Expert turbo advice needed (Videos and pics)

[Sage Root]

I have an 82 westy that came stock as a diesel. The previous owner installed a 1.6L Turbo Diesel from an Audi Quantum I believe. The oil return line was running uphill when I bought the car but I have since got that sorted out. I took the turbo to a shop for an inspection and they balanced the wheels independently of each other. Now I am only getting 2 lbs. of boost max and the turbo howls. Here are a couple of videos where you can hear the turbo before the inspection and after.

Before
http://vimeo.com/13747378
The white smoke has been solved. (Cam timing)

After
http://vimeo.com/15613119

I took the turbo to another shop and had it bench tested and all they said is that it tested OK, I can't get any numbers out of them. I am thinking that the turbo is done.

I have been researching around and I believe that I have a K24 turbo. It doesn't say that anywhere on the turbo that I can find.

Here are a couple of pics that I shot of the numbers on the turbo.

The air inlet to the turbo in the first pic is 2.5" if that helps to ID the turbo.

I am under the impression that the vanagon should have the smaller K14 for quicker spooling. I have seen a post for a supposedly good K14 for a decent price.

My question is this, do I have a K24, and should I spend anymore time with my turbo or should I be working on getting a K14?

[Witless Joe]

You get 2 lbs of boost just revving at idle, but what do you get when you are actually driving and the engine is seeing a serious load (eg. up hill in a relatively high gear)?

You can't really test a turbo at idle like that.

[Dingchowping]

A quick google search of the part number 068 145 703D shows that it is indeed a K24 from a 1982 Audi 4000 turbodiesel.
_________________
TTFN,
Adam

"For once you have tasted flight,
You walk the earth with your eyes turned skyward;
For there you have been,
And there you long to return."
-Leonardo da Vinci

[fairweather]

It needs to be under load to get a boost but I did notice the lack of the whine that was in the first vid.

Spin it by hand to make sure it is free, wiggle it side to side to make it isn't hitting the sides.

Double check all your air connections for leaks and check the boost lines, make sure the wastegate isn't just free to flop open or stuck open somehow.

Sounds to me like the vanes aren't spinning which would either be something jammed up (bad journal bearing) or it is misaligned (vanes hitting the housing) or wastegate stuck open.

Did you crank it over when you reinstalled it with the oil return unhooked to make sure you are getting oil flow? Might be worth checking, don't let it run, just turn it over till oil comes out, shouldn't take more than 10 seconds of cranking.

[Sage Root]

I get a max of 2lbs while full throttle going up a hill.

The shaft spins freely, has very minimal slop there has been no contact to either of the housings.

I have a previous thread going that has kind of died. It has a little better writeup of the the history.
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?p=4940352&highlight=#4940352

Am I correct that the vanagon is supposed to have the K14?

[fairweather]

I don't know what it was supposed to have but a 2.5" compressor inlet is on the big side for a 1.6. Was it laggy before?

[turbotransporter]

When the original 200+K mile K14 turbo on my 1.6L TD Transporter single cab died a couple of years ago I could NOT find a known good K14 to replace mine with nor could I find any high quality parts to rebuild my K14.

After consulting with esteemed samba member "westyventures" I decided to install a brand NEW Garrett turbo charger in place of the original KKK.

K14 (L), Garrett (R)

I purchased the Garrett turbo and an adapter plate from westyventures and I have absolutely no regrets. To install the Garrett turbo on my 1.6L TD I had to have a welder cut off the original KKK exhaust mounting flange and weld on the new adapter plate.

It ain't "cheap" but as opposed to a used K14 or or a questionable rebuild, I won't be wondering about my turbo's condition for a very long time.

The performance/boost (@7psi) of the Garrett "feels" exactly like K14 before it started screeching occationally then later dumping crankcase oil into my exhaust. I'm happy with with the factory like boost setting but I understand that the boost could be increased without danger. (I also installed a boost gauge and EGT gauge so I could monitor both.)

I highly recommend that you contact westyventures and discuss your questions and options with him. Be patient as he is very good and therefore he is very busy.

[Sage Root]

[Bassyaks]

If your only getting 2 lbs at load, check to see if the waste gate is open, or not closing completely, disconnect the linkage and take her out.

To check the turbo , grab the impeller and wiggle it gently , see if the impeller touches the housing, if it does it needs rebuilding, you'll see wear marks, also look at the impeller blades for errosion, however both conditions won't hold back the boost, a junk turbo will make boost.

make sure your flap in the wastegate is not cracked allowing the boost to exit via the exhaust

Your impeller and diffuser are differnent, don't even go there, waste of time. Your discharge housing size only controls how quick the boost builds up and peaks.

Stay with the wastegate/ dump valve
take the valve off and check for seating, pressure test the valve to make sure it moves

Steve

[Sage Root]

[fairweather]

Ya, those are assembled correctly.

I don't really know how the LDA on your IP works but it would seem unlikely that it would all of the sudden start having issues.

It really seems like its a wastegate issue, does the actuator rod have an adjustment on it? Did that get messed up somehow? Usually shortening the rod the more boost it is capable of, so maybe it accidently got reassembled incorrectly?

Did you check the oil flow? The procedure I mentioned above is SOP with a new or rebuilt turbo.

[Bassyaks]

it's a valve does the same thing make sure it response to vaccum or pressure, disassemble it and loook at the valve.

run it without the boost line connected to the turbo, seal the boost line coming from the manifold. you should get FULL boost very quickly

good luck
8 years with Callaway Turbo
we can fix this
Steve

[Witless Joe]

My surmise: it sounds injection pump related, and the turbo is probably fine.

You already said you had cam timing trouble earlier, by which I expect you meant to say injection pump timing. (If it was really cam timing, you would probably have smashed valves by now.) I understand that you had no boost trouble when this "cam timing" thing was happening.

So, you had lots of unburned fuel the way the pump was set up before, and that created lots of heat to spool the turbo. Now you have cranked the timing and-or fuelling down to the point you are not spooling the (relatively) big K24.

Just for the hell of it, crank up the main fuelling screw on the IP by a quarter turn, and then by another quarter turn after that if it makes it any better in a test drive. Overfuel the engine to the point that it smokes again, take a test drive, and look at your boost gauge. Don`t drive it for long this way if you have no EGT gauge, but if this test increases your boost, then you`re on the right track with the IP.

[Sage Root]

[Sage Root]

[Sage Root]

[Witless Joe]

[Sage Root]

Do I run the screw in or out for more fuel?

[Witless Joe]

Clockwise for more fuel.

If you undo the locknut (13mm on my 1.9, probably the same for your 1.6), then you can easily adjust the screw itself with a flat-blade screw driver while the engine is running. You'll see the immediate effect of playing with the screw on your idle speed. Don't bring your idle up over, say, 1200 rpm or it will get "sticky" up there.

Be careful not to slip with the screwdriver and short out the solenoid, if you do this with the engine running.

(Edit - mark the screw position so you can return to it again.)

[fairweather]