Turbo questions, opinions, etc. I just need a little help...

[DMan II-40]

Hello, I just have a few questions, and before anyone says anything. Yes I searched for three days which is why my post only ask a few things. First of all I will give you a little background of what I wanted to do and what I want to do now. I was planning a N/A build just the common I/H/E combo and realized for the cost the power was nothing really. Just recently I got the idea of why not just look into turbo. So I checked it out and got addicted right away. Now after three to four days of searching I have planned out most of kit that I will piece together. This is my daily driver so I need reliability, and second I would like to keep my budget around or preferably under $2000, with my goals of power being in the 250whp range give or take. And without further ado here is what I have so far for my kit:

Turbo – t28 Turbo manifold – ?? BOV – Intercooler – eBay FMIC Down pipe – 2.5” custom? Exhaust – 2.5” BRM (or eBay depending on budget) Fuel pump – Walbro 255lph Fuel injectors – SR 370cc (maybe larger??) Oil return kit – JGSZ32 MAF??Apex’i SAFC IIBoost gaugeSome kind of clutch upgrade…

Now my questions are… What is a decent priced turbo manifold that works for the T28 that is reliable? Good BOV for the money? Do I need a Z32 MAF for my power goals? Larger injectors than the SR 370cc? More fuel management?

Anyway, thank you in advance. Hope I have something to read when I get home from school.

[Neejay]

Wow, you are basically in the exact same boat as me.

Few questions:

1. Is $2000 your MAX for EVERYTHING you want to buy?2. Can you fabricate any of the exhaust components?

I need everything to be bolt-on, without hardly any fabrication needed. If you can fabricate anything, you could also save money.

[GTR PrYdE]

ebay sells a good stainless bottom mount t2 mani, they work very well, and they're all really made by the same people.

you can also use an o2 housing from an SR or buy a megan stainless one.

dsm bov's are cheap and work(~60 bucks)

depending on which t28, you can use stock maf right up to about 250whp, same with the injectors.

dont forget motor mounts(jgs sells good priced ones)

emance or enthapy give good rom tunes...

this should set you on a pretty good path

[DMan II-40]

Neejay: Yea, mainly I would like everything to be bolt on. I haven't found out the average prices of the things I'm buying yet because I haven't finished deciding on each part I want to buy. So my budget could increase depending on what I find. No I don't really have access to fabricate my own parts.

GTR PrYdE: Yea I was considering eBay since I have seen people say that they are actually getting better. What is the o2 housing used for? and does the DSM BOV sound good (just interested)? I guess I don't need a z32 MAF, but I think I will upgrade to the SR injectors to be safe. Ahh any yes, I forgot motor mounts, thx. As for the emance or enthapy, do you really think I need them or not?

[s14tan]

For starters, the word reliability and budget don't mix very well.

[lrb_2000]

For starters, the word reliability and budget don't mix very well.

I Agree.. Cheap isn't going to get you far.. pretty much everything you'll need is going to be used if you want to keep it under 2k. Just a SAFC II and wideband are going to be over 500$.. might want to rethink some things.

But if you must,

T28 turbo + internal wastegateEbay bottom mount manifoldEbay fmic + piping kit for sr20ebay sr20 downpipe and turbo elbowwhatever exhaust you can afford, please get 3", 2.5" will just restrict the flow, plus 3" is the same price basically370cc+ injectorsebay oil feed/ return kit for t28 turboused safc IIwideband of a sort (aem is good)cheap bov - $50 ebay ones work fineboost, and oil pressure gaugesthen little things like EGR block off plate can be found on ebay, intake pipe, filter, maf adapter..

Basically, ebay is going to be your friend. It's going to go over 2k, trust me. I did a friends car for $2500 with pretty much all the parts above.

[WDRacing]

Since you want cheap and easy I'll give you a quickie list of what I'd get and why. Also, if you haven't already, read the stickies I made at the top of the page.

Lets look at this from a sectional point of view.

Fuel management first:I'd use the FMU, also known as a rising rate fuel pressure regulator. It will increase the fuel pressure to the stock injectors as boost pressure rises insuring you don't go lean. Works great right up to 10 psi, I've seen as much as 14 psi...but I would use 10 psi as a goal. This is a bolt on affair, needs no tuning and is under $200. Plus it eliminates the need for bigger injectors.

Ignition/Timing retard:You could retard your base timing at the distributor for the cheapest option. But that makes your off boost driving worse and it isn't efficient at all. So I'd use the MSD BTM (boost timing master). This allows you to retard 0-3 degree's of timing per lb of boost from a simple turn of a knob. I have personally used it with great success up to 20 psi.

Manifold:SSAC or generic SSAC T2 flanged bottom mount manifold. They are all the same and can be found on EBAY from $60-$200.

Turbo:I would suggest a used SR turbo or another T28, but not a generic one found on EBay. The turbo choice is on you.

The O2 housing for the T28 can be a generic one found on EBay for the SR. It will mount to the SR downpipe as well.

FMIC:Generic EBay kit, cheap as you can find will work.

BOV:Bosch recirculation valves brand new are $30 or so. They work very well and hold 18 psi with no leaks.

Everything else stays stock. Any questions?

WD

PS, guess I shot holes all through the BS...cheap budget posts huh

[lrb_2000]

So I take it this isn't going to be set for future upgrades? That's the only reason I said to get a wideband, safc, bigger injectors, etc... incase you wanted more power in the end... if you just want a cheap one time setup, then you're good to go.

