I'm new with turbos and a buddy just gave me his T3 Garrett and i was wondering how you would be able to tell if it was a T3 and what not and what exactly does LITTLE to NO PLAY mean. and how you would be able to identify the TRIM and A/R

 

Sometimes you can determine the sizes based on the experiences of turbos you've seen. They offer interchangeable options between all turbos so its difficult sometimes to ID a turbo. With Garrett turbos, you should be able to find some markings that indicate at least their A/R. Post a pic of it and maybe we can help identify it that way. By "little to no play" means the amount of shaft play. You want minimal to none if possible. The more shaft play usually indicates severe wear and compressor surge. You can verify the amount of shaft play yourself by trying to wobble the turbine in any abnormal direction other than the typical spinning rotation the turbine is suppose to make.

 

 

it definitely looks like a T3 to me. See those casting marks on the compressor side? What does it say after "A/R" and after "M"?

 

A/R .48 then M4


Modified by daredeezy619 at 10:17 PM 11/12/2008


Modified by daredeezy619 at 10:48 PM 11/12/2008

 

So i noticed it said "AIResearch" on the turbo and those were made by Garrett, typical for factory turbo vehicles (seen in a volvo, etc). So it is a T3, .48ar compressor, and i think a .42ar exhaust.

 

ahh thanks man. yeah jus checked to see if there was shaft play and surprisingly there is none. i'm planning on sellin it but i dunno how much they go for these days.

 

youd get the most for it on ebay.

 

I saw these go for around 250 brand new, you can prolly get a 100 out of it used.

 

it looks like a mercedes diesel turbo. At least the one I had on my delsol looked identical except for the internal bypass valve on the compressor housing. im guessing they changed it in later years.
t3 .42/.48, 45 or so trim, turbine wheel was close to that of a t3/t04e stage 3 wheel, spooled very fast. good for maybe 200whp?
I liked these for junkyard setups because you can modify the turbine housing to make it external dump, or reoute the dump further down the dp picking up a few hp. if you see the port inside the turbine housing for the wastegate, you can weld that shut then drill a hole in that 4 bolt flange that covers the wastegate. then weld your 1.5" pipe to it and the wastegate gases are now seperated from the turbine wheel gases.

its strange it woudl say .48 on the compressor side. are you sure??

 

yeah it says .48 on the compressor