ok, as those of you who know me, I've had the fiat for 3.5 years now, and its been great, but now its at 104,000 miles, the turbo has started to make the "police siren" noise, and at a recent RR day I got this...

and the operator advised me i was living on borrowed time....

so, after failing to raise the funds for a hybrid, my car is in the garage getting a new turbo, I couldn't resist the price (£475) plus 12 months garuntee, so i went for it.......

I get the car back tomorow, but after just speaking to the tech, he says he has examined my current turbo (the 104,000 mile OE one) because he's never had to replace one on a grande punto 1.9, and he can find nothing wrong with it, no bearing wear or damage at all..... (although he did say it may be different under heat and pressure) , and I can't have my old turbo back , because the £475 deal is an "exchange".......

BUT on the plus side, he says the turbo that has gone on is a brand new one.....

Have I done the right thing ?! :'(

Edited 14 December, 201015 yr by sharkrider

too late to worry about it mate, so don't

If it's stopped making the police siren noise and at the same time that gives you peace of mind, I wouldn't worry. I had mine replaced and when I examined it, there didn't seem to be much wrong with it. Turbo Technics said it was ruined, but what they mean by damaged and what I take to mean the same thing are probably very different.

too late to worry about it mate, so don't

lol... I wish I could be like that... i stress too much.

should have got a hybrid in there mate for that money!

If it's stopped making the police siren noise and at the same time that gives you peace of mind, I wouldn't worry. I had mine replaced and when I examined it, there didn't seem to be much wrong with it. Turbo Technics said it was ruined, but what they mean by damaged and what I take to mean the same thing are probably very different.

true.... when he was putting his foot down on the rollers , he sort of went "whoa..." and said, "it shouldn't be doing that...."

He's probably seen enough to know.......

ah well... preventative medicine I suppose

should have got a hybrid in there mate for that money!

problem is there is no hybrid "off the shelf" for my car.. the turbo is garrett, but not a stand alone unit, its part of the manifold, only company that would do me one was turbo dynamics, and it would have been a one off at £1000..... then there would have been fitting, custom map ect on top of that price, (ok 220-240bhp, but worth it?) RS tuning did offer to help (thanks) but would still have cost me over a grand at the end of the day......

The graph I got from RS Tuning is similar to yours sharkrider (not as bad tho), mine peaks at 2.5k revs (virtually nothing below 2k revs) and drops off quickly before settling down about 3-3.5k revs

edit: added scanned attachment

scan0001.pdf

Edited 14 December, 201015 yr by chrisw880

I'm sure it'll be fine Dave, and take your mind off it by giving it a right old thrash at the weekend.

I'm sure it'll be fine Dave, and take your mind off it by giving it a right old thrash at the weekend.

oh, I'll muller it once its done may eventreat myself to a coilover kit for Christmas gotta beat the VAT and all that!

The graph I got from RS Tuning is similar to yours sharkrider (not as bad tho), mine peaks at 2.5k revs (virtually nothing below 2k revs) and drops off quickly before settling down about 3-3.5k revs

edit: added scanned attachment

sure looks like it Chris, but this is what it looked like when he got it NOT spiking...

and this is what it looked like when it was working properly at awsomes rollers, no big dips in the graph, much flatter/cleaner power delivery....

doesn't drop off so quickly does it? plus the dips aren't as bad.... looks like wear and tear to me....... We need another RR day so I can check out the new turbo! lol....

That sounds a great idea....Then you can take me out in it.... :yes:

That sounds a great idea....Then you can take me out in it.... :yes:

lol.. if you just want an excuse for a pub lunch and a drive, I'm free alot of the time

I shall keep an eye on the diary. Still planning for a big all drive for next year though, see if we can get a good haul of cars and a good mix too.

Fancying a run out in the near future though.

sure looks like it Chris, but this is what it looked like when he got it NOT spiking...

I haven't a clue as to what's caused the lack of torque below 2k revs (compared to Awesome's peak of 1.5k)

doesn't drop off so quickly does it? plus the dips aren't as bad.... looks like wear and tear to me....... We need another RR day so I can check out the new turbo! lol....

Another RR sounds like a good idea, to see if a new turbo has made a difference to your car

I haven't a clue as to what's caused the lack of torque below 2k revs (compared to Awesome's peak of 1.5k)

Another RR sounds like a good idea, to see if a new turbo has made a difference to your car

indeed, and you said it didn't smell too good when I was trying to chase the mongrel down in cider country i still think you were smelling his car! lol......

your's has done more miles than mine right? maybe you should get the PD130 turbo and map it accordingly

I shall keep an eye on the diary. Still planning for a big all drive for next year though, see if we can get a good haul of cars and a good mix too.

Fancying a run out in the near future though.

I would happily go for a "reccy" if you like, i'm sure simon would join us

well, new turbo is on, all is fine. seems alot smoother than before, I think I could actually feel those spikes! lol...

well, here's to the next 100k.

Right call I reckon Dave. That's a lovely photograph of the graph at RST by the way :p

Good price, even on exchange - plus a warranty on it.

And I'd only compare runs on the same rollers really, in my view.

Enjoy

Cheers,

Steve

Right call I reckon Dave. That's a lovely photograph of the graph at RST by the way :p

Good price, even on exchange - plus a warranty on it.

And I'd only compare runs on the same rollers really, in my view.

Enjoy

Cheers,

Steve

yeah steve good pic lol... and thanks, to keep reliability, I may go down the route of a suspension kit ect for more performance nice to loose the police siren noise, although the techj said he can't see anything wrong with the turbo he took off! but must have been something there when under stress......

Classic Catch-22 scenario really, but it's still the right call

Nobody has the great crystal ball and who knows, it might still have been running in another 100k. Worth the risk, and inconvenience were it to go? Not for that price - in my book anyway.

Happy motoring - and yes, suspension next! Do they do FSDs for the GP?

how much was fitting?

Classic Catch-22 scenario really, but it's still the right call

Nobody has the great crystal ball and who knows, it might still have been running in another 100k. Worth the risk, and inconvenience were it to go? Not for that price - in my book anyway.

Happy motoring - and yes, suspension next! Do they do FSDs for the GP?

agreed... may be worth it for peice of mind

FDS's? there are several makes of coilover available..... not sure what FSD's are....

how much was fitting?

labour was £150 including oil change.....

Edited 15 December, 201015 yr by sharkrider

your's has done more miles than mine right? maybe you should get the PD130 turbo and map it accordingly

135k miles, I probably would go down the PD130 route, if I had the money :(

Edited 16 December, 201015 yr by chrisw880

Dave, I think you did the right thing. Look at what happened to my old Garrett when it started making siren noises . . . 10 days later, pop. :'( Although I am aware some of the turbos about make that noise normally (my 2.0tdi Octy did for instance).

At the end of the day, Dave, that turbo had done a few miles and lets not forget it's been mapped for almost all of them too - I think it's not done too badly considering.