Life Of Turbos Before Rebuild

[Kaido_RR]

Hi

I know there are many factors that affect the life of a turbo but is there a general rule that after a set amount of km they should be rebuild? Looking at a second hand pair of HKS GT-SS and just wondering if its worth the hassle

[DAN00H]

I think use if a better indicator than km's travelled - but the seller could BS about boost and useage anyway.

If you can't get them inspected or measure the shaft movement and you are totally restricted to km's then stay under 50,000km. Most manufacturers expect 100,000km on normal useage, however thay can fail before this.

[paulr33]

application of use plays a bit part in their life span

ie open mounted, poor filtering, std airbox and std filter, exposed cheap pod filter, no inline oil filter, plain bearing without cool down / idle down cycle

my std turbo is 223,000 kms old and still going well but that's not the be-all and end-all

apparently

there is a 100,000 rebuild "criteria" that nissan used when there was no BOV used

but i have no records of it, and no data to back it up, the rumor is that the service interval changed when they fitted std bovs

[discopotato03]

A lot of things come in to "play" here .

Before I start you can buy these turbos brand new from Garrett at a Garret price .

Also I asked GCG a while back and at that time they couldn't get new cartridges for these turbos separately .

Now , sometimes turbos come along at a really good price but HKS spec ones usually attract a "HKS tax" .

To be really sure you need to see these turbos with their housings off to check for chipped/bent blades and oil leaks AND chewed out the hot side piston ring register in the bearing housing .

Personally I would ask your local Garret supplier what the rebuild cost is and add that to the price being asked for second hand turbos . Naturally brand new ones are the best option BUT be VERY careful with second hand ones because they can owe you more than brand spanker's ones if they are damaged/badly worn internally .

AKAIK the only unique parts in these GTR spec GTSS/707160-9 turbos is the compressor wheels and the comp housing that's been profiled to match them .

I know its not my money in question here but if it were me I'd be thinking hard about how much effort goes into removing and replacing turbos on an RB26 in situ . Worst case scenario you R/R these ones on your car and they lemon out .

So pull them off again and how much are you out of pocket at this stage ?

You have a right to expect new turbos to function properly and have some comeback if they don't .

You are in a grey area with used ones particularly if you don't know the history of the owner and their cars . In this situation its impossible to know how used up they are and what sort of reliable life they have left .

People buy factory hottie cars to drive them enthusiastically but how much mechanical sympathy and maintenance sense they have is often a big unknown .

Your call , cheers A .

[DAN00H]

^ well said. look at the price of a NEW set and the price of the used GT-SS.

[R31Nismoid]

As the guru has stated, many factors.

They might have only done 5,000km's. But if the oil & servicing was pathetic they would be in worse condition than turbos that have done 20,000kms

So its hard to tell without pulling them apart, which is basically rebuilding them anyway.

Unless you know where they have come from, IMO i wouldn't be buying them given the price of Garretts

[Kaido_RR]

thanks disco your post are always very helpful!

The turbo are from japan, so getting them checked out is impossible, i have bought about 4-5 different turbos from japan (all second hand) and so far had not had any issue with them. But as you mention changing the turbos on the gtr isn't as easy as the rb25.

Turbo are 3 years old with around 8,000km and some circuit work buyer state it does have some shaft play (which is what im worried about)

ATM price wise its

100,000yen Second Hand GT-SS

90,000yen Second Hand HKS GT2510

Or

188,000yen Brand New HKS GT-SS

160,000yen For O/H HKS GT2510

Edit: what is the price for Garrett GT-SS?

Edited August 24, 2010 by Kaido_RR

[R31Nismoid]

All turbos have shaft play, if they have been sitting around for a while especially as there'd be stuff all oil in them.

People class "shaft play" differently depending on who you talk too.

Why don't you just get Garrett -9s like everyone else?

By the time you get GT-SS's freighted, plus whatever tax you'll most likely get stung with...

And 2510's are older design as well. Not a bad turbo but peak around 280rwkw give/take. Almost like steel wheel stockers.

[DAN00H]

think you need to get a price on the garrett ones locally. as mentioned, you will get stung with duty and GST if your turbos are over $1000, have to lodge a SAC (self assessed clearance), Postal FID (Full import Declaration) or go to a broker - denpending on how they are posted/ shipped. then there are also the tarriff rates to consider. you could pay about $200 - $250 on top.

[ClutchBurndout-:(]

application of use plays a bit part in their life span

ie open mounted, poor filtering, std airbox and std filter, exposed cheap pod filter, no inline oil filter, plain bearing without cool down / idle down cycle

my std turbo is 223,000 kms old and still going well but that's not the be-all and end-all

apparently

there is a 100,000 rebuild "criteria" that nissan used when there was no BOV used

but i have no records of it, and no data to back it up, the rumor is that the service interval changed when they fitted std bovs

bit off topic sorry, but better than starting a new thread, if im in the wrong just ignore me.

you say standard airbox is detrimental to the turbo life? or is that only in the case of a standard filter to? i use the box with a good qual filter, better? or is a good qual pod in order to help the turbo life?

[R31Nismoid]

he meant a very old/degrading factory filter i would imagine

[STATUS]

i would never buy a 2nd pair of GTR turbo's, i have seen so many fail not longer after install. The little you save on secondies is wasted on buying the 2nd set and the removal refitting costs.

[andymoocow]

i am no turbo guru, but do it right the first time, then you dont have the doubt in the back of your mind thinking "when" will it/they let go.......

[paulr33]

bit off topic sorry, but better than starting a new thread, if im in the wrong just ignore me.

you say standard airbox is detrimental to the turbo life? or is that only in the case of a standard filter to? i use the box with a good qual filter, better? or is a good qual pod in order to help the turbo life?

what i mean here is that with the std airbox most users run decent panel filters which dont let in dirt

people who run a pod usually leave it open and exposed and this allows dirt to get into the air intake

once you get a spec of dirt into the compressor housing and it gets in the bearings, goodbye

[T04GTR]

if they are not f**ked. when you get them, get a m4 bolt and screw it in the oil inlet. with pliers pull out the restrictor/bearing locator and clean it out. also carby clean the turbo through the oil inlet. then bang the locator back in.

then you are sure not to have a failure due to burnt oil blocking up the internals. (99%) of bb failures