Hello Guys!

I am new here and thanks in advance for all those who will provide support to me.

I have been working for several months in finishing my project which started several years ago. I started buying a V8 1994 Discovery, which had engine problems and then I installed a 300tdi diesel engine. The car was slow to start moving but as soon as the turbo engaged, the performance was better. It was slow also going uphill. I used an automatic gearbox which was included when I purchased the engine.

After fighting a lot with corrosion, I decided to send to the trash the chassis and body of the Discovery and purchased a 2003 Disco without engine (that was about 3 years ago!). The engine swapping process started about 2 years ago and I had the car parked in my house due to time restrictions. I started working on it again several months ago because I nave now 4 kids and need a 7 seater car. I purchased the 3rd row kit and it is already installed in the car.

Right now the engine is installed and I have already driven the car a couple of times around the city but since the weight of the new chassis and body is similar to the old one.

The "official" thread of my project is here (it is in spanish, I live outside of the US):

http://www.4x4guatemala.com/foro2/v...=Roverta&sid=bc90e9cb8e05bb7a3e72581dece72dc4

Since I started with the engine swap, I purchased a bigger intercooler (about 3 times the size of the original) and mounted it in the front of the radiator. I have already changed the waste-gate pressure to about 21 psi, and I am now waiting for a ceramic paint from Eastwood to arrive to my country to apply to the interior of the exhaust manifold to reduce the air temperature below the hood.

The exhaust manifold of my car is also the case of the hot side of the turbo, then I can not separate those two parts.

Right now I am looking an easy and cheap way to upgrade my turbo. The turbo is a Garrett T250-04. The engine is a 2.5L 300tdi engine. I can not afford at this time an expensive turbo replacement, like replacing the turbo and exhaust manidold with a VNT kit or something similar.

I am searching for something like the following, but do not know if what I want to do is possible:
-Upgrade to a ceramic ball bearings.
-Upgrade cold turbine wheel and/or hot turbine wheel. The case of the hot side in the turbo is also part of the exhaust manifold, can not be unassembled.
-Replace the cold side aluminium case. It is easier for me to replace the aluminium case in the cold side of the turbo because it can be deatacched easily.
-replace the whole cartridge for one with ceramic ball bearings.

I have searched for upgrades to this specific turbo but there is no much information on internet about this. Searched also for ceramic ball bearings with the same size as the original thrust bearings but have not found anything.

Is there anyone who can provide some light on this? is it possible to do something quick easy and cheap, or is it better just to assemble back the turbo, start usign the car as it is now and wait until I have the money to afford a full turbo replacement?

Thanks in advance for your answer!!!!

 

i would use it as it is , and make sure you have enough fuel .i modified a tdi engine a few years ago , 28 psi .boost , large intercooler ,and adjusted the pintle in the pump to give more fuel on load . it was very good ,and lasted for years .

 

Thanks for your information. 28 psi is a lot as far as I know... I have heard that the recommended maximum pressure for that engine es between 18 to 21 psi... did you kill the engine or what happened with the car? any problem with this pressure level? Exhaust Gas temperature maybe?

When the engine is loaded, the setup will not have any problem, but it is very important for me to do something about the lag. The U turns are pretty difficult when when the traffic is flowing.

Thanks again for your answer.

 

the car was sold as it was and it is still going 250k miles so far i think .

re boost , i know the owner sometimes had a frozen wastegate pipe in winter and it would go to 32 psi , he said it was a lot faster ,and all 4 wheels would spin ...he did not measure ex temp .

 

Thanks for your response! That is good information. I have been searching and learning a lot about turbos. I thought these things were more standard and had more exchangeable parts to configure the turbo, but I have learned it will not be a easy modification to my car. I am thinking that what I will do is to find a suitable ceramic ball turbo and fabricate a new exhaust manifold to install it.... This will take several years from now, but will be a nice project to do in my garage. Meanwhile, I will tune all the components I have available now, and will reduce the underhood temperature, apply ceramic coat to the exhaust manifold, and all the minor modifications I can do now without replacing the turbo. I will be happy if I can find a quick solution to the turbo lag because the car has a very slow pre-turbo response, and it also can be dangerous. Thanks again for your help!