TurboClunker (a.k.a. cheap-ass slaps a turbo on his LX) (2 Viewers)

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Air Care Colorado :: "Check Engine" Light
"Effective January 1, 2015, an illuminated "Check Engine" light will cause vehicles eight (8) to 11 model years old to fail emissions. Vehicles 12 years and older will continue to receive an "Advisory" fail."

"advisory fail" means you will pass if the sniffer and gas cap pass.

that is very good news...that pesky 401 keeps popping up
 
Man I love that there are a few more turbo builds popping up. Makes me happy. Haha.

Sucks about the exhaust leaks, I know Slee uses a great shop for their custom exhausts, might be a little spendy though.

For you two turbo guys are you keeping an eye on the AFR gauge as the temps get colder?
 
When I got mine on the road it was low 100's. Now its mid 90's. So far haven't seen any noticeable change. It's constantly moving but still seems to stay around 13.9-14.3. At full boost it drops into the 11's
 
90's in October?? Yeah I meant when it is in the 30s and 40s. Haha.

When I got mine on the road it was low 100's. Now its mid 90's. So far haven't seen any noticeable change. It's constantly moving but still seems to stay around 13.9-14.3. At full boost it drops into the 11's
 
BTW Ryan, I haven't seen any postings lately on your latest build...
 
90's in October?? Yeah I meant when it is in the 30s and 40s. Haha.

30's and 40's???? We get down there for a couple hours around :santa:
 
Not much change due to temperature, but it has been the warmest October I can remember. I did notice it was running a little leaner when the hood scoop went on, but still goes to the 11's when full throttle.
 
Sucks about the exhaust leaks, I know Slee uses a great shop for their custom exhausts, might be a little spendy though.

They use Hanksville Hotrods. They have some nice pictures on their site. I keep meaning to head down there to get my exhaust whistle gone and the exhaust over the frame rail. Just haven't had the time.
 
Minor update:

Drove through the carwash yesterday without ripping off the hood scoop, so I'll call that a win :hillbilly: Carwash attendant was a little skeptical.

I've put together a list of parts to rebuild the downpipe. I've got plenty of scrap from the first attempt, and I'm thinking the second attempt will be all stainless and 3" the whole way rather than 3.5>3>2.5 (found a vband flange for the Borg warner that tapers straight to 3"). I'm also thinking I'll just tack the thing together and then take it to an exhaust shop for finish welding. I don't want to screw this up again.

Two downpipe questions for anyone who knows anything about this stuff:

1) I put a section of flex pipe on the wastegate dump tube the first time around because my buddy told me to. I think it did make it easier to bolt up the downpipe, but I think it also made the whole thing more leaky since the flex pipe is super thin and hard to weld on. Should I make the wastegate exhaust a solid piece connecting to the main DP this time? Or is a flex tube really a better idea?

2) I've thought about using a v-band or other type of exhaust clamp to connect the upper section to the lower section. Does anybody have experience with exhaust clamps or even v-bands (other than the one coming off the turbo)? Do you think this would be more or less leaky that a 2-bolt or 3-bolt flange?
 
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I would say do at least a 2 bolt ball type flange on the exhaust somewhere near after where the wastegate comes back into the exhaust to allow some flex if the flex pipe is not working for you.
 
I love v band clamps. I also work with a lot of marmon and half marmon clamps. I like the half because it allows for some misalignment and will still seal
 
Took advantage of the frigid temps this morning to check for exhaust leaks--they were plainly visible as puffs in the cold air. I was surprised to find it was not leaking where I thought it was (the junction between the WG pipe and the main pipe), but there was a pretty massive leak right at the v-band, and a few smaller leaks on the lower portion on the way down to the cat due to my s***ty welds. The gasket between the two sections did not appear to be leaking either.

So a v-band designed specifically for this turbo is going to have to happen (Himni racing makes a stainless vband kit for the borg warner for $80, ouch!)

Still would love to hear some feedback on the questions above (post #473, damn this thread is long)
 
yeah @KWalkerM , you need to do that so you can get more air!
 
yeah @KWalkerM , you need to do that so you can get more air!
You know when I first started reading my thoughts were "I can do this" and about halfway through it was "I wonder how much of my renters insurance settlement would fund this" and then I realized that I have neither the time nor the space to do this! I am also missing over half of my tools from the rollover though :/ although launching the piss out of the rig spooled up is high on my list :hillbilly:

I do have the experience to probably get this rolling, though arguably even more half assed since my 80 is my daily and I cant have it down for the count... Orangefj45, Domininja and I immediately went to a supercharger discussion when I first rolled her into Valley Hybrids for my axle rebuild. haha
 
You know when I first started reading my thoughts were "I can do this" and about halfway through it was "I wonder how much of my renters insurance settlement would fund this" and then I realized that I have neither the time nor the space to do this! I am also missing over half of my tools from the rollover though :/ although launching the piss out of the rig spooled up is high on my list :hillbilly:

I do have the experience to probably get this rolling, though arguably even more half assed since my 80 is my daily and I cant have it down for the count... Orangefj45, Domininja and I immediately went to a supercharger discussion when I first rolled her into Valley Hybrids for my axle rebuild. haha

I would say you don't need much downtime if you are really organized. It could be done in a weekend with careful planning.

However, I am not organized nor am I a good planner, so if I ever decide to revamp this project or even have to do a HG, I think I've decided to buy a cheap 4runner or the like as a 4x4 beater while the 80 gets work done, then sell it when the 80 is back up and running.
 

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