topmount on the ka help.

[costa_rican13]

so im planning on boosting my ka, and i have 2 turbos, a t3 z31, and rb20 (t3 flange)t28. now i dont want to bottom mount either of these, i want to do a topmount mani. so from looking at these turbos, the turbo elbow doesnt face down. so my question is would i have to cut the elbow and turn it down and reweld it or what ideas can you guys give me to help me out with this? i also dont want to buy another turbo..

[biggie]

KA-T section could work better.

But should be able to unscrew and rotate the housing.

[scotty-2-forty]

KA-T section could work better.

But should be able to unscrew and rotate the housing.

Ditto.

[martins_240sx]

search for clocking turbo

[costa_rican13]

thanks guys! i wouldve posted in the ka-t section but i figure theres more traffic and ppl with turbos in here.

[costa_rican13]

wait!!! NONONONONO im not talking about clocking the intake or exhaut side ppl. im talking about the exhaust elbow of the turbo wont be facing down to meet the down pipe. it will face toward the brake fluid resevoir. and from what i see you cant exactly clock the the turbo elbow since its oval shaped and is internally WG. my turbo looks like this one. >>
P7210029 by costa_rican13, on Flickr
P7210030 by costa_rican13, on Flickr

[SX APPEAL]

To do a top mount you're going to have to lose the elbow and weld up a custom downpipe, that exhaust section does use a standard 5 bolt exhaust flange doesn't it?

[biggie]

Yep, remove, get flange, custom downpipe.

[scotty-2-forty]

Ooo, we see now. Ack, sucks for you ... little work to be done, but nothing undoable.

[costa_rican13]

ok thanks for cleaing that up guys, but now i need to know where i can get a 5 bolt flange. do you guys know a cheap place? or could i just cut the elbow and use the flange from the original elbow?

[SX APPEAL]

JGS sells them, honestly though I would be more inclined to stick with the bottom mount setup. Welding a T3 flange on a bottom mount mani is going to be just as easy as fabbing a new downpipe. Not to mention the multitude of headaches you'll save as far as intake and exhaust plumbing (everything is pretty much off the shelf plug and play for bottom mounts ie SR20) Thats what I would do if I had a T3 flanged T28.

[OutToWinPAHC]

moved to the KA-T section

[costa_rican13]

so i checked the jgs site, couldnt find the flanges. mind pointing me to them?? and im not sure, wouldnt a topmount make the turbos and such easier to service and such for lines and blah?

[coolbone28]

http://jgsturbo.com/index2.html
then click on ENGINE & TURBO EXHAUST FLANGES
then Precision Machined Turbine flanges

and that should bring you to a big list of flange goodies...happy shopping

[costa_rican13]

ok thanks guys. i guess was looking at a jgs site. i think im gona have to just cut the elbow because its a 7 bolt flange not 5 bolt. and the t28 is a 6 bolt elbow flange. shouldnt be too hard once i get the mani. and line everything up.

[SX APPEAL]

Like I said just keep it bottom mount. It'll save you SOOOOOO many headaches. Just think, can you even clock that turbo to work as a top mount with the external wastegate actuator? Just leave it bottom mount, use a stock SR20 charge piping FMIC kit, stock exhaust piping, and a T3 flange on a bottom mount KA-T2 manifold (Available everywhere), thats gonna be your best bet, guaranteed. Trust me man I've done the research on this one. How I wish I had my hands on a T3 flanged T28 right now...

In fact, how much you want for it? lol

[costa_rican13]

Can you tell me the benefits of the t3 t28. I mean like why you want it??

[SX APPEAL]

Cause it'll spool faster and support almost as much power as a T3/T4 (like what I'm building around) plus the simplicity of the bottom mount setup with regards to fabbing the plumbing. The only thing I don't like is that its internally gated, but I could get over that

[costa_rican13]

oh i see! well sounds good! now i gotta get that flange from jgs. and can you not block the gate or remove?? what about adding a tial 38mm to the mani? im new to this turbo stuff man.

[WDRacing]

The RB20 turbo won't even come close to supporting the power a T3/TO4 will. The RB20 turbo will probably putter out at 10 psi in the upper rpm range. I couldn't get it to hold 14 psi steady on my RB20 and the KA is 25% bigger. The T3/TO4E will support 25 psi and close 500whp.

The T3 from the Z31 is a better turbo for the KA imho.

There are cast top mount manifolds on Ebay for $90. Buy one of those and make a custom downpipe. What you can do is cut the factory dump pipe off and then weld a flange to it that can connect to whatever downpipe you end up having to fab.

Cab you weld?

[SX APPEAL]

Wow I had no idea the RB20 turbo was that bad, I just heard "T3 flanged T28" and it sounded good to me lol.

[WDRacing]

The compressor is tiny.

[costa_rican13]

Yea I can weld and also.have a welded. And yes the rb20 t28 exhaust fins are ceramic and start to fly off after 13 psi but I only plan on running 7-9 on stock internals

[WDRacing]

RB20 turbo is a good choice for that psi. Damn near instant boost and a 10psi ceiling.

[costa_rican13]

so i guess im gona get the cheap t3 topmount and fab up a elbow to the DP. shouldnt be too hard i suppose. i got all the time i need to do this. im in no rush.