Turbo kit options and considerations

[bigwillcv36]

I keep thinking about fitting a turbo kit to my car. Then thinking I won't, then thinking I will... so undecided  s:-( :-( s:-(

I've looked through the forum and found lots of stuff, and it seems that I'm likely to be looking at £5k to get one fitted?
My car is probably not worth that!
I'm not after a total missile, but would love a little more "oomph".

The latest post the the new Black Label kit  looks promising.. what do people think? If I were to get that kit, would having it fitted and tuned take me back up towards the £5k mark?

I guess i just want some advice  Could someone point me towards some options and offer some advice please?

[Ilogik]

there is a new turbo kit that has just been developed, might be worth checking out think after tax your looking at about £1800, think it has everything needed.

 m http://spyderchat.com/forums/showthread ... bokits.com m

 m http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w-LTWtkmvqo m

it has pretty much everything you need.


big thread on it

 m http://spyderchat.com/forums/showthread ... bokits.com m

[MattPerformance]

might be worth checking out think after tax your looking at about £1800, think it has everything needed.

£1800??

[aaronjb]

might be worth checking out think after tax your looking at about £1800, think it has everything needed.

£1800??

Looks more than that, to me, too..

3195 U.S. dollars = 1 982.13289 British pounds

That's at an optimistic exchange rate, plus there'll be delivery, VAT and duty on top of that.. so probably more like £3k landed.

[brad82]

so probably more like £3k landed.

thats getting close to an sp kit which i would recommend any day.. I absolutely love mine   s:D s:D  plus you have support here in the uk if needed..

[dj2k21]

if you dont think you can justify the value of the car vs a turbo kit,then why not either look for a ready turbo'd one and sell yours or why not look into a 2zz conversion instead? extra 50bhp or so and it remains n/a so its good usable power with no lag at all, actually coming to think of it, I have no idea why toyota didnt use the 2zz from day one, much better.

[Ilogik]

First off I say drive a turbo, v6, 2zz if you get the chance, see which one you like the best. I have had a tuned n/a, turbo and now a 2ZZ. I didn't like the turbo too much, much prefer the revvy 2zz, but it lacks the straight line balls out power that would show up quite a lot of cars.  Problem with my turbo owner ship was I was constantly monitoring engine temp, knock levels  and it ended up doing my head in   s:lol: :lol: s:lol: .

Also question yourself, do you aspire to own any other cars out there? weight up the costs an benefits of another model, practicality, insurance, tax, Fuel, extra cost of buying the new car, parts to fix, servicing. Main reason I have stuck to the MR2 is because it offers a little of everything without busting the bank too much, parts are easy to source and owners clubs are great.

Little video vs a subaru  s:) s:)  highlight of my tubby ownership   s:lol: :lol: s:lol:  

 m http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KkwnOeHiWMg m

Factor in a new clutch/cost of fitting/fluids when you plan to go turbo, also put aside about 1k extra for unknowns   s:lol: :lol: s:lol:

[Anonymous]

Weight?   s:lol: :lol: s:lol:

[MattPerformance]

so probably more like £3k landed.

Without fitting.

[markiii]

if you dont think you can justify the value of the car vs a turbo kit,then why not either look for a ready turbo'd one and sell yours or why not look into a 2zz conversion instead? extra 50bhp or so and it remains n/a so its good usable power with no lag at all, actually coming to think of it, I have no idea why toyota didnt use the 2zz from day one, much better.

And will be more expensive than a turbo

[lemans]

so probably more like £3k landed.

thats getting close to an sp kit which i would recommend any day.. I absolutely love mine   s:D s:D  plus you have support here in the uk if needed..

+1 for the SP kit
Professional kit, professionally fitted and great fun to drive.
Still love mine after 15 months.

[ChrisGB]

Another vote for the SP kit, now supplied and fitted by Mattperformance.

The Turbokits item looks shiny and nice though. The possible downsides are noise, with that exhaust system it aint going to be subtle and water/methanol sourcing and associated insurance implications.

Landed, duty paid and handling fees will stand you approximately £3000.

At 9psi, the stock clutch wont stand a chance.

You still need it mapped.

Labour for fitting is going to be a couple of days with clutch change factored in.

Realistically, you are looking at £5000+, which is more than Matt would be asking for the high output kit and a new clutch all fitted I believe.

Ideally, you will want some other modifications with the conversion. At those sort of power levels, the nature of the car is fundamentally different, SP do a chassis brace which would be very advisable, with other bracing a good idea too. You will need good rubber. Although the car is probably not worth £5000, the addition of a decent turbo kit and associated mods puts you into a car that has few rivals at the overall price. What else can you have for that money that gives your the same mix of performance, handling, running costs and usability?

Chris

[SimonC_Here]

Shameless pimp:

My Turbo for sale

[85db]

What's the throttle response and power delivery like after being turbo'd? Any noticeable lag?

[Ilogik]

If its anything like my tte kit, not much lag at all.

[85db]

Hmmm shame i haven't got a spare few grand lying around then   s:twisted: :twisted: s:twisted:

[AC]

Ideally, you will want some other modifications with the conversion. At those sort of power levels, the nature of the car is fundamentally different, SP do a chassis brace which would be very advisable, with other bracing a good idea too. You will need good rubber. Although the car is probably not worth £5000, the addition of a decent turbo kit and associated mods puts you into a car that has few rivals at the overall price. What else can you have for that money that gives your the same mix of performance, handling, running costs and usability? Chris

Too true!  I have to say speaking from experience that the outlay for the turbo kit and fitting is only half the story, its the rest of the mods needed to make a proper job of it that really count.  Going turbo on a 2 is a journey, when you finally arrive you'll know why you started..... (so did the person in an R8 spyder who decided to rest their daytime 'fairy' lights on my back bumper on the motorway a week ago, a short back and sides courtesy of the hairdressers car).

