Turbo leaks right after rebuild...geez!

[johnghini]

So, I think I have a leaky turbo; yeah I know...lots of posts on this. I've invested some real time searching and reading about this common issue but the more I delve into the postings, the more I second guess what may be occurring. Here's the low-down:

- Car very rarely puffed smoke on cold start so I just assumed the turbo was on it's way out so I had it rebuilt (reputable builder who is familiar with the KKK product). Car is more or less stock other than wg spring, MSD, Kokeln, exhaust, etc. Had a recent cold leak down and my numbers were great...nothing more than 4%. Car in an '86 and has 48k miles. Valve adj is recent as is a pretty thorough reseal, oil return tubes, vacuum lines, plugs, wires, etc.
- I had the K27 7200 rebuilt about 6 months ago and have since put on only 350 - 400 miles on the "new" turbo.
- I noticed the newly rebuilt turbo leaked after the second or third drive which was all of 20 miles.
- I almost never give the car it's beans and didn't put any boost on it for the first 100 after the rebuild...but it leaked at this point.
- The rebuilt unit occasionally smokes a very small amount on cold start up...just a tiny puff no plumes or anything. Of 10 starts, maybe it puffs 3 or 4 times.
- It leaks after I shut the car down when warm. The oil appears to come down from inside the intercooler hard pipe, makes it's way past the o-ring on the mating surface of the turbo, and further down the exterior cold-side housing and onto the ground. It leaks between 4-5 drips.

After disassembling everything today, the amount of oil I was expecting to find didn't really exist (based on what I've read anyway). The most puzzling thing is the inside of the turbo (that runs up to the intercooler) looks squeaky clean and I see no oil inside...not even a film. Same with the inside of the intercooler...almost perfectly clean. I've taken a series of pics of the various parts where I did (and did not) find oil residue. I'm pretty green at understanding all that turbo plumbing and I'd love to save myself any further aggravation. Maybe my oil drip stems from something other than the turbo?

Maybe someone here can look at these pics and tell me if my turbo in fact just needs another rebuild...this time from Ultimate seeing as though they are regarded by everyone here. I'm fine with another rebuild if that's the end result but I sure would like to know if I am missing something that could be contributing. Thanks!

[Groovie Ghoulie]

I had this problem when my car was overfilled with oil. it puked it out, sucked it back into the intake and blew it through every damn thing in the engine. it was hell to clean up.

[johnghini]

Originally Posted by Groovie Ghoulie

I had this problem when my car was overfilled with oil. it puked it out, sucked it back into the intake and blew it through every damn thing in the engine. it was hell to clean up.

A good point for sure, however my oil level is good...not too full.

[Groovie Ghoulie]

well when i was filled to "factory spec" the engine felt differently, and threw its guts up. every motor is a little different. my old cessna 182 was the same way. air cooled engines all have their own "comfort level". now i fill to about 75 percent then warm it up. add a little and check it. once i found what she likes, i fill to that with no more problems.

[Groovie Ghoulie]

i just recommend that because its an easy (and free) fix. start with the simple stuff first I say.

[Tt surgeon]

I had the exact same thing with too much oil.

[Ronnie's.930]

If you determine you need get your turbo looked at again, I would reconsider your choice of where to send it (if you are refering to Ultimate Motorwerks) . . .

[johnghini]

Originally Posted by Ronnie's.930

If you determine you need get your turbo looked at again, I would reconsider your choice of where to send it (if you are refering to Ultimate Motorwerks) . . .

I'm open to any suggestions from you guys...not married to anyone and willing to go the extra distance for the right person. Can you PM me your suggestion? Thx.

[JFairman]

If you want it done right and very quickly, and you want to be able to talk to the knowledgable rebuilder without feeling like your walking on oversensitive eggshells...

Call and send it to http://www.durabilt-turbo.com/

[Ronnie's.930]

This recent thread would be a good read for you (the HyFlow - aka:HF, HFS etc) are built by Ultimate . . .

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/911-930-turbo-super-charging-forum/669564-turbo-oil-leak-suggestions.html

[oilonly]

Because the cold side of the turbo is clean I would first suspect the oil level also. Try it at the bottom hash mark on the dip stick. The oil vent line going into the back of your air cleaner, is it lined with oil also?

[Ronnie's.930]

Ya' it is interesting for sure. The amount of oil on the various components would not even concern me (it would if it was enough to leak out on the ground and was coming from those components pictured) . . . when I had leaking turbo seals, there was much more oil in the intake piping and such and the turbine impeller, housing and exhaust were dripping with oil (of couse, blowing huge clouds of white, oil smoke) . . .

[oilonly]

When my turbo failed I had the huge white smoke. Afterwards I removed the up pipe and directed a flashlite into the cold side of the turbo and it had oil in it.

[johnghini]

Originally Posted by oilonly

Because the cold side of the turbo is clean I would first suspect the oil level also. Try it at the bottom hash mark on the dip stick. The oil vent line going into the back of your air cleaner, is it lined with oil also?

Yes, my oil tank vent line has oil...not standing oil, but oil in it nonetheless. I think I am going to have a go at getting the oil down to the lowest mark and see what happens.

[johnghini]

Originally Posted by Ronnie's.930

Ya' it is interesting for sure. The amount of oil on the various components would not even concern me (it would if it was enough to leak out on the ground and was coming from those components pictured) . . . when I had leaking turbo seals, there was much more oil in the intake piping and such and the turbine impeller, housing and exhaust were dripping with oil (of couse, blowing huge clouds of white, oil smoke) . . .

Agreed. This is why I am so unsure of which "repair route" to take. It seems that the oil which is getting into all the plumbing is originating from the beginning of the whole system...at the air meter as opposed to oil being found after the turbo has pumped that air off to the intercooler and so forth. I'm not kidding, the cool side of the turbo is utterly clean and dry. ???

[Ronnie's.930]

The compressor side (cold side) of my turbo was clean and dry also (other than some oil film in the "up-pipe" . . .

If you think that the oil is originating at the air meter unit, then in addition to lowering the oil level in the tank, you may want to do simple checks for ring blow-by (like running the engine with the oil cap off to see if there are "puffs" of air evident in the oil tank) . . .

[johnghini]

If you think that the oil is originating at the air meter unit, then in addition to lowering the oil level in the tank, you may want to do simple checks for ring blow-by (like running the engine with the oil cap off to see if there are "puffs" of air evident in the oil tank) . . .[/QUOTE]

I just had a leak down done and the numbers were excellent. Does this indicate the shape of the rings or not necessarily? When I look for the air in the oil tank as you mentioned, do you mean air will expel out of the tank or should I be looking for air bubbles within the oil? Thx.

[Ronnie's.930]

Excellent leak down numbers should eliminate the possibility of worn-ring-blowby (if the test was done correctly). Regarding the oil tank - worn/cracked rings cause actual puffs of air to be expelled through the oil tank. You can even stretch a rubber glove over the fill neck and see if it inflates (usually, with broken rings, you could put your face down there and hear/see the puffs) . . . some vapor is normal, but not true puffs of air.

[Ronnie's.930]

Another thing I wanted to mention was that in you original post you mentioned occasional smoke at cold startup . . . this is totaly normal for a 911 engine (the nature of the horizonal cylinder layout).