Turbo upgrade: Need opinions...

[J Banning]

Well, my 51 turbo took a dump recently. 2 years and approximately 200 1/4 mile passes and it finally gave up the ghost. I went to put an .85 exhaust housing on it and found out that it was leaking oil, had a lot of end play in the shaft, and the compressor wheel was hitting the housing

I don't want to have it rebuilt as just a 51 since I want to go faster, so I'm thinking I have two options...

1) Have it upgraded to the biggest thing I can get (TE62??).
2) Go with a new turbo alltogether.

If I upgrade, I guess the biggest I can go since it is a small shaft turbo is a TE62. That would have a 60-1 compressor wheel and a P-Trim turbine, right?

If I buy, I'd like to go larger. I want something that will satisfy my immediate needs (10.90's) but will also be enough to take me where I eventually want to be (10.40's or so). In this case I'm thinking of a PT70 or maybe one of the new "GT" series turbos. Price however, is definately a concern. It's gotta be under $1000.

I'll be calling Precision & John Craig tomorrow to talk to them, but in the meantime here are some questions for y'all:
1) How fast have guys gone with the TE62 (with heads, cam, good convertor)? At what boost level?

2) What if any measurable gains would I see by going to a 4" compressor housing on the TE62 (just related to the inlet diameter). I'd like to run a 4" inlet pipe since I run the MaxEffort-R now (MAFless).

3) Could I go to larger compressor wheel with the new housing, or would I still have to use the 60-1.

4) How about a .85 exhaust housing with the P-Trim wheel? I've run a TE62 on my car before (borrowed from a friend) and I think my combo can easily handle it. What gains if any could I expect? What I've heard is a tenth and maybe 2mph.


Ok, I think that does it for now. Let me know what you guys think.
-Banning.

 

[J Banning]

Anyone??

 

[NJTurbo]

PT72

You have enough injector and ported heads and Intake. Go for the real Juice. What we are finding out these small wheels suck and eat Turbo seals and Shafts. A few of us are going to the big shaft turbos seems less problems.

 

[salvageV6]

70 double ball bearing.

I went from a 51 to a 62. 3200 stall lockup.

It's okay but I'm slow and no heads and cam.

The 62 has a bad reputation perhaps not undeservedly so.

Mines a TA62 with a 3.5" inlet bell I had machined. That's the best part of the turbo.

I'd seriously go bigger with your setup maybe a 66 or 70.

Might as well get the big shaft version. Ball bearing if you have the money.

 

[c&cgn]

If you can get it upgraded cheap enough, I would go with a 54. Quite a few guys are runnig 10's with a 54, especially with heads & cam etc. If buying outright I would wait for a few months if possible to see what new stuff comes out and then make a decision.

 

[MSDGN]

I would say the 62 will get you where you want to go but probably not the best choice...I have a TE-62 that I had upgraded from a 51 by John Craig...I've gone 11.7's at 25 PSI boost so there's more in it...but I'm still running with untouched stock heads...ported would be a different story...I like the turbo..spools very fast with my 3200 stall...for your goals I'd go with a bigger turbo but your cost limitation might be a problem...good luck getting one of the bigger turbos for under $1000...maybe used...

 

[salvageV6]

OOOOPS, didn't see the cost limitation.

Save up, work a night job a few weeks.

You are ready for the big turbo.

 

[Intercooler]

Banning,

Skip to the big shaft. You know how I feel. What myself and many others have is getting the job done.... "P"- trim 70. Has real good street manners and would still be okay with a .85 housing if you ever change. You should be able to get the 10.8 or 10.9 on 20 PSI. I got an 11.4 on 17 PSI and it had sputtering issues. You should be able to hit 10.4 with 25 PSI....Red's Hot-Air did. Since you are MAF-less get the 4" cover. I only opted for the 3.5" because I run a MAF and didn't want to do the angle IAC. This will also fall in-line with your budget. The "Q"- trim option will push you over it and with a 231 the manners will not be all that great for a street/strip car. Talk with John Craig and he will get you what you need. He did for me!

 

[J Banning]

I just sent the box out to Precision. Depending what they say after looking at the turbo, I think I will...

Rebuild/upgrade my turbo to the biggest thing possible (I’m thinking a PT61 with 4” inlet compressor housing, P-trim exhaust, & .85 housing).

or...

Go to a new PT 67 turbo all together (4" inlet, P-trim turbine, .63 exhaust housing), depending on if anything is interchangeable, and/or I can get any credit towards this turbo from my old 51 and/or unused .85 exhaust housing.

We'll see what happens. Maybe I'll keep it a secret till you see me at Ceil on the 11th!

-Banning.

 

[J Banning]

Originally posted by salvageV6
OOOOPS, didn't see the cost limitation.

Save up, work a night job a few weeks.

You are ready for the big turbo.

Uh, ok... let me rephrase that... "it can't be too much over $1000" I'm hoping that I'll get *some* credit for my old turbo and the new .85 exhaust housing from them that I wasn't able to use on my 51.

 

[Russ Merritt]

Polished TE45A, .82 A/R P-trim. 973$ with actuator last time I got one (MAY)

 

[Intercooler]

I can only offer a couple of words here..... The best turbos, support and application come from Lake Havasu, AZ!!!

 

[J Banning]

So would you guys still take a TE45a, 66, or a 70 over one of the newer PT67's? If so, what compressor & exhaust housing would you go with???

-Banning.

 

[turbotwister]

go with the "big" one .ive been going from turbo to turbo and im up to a 72 now.i think i have finally made it to the promised land(for now).banning,you are a smart guy and you know what you are doing with your car.dont be shy.just do it.


nick,

 

[salvageV6]

What stall converter you got?

I'd call Jack Cotton and see if he has any ball bearing 66's or 70's lying around.

Assuming no new converter and the one you have is sized for the PTE51.

It's easy to spend other peoples money.

 

[J Banning]

Right about 3200.

I've been running my buddies TE62 w/.63 housing and it spools fine. Worst case scenario, I'll have to get it re-stalled.

 

[Louie L.]

Originally posted by J Banning
So would you guys still take a TE45a, 66, or a 70 over one of the newer PT67's? If so, what compressor & exhaust housing would you go with???

-Banning.

Yes!

 

[J Banning]

Originally posted by Louie L.
Yes!

Why?

 

[turbonatr]

Since money is a factor (isn't it always!), maybe a T63E. It will support 690hp and go mid 10s. Minimum stall is right at about 3200rpm which is where you are at now. It's also a big shaft turbo. PT&E has them for $960. The T64E will support another 10hp, but will require another 200rpm in stall.

 

[Louie L.]

Originally posted by J Banning
Why?

Because its a John Craig turbo. The 45a Is a proven turbo. It makes bundles of power.