[DMan II-40]

WDRacing: Wow, lost of great info there. Yea from reading stuff I found the fuel management to be one of the most important things. As for turbo I was going to find a used SR20 T28. Well I'm going to start looking at all this stuff later tonight. I like to know everything I'm going to buy before I actually buy it all.

Edit: List as of now

Turbo – Used SR20 t28Turbo manifold – SSAC T2 flanged bottom mountBOV – Bosch recirculation valvesIntercooler – eBay FMICDown pipe – SR20Exhaust – 3'' something, lolFuel pump – Walbro 255lphFuel injectors – SR 370cc or the FMU thing with stockOil return kit – JGS mayb eBayElectronics: Used Apex’i SAFC II & MSD BTMBoost & oil pressure gauges
Modified by DMan II-40 at 4:42 PM 3/3/2008

[crzycav86]

i agree with everyone here, but for engine management, get injectors and a tune. q-garage.com does very good t25/t28 tunes for a lot less than $500.

the parts look pretty solid, just don't get the turbo from ebay.

[DMan II-40]

.Fuel management first:I'd use the FMU, also known as a rising rate fuel pressure regulator. It will increase the fuel pressure to the stock injectors as boost pressure rises insuring you don't go lean. Works great right up to 10 psi, I've seen as much as 14 psi...but I would use 10 psi as a goal. This is a bolt on affair, needs no tuning and is under $200. Plus it eliminates the need for bigger injectors.

Interested in this, can u throw up a link, im out the door as of right now. Thx for all the info guys! be back later tonight so see what new info i get

[crzycav86]

don't get an fmu. the fact that you can't tune them is a hinderance, not an asset.

[WDRacing]

They are cheap and they work...no need to debate that. I know of literally 1000's of more related problems to the SAFC then I do the FMU. When someone is on a budget and doesn't have the wideband nor the skills required to tune his car. A FMU is an excellent and reliable place to start.

A person should have ALL the options made available to them, not just the ones you prefer.

Not being able to tune something that doesn't need tuning kinda defeats the purpose. It's not the best, but it's proven. If tuning and power were the goals, we wouldn't have a $2000 budget would we?

WD

[Ballboygordon]

I would suggest getting a good tuned ECU from Enthalpy, JWT, or even q-garage since I've seen his tunes. Otherwise you will run into serious problems. Also if your turbo has coolant lines, don't be lazy and hook them up.

[WDRacing]

I would suggest getting a good tuned ECU from Enthalpy, JWT, or even q-garage since I've seen his tunes. Otherwise you will run into serious problems. Also if your turbo has coolant lines, don't be lazy and hook them up.

What do you mean by serious problems? Please list the problems or don't post about them. Here on Nico and especially KAT, I like to keep things as factual as possible so others can read through here later and actually get good information. Not just opinions based on something they have little or no experience with. Or something they heard or read on the internet.

WD

[DMan II-40]

Cool, so the FMU actually eliminates that need for me to get larger injectors and the SFAC II since is increases fuel as air pressure increases. Sound simple and like a great idea especially with my budget. Another question would be a boost spike, would the FMU help prevent damage when that happens? what is the best way with my budget to help prevent damage from one of those nasty things?

Edit: Also would larger injectors paired the FMU be more reliable?
Modified by DMan II-40 at 7:44 PM 3/4/2008

[WDRacing]

Cool, so the FMU actually eliminates that need for me to get larger injectors and the SFAC II since is increases fuel as air pressure increases. Sound simple and like a great idea especially with my budget. Another question would be a boost spike, would the FMU help prevent damage when that happens? what is the best way with my budget to help prevent damage from one of those nasty things?

Edit: Also would larger injectors paired the FMU be more reliable?

The FMU isn't used with the SAFC. The only way to prevent a boost spike is to install a boost cut switch. Which is actually quite simple. I believe we have a write-up in the FAQ about how to build one yourself.

WD

[chrismo240sx]

Hey guys, 1st off sorry to hijac this thread but theres a lot of good info so far for beginners.....would any of u reccomend rebuilding a ka first before boosting even if the compression numbers come up strong? and also, what is a decent size turbo to go with for a dd with 125*** miles and want 250-300 hp?

once again, sry for the thread jack man but i want to hopefully join the ka-t club as well soon! ...oh and yea i read the stickies at the top and whatnot but still confusing for me lol damnit, now its a long post. Sorry lol

[DMan II-40]

From what I read t25 or a t28 is your best bet for the power goal you want (similar to mine). Yea this thread so far I think give good info for beginners for a decent set up.

As for the boost spike switch thing I was looking at more of a way to prevent damage from the boost, but yea I read a article on ka-t.org on that boost switch thing. sounds really interesting to do. Thank you everyone for the info you all have given me, esp WDRacing
Modified by DMan II-40 at 10:06 PM 3/5/2008

[lrb_2000]

Hey guys, 1st off sorry to hijac this thread but theres a lot of good info so far for beginners.....would any of u reccomend rebuilding a ka first before boosting even if the compression numbers come up strong? and also, what is a decent size turbo to go with for a dd with 125*** miles and want 250-300 hp?

once again, sry for the thread jack man but i want to hopefully join the ka-t club as well soon! ...oh and yea i read the stickies at the top and whatnot but still confusing for me lol damnit, now its a long post. Sorry lol

Personally, I'd go with a T3 or T3/T4 turbo with a .48a/r or similar turbine housing. This will give you full boost before 3000rpms and still make upwards of 300hp on moderate boost.