hb_guy

95 accord f22b1 - t3/t04e 57 trim - about 6psi off wastegate
i have been running this setup for over 2 years - no probs other than usual maintenance.
yesterday it started throwing blue-ish smoke during decel, accel etc.
i have a bit of oil in my lower IC pipe and on the intake side of the turbo. i have plenty of oil leaking from my return at the turbo. i also had a thin film of oil where you put an air filter on the turbo(pic included below).

compression test a week ago was 180 across. today it was 190-170ish-175-180.
new pcv valve
i run mobil1 5w-30.
i have a -4an line with a function7 restrictor - my setup has been unchanged for 2 years!!

ALSO!!! while idling in my garage for a few minutes i noticed my wheel stopped spinning!!! when i opened the throttle in started again!!! wtf!! that cant be good. first time i have seen a turbo do that. any thoughts!!!

car still runs strong, just smokes. rings? valves? turbo oil seal?

hb_guy

damn!! 2 days and no replies?? it has gotten worse since. any comments or help would be great

azandford

definently sounds like the seals espeially with the fact that you have oil in the charge piping.... i just had this same issue

if you want to make sure its not the rings you would have to do a compression test but an easier way to tell is if you had smoke coming out the dipstick/crankcase breather although some blowby is normal on turbo cars you probably can tell the differnce between a few wisps and full on blow by ( also just happened to me as well)


my moneys on the turbo though

hb_guy

just did compression test 2 days ago 190-175-170-180

so if there is smoke out my crankcase/dipstick it could be my rings?
and if there is NO smoke out the crankcase/dipstick its definitely my turbo, right?

thanks for the help

azandford

with those compression numbers it sounds like its time for a rebuild... once theres a difference of 15 between cylinders yoou might start to have engine problems... and i see a 15 and 20 difference in number 2 and 3 versus the 190 in one

does that make your current issue engine related? possibly but the oil alone in the charge piping is a sure indication of the seals failing on the turbo

my turbo just blew seals and billowed smoke out the exhaust

when i blew my rings it smoke out of the engine crankcase as well as the exhaust

but some blow by normal on turbo cars which is why high hp cars run catch can setups to alleviate all the extra pressure in the crankcase

jDMJeRk

Just my .02 cents... your drain looks too small causing the turbocharger to leak out where ever it can. You might not have seen this right away because the seal wasn't worn out yet. Now that its worn out, its leaking even more.

Whats the shaft play like? Maybe its just time for a rebuild? Is it a real Garrett unit or a eBay special? Also, what size is this restrictor you have in there?

hb_guy

ok, i have ZERO smoke out my crankcase/dipstick.. so hopefully its just the turbo.

when i first installed the setup i went thru 3-4 oil return lines to get the right setup cuz i had issues at first. the return line is nice and straight down(sloping). it is either 1/4" or 3/8" line. i can post better pics of the return line shortly.

my center section is wet on top as well as on the bottom. not sure of the restrictor size, its been 2 years+. but like i said previously i have had zero issues until 3 days ago. over 30,000 miles of boost without headaches.

and its an ebay special t3/t04e 57 trim.

hb_guy

return line pics. best i could do right now

azandford

If you. Went thirty thousand miles on an eBay special that's some good ****

hb_guy

i was skeptical too but for $150 i cant beat it. easily replaced. so its probably my turbo seals i guess???

1quicklaser

Most turbo manifacturers recommend a -10 line(5/8th) line for your turbo drain. But if you've gone 30k miles with that little hose I doubt that's the issue. How much shaft play do you have? What kind of crankcase evac system are you runing?

jDMJeRk

You did well for an eBay turbo- buy a new real turbocharger and throw that one in the trash.
Next time run at least a -10 line or bigger as your current line is way to small. Ditch the restrictor buy a -3 line.

You simply ruined the seal due to not having a large enough line imo.

hb_guy

definitely getting a new turbo soon and i am going to double check the return line size asap. i might even change it now to see if it works any better. it may be like a half inch or bigger now that i think about it. thanks for everyones help.

hb_guy

definitely getting a new turbo soon and i am going to double check the return line size asap. i might even change it now to see if it works any better. it may be like a half inch or bigger now that i think about it. thanks for everyones help.

no crankcase evac as of now and a decent amount of shaft play(more than i would like). and yes i am already looking into a crankcase evac for my new turbo

hb_guy

UPDATE:

i took the turbo, manifold, piping, dp, and intake manifold off the engine this week. i had oil in all 4 cylinders of the intake manifold and some dry gunk in the downpipe - but it was by where the dp bolts to my exhaust system NOT by the turbo, strange.

next i decided to blow compressed air thru the oil feed and return lines and the air goes right thru the center section only.. the only thing i noticed is that the gasket i had on the oil return fitting was all caked up dried and broken - which probably leaked some.

i am thinking about cleaning it all up, putting Permatex on the oil feed, and oil return threads for a better leak free seal. i want to see if this will fix it.

my pcv is getting tossed and replaced with a catch can setup - perhaps my clogged pcv and plugged port on the valve cover contributed to oil getting into my pipes, manifold and turbo. any ideas, questions or comments??!?!??!!