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Buying a used turbo

2K views 8 replies 5 participants last post by  mach65 
#1 ·
What is the general consensus on buying used turbos? Can almost anything be rebuilt? My turbo sticks and was thinking about swapping it out for an 03/04 turbo, found one used for 400, offered him 200 hope he takes it. What should I be looking for? Any tips would be helpful, thanks guys
 
#2 ·
I understand that buying used doesn't mean just throw it in, I'd be cleaning it up before installation.
 
#3 ·
It takes a good deal of inspection to determine if good, rebuildable, or junk. You need to look at radial and axial play in the bearing, Determine if the compressor or exhaust turbine wheel have contacted the housings or are erroded from dirt. Also the VGT can be coked up or even worn enough to cause a need for replacement. You might want to review diesel ron's video on how to rebuild the turbo so you can see some of the problems and parts better explained.
 
#4 ·
You can buy a rebuild from it which include all the seals and stuff. Go to kc turbo's website. Take a look at the compressor wheel and turbine wheel. If either are chewed up you can get new ones. You could always just rebuild yours and get a 10 blade turbine wheel for it if you're wanting the whistle
 
#5 ·
Yeah I have been to if turbos site, my thing is I've never rebuilt a turbo so when I do I want to take my sweet time to make sure it's 100% done right, I have certainly considered the 10 blade turbine upgrade, if I continue to rock the stock turbo I want to swap to that turbine. Right now under heavy load the truck will creep up to and sit at vgt 85% and have there for a good 30 seconds before dropping. Truck will bog and poor smoke so I think it's sticking. I will watch rons video though for sure! Thanks guys
 
#6 ·
If it's sticking and just needs cleaned it's really easy to do and takes maybe a couple hours from start to finish
 
#8 ·
Either way ill get the whistle because if i clean the turbo i have im going to replace the turbine wheel, i just didnt know if it was worth having a solid backup sitting on the shelf or not
 
#9 ·
My truck is 11 years old and on original turbo. The turbo seems to me to be an item that I would only fix when broken. I can afford the down time if my turbo lets go. I would not worry about having one sit on the bench in the garage just in case. Seems like a waste to me.
 
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