As some of you may know, i was planning on turboing my 1996 silver nissan maxima since jordan started planning to supercharge his. i've been meaning to post for a while about my progress since its finally coming together.

Basically i'm planning (planning, i'm most of the way through the "build" stage) on making a RMT. so far i have:
The Turbo - a Garret t3/t4 water cooled .56 compressor .50 turbine

Home made feed pipe - basically found a 2 bolt flange of about the right size, redrilled the holes, welded old pipe that i had after swapping over my Y-pipe to an aftermarket unit, and connected it to a t4 flange, using the orriginal flange on the ypipe to create a "buffer" as such. interestingly enough, to have this custom made was going to cost about the same as having a standard forward ypipe made up, so i figured i'd give it a try myself (observe the ammature welds). however its air tight mostly (there is a tiny hole somewhere but its not big enough to cause any problems)

the oil scavanger pump - its a turbowerks one thats designed specifically for this application, i didn't want to risk getting a cheap diaphram pump that could fail.

i've also got 5 meters of teflon coated oil pressure line, 7 meters of automatic transmission hose, 11 meters of heater hose, 1 meter of drain hose, and all the different fittings and barbs that i need, as well as 2 taps for the bspt type threads on the barbs,

Currently i'm trying to work out which way the turbo is suppose to fit so it doesn't sit too low. i'm also looking at making the holding bracket and tapping the oil pan for the return line.

Tomorrow i should be getting a 6.5meter long tube of aluminium (2" diameter, 2mm wall) delivered and during the week sometime i should be getting a replacement o2 sensor and about $200 worth of silicone 90* couplers and Tbolt clamps.

Hopefully this will get me boosted at low pressures (got 290 injectors from the 00vi install, so probably 5psi) untill i can up grade my fuel system, Then it will be on for young and old!

Interesting that you are mounting it to far back - wouldn't this cause a lot of throttle/boost lag?


I'm no welding expert - but it looks like you need to increase the heat a bit in your welds? It doesn't look like it's fusing properly (que timmy)

hmm very interesting

id love to see how much power this puts out, and how driveable it is

any idea on final costs? it looks fairly affordable

I expect some turbo lag, but as i have a 7300 red line it shouldn't bother me too much if it take a little while to spool.

The only welder i have access to atm is a $100 stick welder, it has 2 settings, on the higher settings it was hard to get a good seal without blowing through, atleast with the lower settings i could make a seal without the weld blowing through. its not suppose to hold any weight so i think this will be ok. I may take that exact design to an engineering shop and see if i can have them make it up "properly" which will be needed when i go to get my mod plate for the charger.

Cost - So far about $1400, which could have probably been done alot cheaper, but i decided to pay extra for all the tubing / connectors and the oil pump.

seems like a very affordable project so far! nice work man

il ask the same question you asked sinturion

how long till you're finished?

well, lets see, tonight i would like to tap the front valve cover for oil return, wire up the oil pump, and work out the mounts for the turbo, tomorrow i'll start running the intercooler piping, wednesday i'll run oil and water piping, i think thursday and friday i'll just be cleaning up and replacing my wideband o2 sensor.

i'm hoping to go for a quick drive round the neighbourhood this weekend, i just want to hear it start to get onto boost just so i know expected lag and where to take timing out of emanage and modify fuel.

after this i'll probably take out the turbo and just drive around stock until i can organise a muffler + fuel. so i'm hoping within the month my DD will be turboed... how soon depends on how much money my fiance allows me to spend.

well ur 1st problem with the welds is the welder its self lol.


its got to see it been done!

I wana race when your finished lol.

Sweet, i cant wait till this things is up and running, itd be so hot hearing an A32 spool up....... You may even persuade me to do it.

yeah im thinking that aswell, be a good way to make some power and shouldnt cost the earth either

isnt the Garret t3/t4 a huge turbo lol?

nice. I'm liking seeing all these boost projects come to life

Whooohoo!, Very productive week and weekend.

i saw 1-2 psi before i decided to stop (at ~2500rpm, i wasn't watching the tachometer at the time) can't wait till the fuel gear gets here..

Turbo lag is non existent, RMT for the win. I'll post up a whole bunch of photos i took during build process this week. .

Hahah! good sh*t Aaron! Feel the difference even now?

