There are many threads on here relating to turbo failure

I appreciate the vast majority never get a problem but Im just wondering if there is a link betwween the lower quality diesels, ie supermarkets & turbos getting gummed up. Shell & the like advertise that their fuels are blended to provide cleaner engines so do the fuels with less additives whislt still complying with the varies min regulations for quality gum things up over a period of time

I don't think diesel makes a difference, but keeping your car well maintained, i.e. serviced will always be more important.

I thought all Diesel/Petrol is made to a standard, and the car will run on that fuel no matter the source

I ran mine almost exclusively on Esso as I believed it was a major brand with a good reputation (and on the advice of a research officer at a leading University who does research on diesel engines, as the extra additives used kept the combustion chambers cleaner) - but my turbo still went kaput due to carbon deposits.

I don't think diesel makes a difference, but keeping your car well maintained, i.e. serviced will always be more important.

I thought all Diesel/Petrol is made to a standard, and the car will run on that fuel no matter the source

It has a minimum standard it has to comply with but various additives & tweaks are made by various suppliers. Its well known with Petrol, especially the higher octane ones that some cars run badly on Tesco 99 & mpg is often less than V Power, BP Ultimate etc.

Im not wanting to start the petrol debate here, Im just wondering if the various Diesels have an effect on Turbo Life. I run our Diesels mainly on Shell as our local Shell is opposite Tescos so helps to keep shell well priced. Our Mk 1 Octy killed a turbo at about 125-130,000 from memory. It was remapped at 8000 miles so I wasnt really to upset, the Superb Mk 1 got to just over 80K without a hitch & the Scout is now still singing along with just over 40K on it

We use a minicab firm at work and they used to have several 130bhp Superbs, they all had over 250k on them and suffered no engine issues at all, least of all turbo failure... I've also had several turbo diesel cars, several with over 100k on them that were all ok... I'd say that turbo failure is either pure bad luck, bad maintenance or tuning...

Edited 6 September, 201114 yr by The PM

I think it's amazing turbos last as long as they do - 100k plus rpm working at exhaust temperatures and rapidly changing load conditions.

Need to ensure the turbo gets good quality lubrication (including on shutdown), isn't run flat out all the time (I can't believe remaps help) but does get the vanes moving occasionally with some full throttle once the engine is hot.

I may be wrong, but I'm sure that I read somewhere that turbos in diesel engines had an "easier" life than those in petrol engines... From what i remember it was during the early days of TDi's and when turbos on petrol engines failed on an almost regular basis... Found this on Wikki:

"Turbochargers are in many ways more suited to operation in diesel engines. The smaller speed range that Diesel engines work in (between 1000 and 5000 rpm for a private car, and as little as 1000-3500 rpm for a larger unit in a commercial vehicle) mean that the turbocharger has to change speed less, reducing turbo lag and improving efficiency."

It will be interesting to see if Turbo Technology has improved enough during the recent years of development in diesels to cope with the new turbo petrol engines which are becoming increasingly common...

I've heard that by not turning your engine off immediately at the end of a journey and allowing it to idle for approximately 20 to 30 seconds, gives the turbo chance to cool down, therefore prolonging its life.

Can anyone verify this?

Cheers

I've heard that by not turning your engine off immediately at the end of a journey and allowing it to idle for approximately 20 to 30 seconds, gives the turbo chance to cool down, therefore prolonging its life.

Can anyone verify this?

Cheers

If the car has been driven very very hard then it should be allowed to cool but this applies to brakes as well so the simplest way is to drive gently for the last mile or 2. The only other time I ever let cars tick over is if the air temp is extreemly high, not usually a problemn in the UK but I have had really high temps in southern Europe in the summer

As for letting it run on with normal driving I dont think that is of any real use, just let the car drop to tickover for a couple of seconds then switch off

Thanks Stuart. Appreciate your advice. Cheers.