About how much can I expect to pay for a rebuild on a turbo? And who can I talk to to get it done? Thanks!

 

Depends upon what's wrong. could be anywhere from $150-$400 depending upon damage. Most places will not touch it without a FULL rebuild w/ labor of about $350. Again, depending upon what's wrong.

 

Well, is it too difficult for me to do on my own? I can get through a motor just fine. I'm thinking about but a turbo that has some fins that somehow got the tips chipped. I'm wondering if it's worth my time to pick it up, or just buy one of the others that are for sale in the forced induction thread.

 

buy another one from the for sale thread in forced induction marketplace.

 

O.K. is that because it's difficult to rebuild them, or because the fins are chipped, making it a lot more to rebuild?

 

I'm going to subscribe to this thread. I'm actually planning on rebuilding my turbo as well and thought it would be my cost of effective then to by a new one.

 

As was I!

 

It really depends upon what's wrong. sometimes its worth getting another unit (possibly upgrade)

To the OP: if the fins are 'chipped' off, I don't recommend using the turbo at all any longer, as now the metal has been compromised, and could cause more damage over time. It might not be NOW, but it will happen eventually. If it is the turbine side, you'll need to understand how they physically are rebuilt. yes, you CAN do it, but that doesn't mean you should on your first time out.

Note what parts constitute a fully functional working turbocharger. (Study hard, boys and girls) ;-)




Here's how to start searching as to what you need to do. ( We're going on the assumption you have a Garrett turbo that is journal bearing CHRA and not a ball-bearing one. If you have an "Egay" Chinese version, good luck to you, as the replacement parts MAY not fit properly.)

If turbine wheel has been "chipped"



1)You'll need to replace the turbine shaft with the same one you have (after finding out your wheel inducer and exducer measurements of both the turbine shaft and compressor wheels. (this way you save time in case you need to change the compressor wheel too.)



2) Find out what part that you have with the measurements you came up with. For Garrett purposes, finding an old Turbonetics catalog from 2003 on Google should help you match the measurments with the name designations. If Borg-Warner, skip all this, and send it to a Borg-warner dealer for repair.

3) Find a distributor that is willing to sell you the parts individually. I'm sure there are those who know a few places, but don't be surprised if the answer is no if you call, because of 2 reasons. a) They are not allowed to sell individual parts by contract agreement, or b) they are not willing to sell individually, as they would want to ensure the entire rebuild is proper --eg, doing it themselves for you. I myself am more akin to b)

4) after buying said parts (turbine wheel / shaft), chances are you will not need rebalancing of the entire CHRA, unless both the compressor and exhaust wheel have been changed to something else entirely from what you had. That being said, it is best to have even a low-speed balancer work in the rebuild.

5) Replace the bushing system with a full "rebuild" kit that replaces the internal portions of the CHRA. Those CAN be purchased individually without much difficulty. Just remember the difference between 360 degree bearing system an 270 degree. the 270 degree uses a spring system to hold the thrust plate in place while the 360 degree does not. Some of the old Precision 360 degrees still used the 270 degree spring systems in their 360 degree oil-bearing systems. this is a NO-NO, but I'm sure they'll learned from that by now.


If the compressor wheel is damaged



or



See steps 2-4. Again, this actually may be easier from a dealer or even a used turbo from the marketplace that has not sustained any compressor wheel damage.

*NOTE* Be sure you are replacing this compressor wheel with the SAME MODEL. Otherwise your housing will not fit properly, and will have to be machined to fit.

If the turbine shaft has been "starved" of oil, and "bluing" has occured



See steps 2-4

Other reasons for failure (Oil contamination, bearing wear, restrictive oil system, etc)








Use Steps 3-5

If you're not willing to go through these steps, time to send it to a professional and pay a good American worker so he/she can feed their kids tonite.

 

sorry to go off topic, but this is the best thing I've read on the Internet in a long time!

"time to send it to a professional and pay a good American worker so he/she can feed their kids tonite."

 

Damn! That sounds like there is some tools involved that I just don't have. Well, thanks a bunch "Shodan", you should sell me one, when you get one, that you can sell for a good deal. LOL

 

To the OP, you said you can get through a motor fine, then you should be able to rebuild a turbo fine also. Just take it step by step and inspect the parts as you go, replacing as needed. I rebuild me first turbo several years ago and it can be intimidating the first time, but it's really not bad. The info that Shodan provided (good info BTW) is a list of all the possible failures to look for, odds are you won't have them all.

 

I'm really thinking about it.

 

As the OP as once stated on top what are some reputable shops?

 

Yes a good reputable shop would be nice.

 

gpopshop.com can get you everything and even rebuild the turbo if you like

 

Nice! Thanks!

 

they did an excellent job on my 15g

 

Ya, I want ball bearing anyway,I was just on the fence about rebuilding what I have, but thanks for the info guys.

 

Yeh,

I called Scroll Products a few weeks ago for a price to rebuild my T3, the rep told me pricing starts at $399.00 and includes dynamic and VSR balancing.

They also told me this price only covers a standard service, this consist of a service kit only. He explained that hard parts such as turbine, compressor, bearing housing etc are additional cost if they need to be machined or replaced.

The $399.00 price didnt seem bad but instead I did a DIY and took the risk.

Turned out rebuilding wasnt that difficult, but I did find a few problems that ended up costing me the same price and now the problem is I need to balance the assembly and knowone will help me.

I called this turbo shop in Fairfield, NJ and they told me balancing is very important and installing the turbo with no balance can be catostrophic. Does anyone know who the boss man is over there? I really need there help and a name drop will at least get me in the door.

Update: Purchased the cartridge from them and that solved my problem however it cost me a bundle of wasted time and money trying to be cheap!

Scroll Products
80 Greenwood Avenue
Midland Park, NJ 07432
201-925-0825
www.scrollproducts.com

 

Its happend again....