hi guys,

i've got a bone stock 2000 integra ls that's just had the 30k maintenance and that i've been thinking about turbocharging down the road. it seems that the latest trend is building a custom turbo, and most people seem to do it for financial reasons. is this really economical or is it better to buy a kit from a company like greddy or drag? also, how does a turbo in general affect reliability and do any other mods such as exhaust or intake need to be made to my integra to make it possible to have a turbo. thanks, any suggestions or links would be great.

 

Piecing together a turbo kit takes much more patience, but in the end you'll have much more higher quality parts. Searching on this board helps out alot, just warning you before you get flamed. Greddy and HKS is the only CARB approved kits that i know of. You would buy these kits to pass smog, but if that's not a concern of yours you can still upgrade those kits as well. Still in the end that would be more expensive then buying a turbo setup on your own. Reliability is only degraded if you abuse and run your car untuned with incorrect A/F. Buying a Greddy kit does not mean you can just bolt it on and drive., you need to tune it. Remember, running to rich is bad, as most Greddy kits are, as well as way too lean...which you'll know alot faster since everything inside your engine will melt, denoted by a KABOOM. Your choice either way you'll spend the same, but by piecing it together I know you'll get better products and learn alot about your car as well. Its just plain fun.....good luck!