thinking, but hey.. it doesn't hurt to ask:
Any warranty 'recalls' still in effect for this model so I could trade it in/up?
Thanks,