No 1 mod since FI.  Brakes!  Nothing better than knowing you have stoppers to match the going.  The stock brakes aren't bad, but double the car's output and stopping, or the need to, lives in exactly the same dimension as accelerating.  Only since my brake upgrade have I realised how much I was chancing it before.

[bigwillcv36]

ChrisGB... That has put it into serious perspective.
Thank you.
Matt's option sounds excellent.
He's already pm'd me with some sound advice. I'll give him a call.

[bigwillcv36]

Going turbo on a 2 is a journey, when you finally arrive you'll know why you started..... (so did the person in an R8 spyder who decided to rest their daytime 'fairy' lights on my back bumper on the motorway a week ago, a short back and sides courtesy of the hairdressers car).

I wish I'd seen that  s:-D :-D s:-D

[onion86]

At 9psi, the stock clutch wont stand a chance.

I'm running 8/9psi amd my stock clutch is still going after 21 months, I'm not sure how though!

[AC]

Blimey that is remarkable.  My stock clutch was slipping the moment I drove out of Noble following first mapping ~ 230 brake.  Could your car already have an uprated clutch in from before you went turbo?  Or do you drive very gently?

When Charlesworth fitted the LUK clutch I checked out the old one and it was perfect, 50% worn and that was a couple weeks of provoked slipping (and 37k on clock).  Quite simply the clamping force of the stock clutch just couldn't take the 200 lb ft that it first made.

[ChrisGB]

What's the throttle response and power delivery like after being turbo'd? Any noticeable lag?

I have to be honest and declare that turbocharging is my least favourite way of getting power out of an engine and I came to it as a last resort having looked down every other avenue. However, with the T25 turbo, the lag is minimal at low revs and once above 3500rpm, almost non existent. What you do get is an elasticity to the throttle response that does take away some of the precision. Maybe it is because the system is good, or maybe because I have driven turbodiesels a lot, but I found I adapted quickly to this without any hassle. The throttle response is very consistent even if it is elastic. Obviously, staying N/A avoids this, but you will be doing an awful lot of N/A work to get to the power levels that 9 - 10psi of boost will give you and you will spend a lot more money to do it.

The T28 option may be a liability here. First it is a bigger turbo so inherently more lag, secondly, it is a journal bearing turbo, so not as fast to spool up as a GT28 variant. On the plus side, the T28 will shift more air at high rpm making for a bigger maximum output should you want it.

Pace per pound, the turbo is cheapest if you want to go quick. N/A mods to the value of a turbo kit are not going to see you going much quicker than stock, you run into the diminishing returns wall at relatively low power with the 1zz and a 2zz done properly will cost more than going turbo anyway. Run a basic SP style kit from Matt with stock injectors and mechanical boost control (6psi I believe) and you will see circa 200bhp. This keeps lag minimal, you can keep your original clutch and you can have it supplied and fitted for £3600 which is a bargain. The performance will be noticeably faster than a tuned N/A car but the essential character of the MR2 is retained. Go with the high output kit circa 235bhp, bigger injectors, electronic boost control (9-10psi) you get a lot more torque and a very different car. The option to steer from the rear is easily accessible and with the T25, very controllable. The throttle becomes a much bigger factor in the way the car is balanced and steered, which is exactly what I was after.

I must say that I have found the stock brakes up to the job of slowing down with the high output kit on road, but the car has not been tracked yet.

Chris

[85db]

^^This is great info, thanks.. After fitting a trd short shifter the other day i'm starting to get the bug for modifying it, i think suspension and some lighter wheels will be next, but after that i may have to start looking at increasing the power. It's a great car but would be so much better with a few more horses   s:-D :-D s:-D  , as i'm sure you know.

Are there any companies who would fit a supercharger kit rather than a turbo? This would surely take out much of that elasticity you talk about.

[loadswine]

The one thing a turbo cannot deliver on though, well for me anyway, is noise. I've not heard a decent sounding 1zz turbo yet. I'm not that fussed about the plumbing noises of air escaping with a whoosh or having demented chipmunks in the engine bay with compressor noises. Noise is only suitably addressed by being NA, so if that is a big factor for anyone, it needs thinking about. Ultimate noise, well that's a no brainer V6 every time.
However the turbo is superb at delivering lots of shove and that will make you smile for sure. The onset of boost up a steep hill is pretty good stuff, as the 2 just seems to ignore gravity.
Ah, some people will be thinking, you have a V6, so you're biased. Nope, I have a turbo these days and have to say that a lot hinges on a good install. No turbo is completely fit and forget, but a good install will ensure you can focus on the driving fun most of the time and that really is the point. The 2 in all its forms is fun, a good turbo is a lot of fun.  s:D s:D
I have only driven one supercharged car and I liked that a lot. If the Rotrex kits were cheaper, a lot more people would have them. It does seem pretty linear in power delivery from my brief drive. Overall, I would prefer it, but very rare and the kit itself is possibly more expensive than a turbo. Some of the guys in the US were developing kits, but don't think anything is available like that at the moment.

[aaronjb]

I'll have you know my 1ZZ journal-bearing turbo sounds lovely, Nige   s:P s:P    s:lol: :lol: s:lol:  

Though I'd prefer it with an extra four cylinders  s;) s;)