[jim_howard_pdx]

Hey 91 GT Turbo,

I build speed.

I build supercharged, turbo charged, twin turbo, NOS, Rotary, OHV, SOHC, and DOHC. So I was directing my comments to the young man (same age as my son.) I mean no disrespect to you or to anyone that owns or loves turbo engines.

My comments were more directed to understanding the value of engineering, money, cost over time, damage to the engine bay, and costs of required maintenance and scheduled or unscheduled rebuilding.

Did anyone tell the kid that he could expect his turbo to run worse as it gets older, until it eventually runs worse than a stock honda? Did anyone mention to him the thousands of dollars it costs to do scheduled rebuilds of the engine, the turbos, the waste gates, and other associated parts.

Doesn't sound like a project I would jump at on a limited budget.

You run decent ET's on your turbo Mostly I like turbos because they are a blast as they spool up. They have exhilerating performance curves that really can only be experienced driving a turbo car.

I think you missed my point about coking a turbo. It is not a matter of "IF" the turbo cokes, it is "WHEN" the turbo cokes. You can feed a turbo engine two quarts of oil on shut down and it will still coke up in 40-100,000 miles. I don't think a 19 year old should put every dollar he has into a twin turbo and have nothing left for the 3,000 dollars it will cost to properly rebuild.

I would urge him to buy a great turbo car, and modify that in the simplist way possible to achieve the goal he has with the car. Now if his goal is to have the only twin turbo engine in town, then that is fine and I am happy to help any way I can.

Superchargers do not coke because the bearing and shaft stop with the crank case, and the bearing is heated only by rotational friction of the bearing, the friction of the charged air, and the friction caused by the impellers. They just don't get hot enough to coke up. Bearings wear out, but that is true with any rotational device.

On a turbo the temperature is generated by the exhaust and most Turbo impellers are over 900 degrees on shut down. So coking is a fact of life even with post shut down oil supply.

I love turbos at bonneville, on a track car, and even on hot rods. I really love the Grand Nationals. I have an acquaintance that runs 10.90s in Spokane Washington on his superb set up.

Lots of fun.

My buddies Turbo Porsche in LA was 65,000 new, then he spent 70,000 tricking it out. Did a top speed of 194. Quartered in 10.2 seconds. Did the 1/2 mile at 178 mph. It was set up as a canyon racer and he was never beat while I was there..... 3.6 liters of go and 24 miles per gallon on the street, 28 mpg on the highway.

LOTS OF FUN.

So I have lots of respect for turbos, and if the kid wants turbos the kid should build a turbo. I hope it is everything he wants it to be, and I hope everyone acknowledges him for putting in the effort to build such a cool ride. And I am happy to help in any way he can.

The title of his post was "is this overkill." I think it is on his budget. I think it is something he should research, study, and talk about with guys running turbos that share the good, the bad, and the ugly.

First he needs to define the purpose. Then he should improve the brakes and suspension, then he should rebuild the engine, and last he should button up the turbos and intercoolers. When you do it right, FUN WILL HAPPEN.

I think every car should have a purpose. That it be engineered to run safely and properly. That it should be fun. And that it should KICK A S S. So it sounds like you and me are really on the same page. Don't take my "questioning" advice this young man to be derogatory to the turbo crowd.

We are driven by the need for speed, or we would drive a Yugo or SUV.