Wait til you get 10 psi. It feels like someone lit a rocket up your arse

very cool, keen to see some vids when your done

pictures, as promised.


6.5mt of 2" aluminium tubing. $100 delivered to your door, i used all but about 2 mt of it.


Silicone couplers, i needed to use all of them (lucky i ordered one more than i thought i needed.)


Modified the internal wastegate so it didn't hit the footwell (tap and die set worth its weight in gold)


As you can see my dodgy welding.


nothing much here, just how i was planning on running the IC piping.


Oil feed line, going from the pressure sensor.


cable running underneath the car (i secured it with drill in retaining bits)


my boot (without sub), and my speaker amp.


as you can see, i did the work myself.


basic mockup of the oil pump


pump installed.


ground clerance (it looks worse than it is, plus, thats an old filter that i would prefer get ruined than not running a filter and having my engine and turbo get ruined.)


Beter idea of ground clearance (which is good minus the filter)


my boost and intake temp guage.


Compleated IC piping.


and how its run under the car..

I'm glad it works, but in practicality, I can see there will be clearance issues. Are you planning on tucking the turbo up a bit higher? I'd probably also weld a nice stainless cover over it too. All in time I suppose?

I can see a possibility of maybe hacking a section of your spare wheel well out to make way for the induction piping. You could then route the intake piping to a better location to situate your pod filter so it doesnt suck in water one day when you hit a big puddle.

so to save me searching for it, what are the basic benefits of doing it this way, as opposed to putting it in the engine bay?

have you touched the suspension on the car? cause id be seriously worried about clearance if you lower it

the turbo itself is high enough, it sits about an inch or 2 lower than the stock muffler, i'm not going to lower the car so it would have the same clearance as a lowered car..

Everyone except for my 4x4 height maxima scrapes on my driveway on the way in and out.. i just scraped the filter on the way out (which was expected, and i don't really care as its old and rusted and needs replacing anyway)

if you can get the exhaust manifold and downpipe made for less than $600-$700 then it may be better to go standard as it will be simpler for the same price, also if you suck at fabricate anything yourself don't bother, as people who are willing to fab you up the exhaust section is going to ask around the same price as a forward Y pipe ("we have never done it before, so its going to take longer") but if you like working on your car and can weld and drill etc then its definantly worthwhile.

I think there are also benefits in this set up for the cooling factor, be that the turbo isn't in the engine bay, its at the back and essentially out in the open, it should remain cooler in the air. However, the turbo might be susceptible to cracking due to temperature changes especially if you go through a water puddle! Might be worthwhile investing in getting it covered I'm not too sure :S

However, having that much piping going to the turbo from the exhaust and back to the intake from the turbo, I'd be worried about massive lag!?!?

I have read about other setups just like this, rear mounted turbo's (kind of a useless comment as I can't recall if it was good or bad lol)... Either way, congrats on taking the initiative to do something like this I look forward to hearing about your progress and seeing some vid results

hmmmm I would consider chopping a hole in your tire well and putting the air filter in there - that way you could have the turbo sit more upright which should give you some more clearance

woah i totally just realised you're putting the turbo in the back! i have never seen this before... crazy stuff... nice job though man, i would consider what sinturion said above because, you say now you dont mind scrapage cos its an old filter but what about when you get a new one?

how hard would have it been to clear space in the engine bay? i know the guy in america who turboed his 6th gen put his battery in the boot... i'm guessing the 6th gen engine bay is a little bigger though? i dunno...

the battery is actually in the spair wheel well, just under my amps. this is why i put the oil pump there too..

i could have gone the front mount route, (i might still when i get around to it) as i do have space. its just easier to do it this way.

ah ok fair call. so how long till you get to fire it up and go for a run?

i've been driving around yesterday and i decided to drive it to work today.. i think i have a boost leak though as when i first started playing around with the car it was happy to jump into boost and i had to hold her back, now i can't seem to get her into boost even after 4500 rpm :/. i'll have to check all my clamps etc. tonight.

yer.. something blew off

hmmmm do you have a blow off valve hidden anywhere?

no blowoff valve at the moment. (which could be why something blew off?).

When i say its not boosting properly, it will see 1 psi when i gun it but it wont increase past that even until redline, however once the gear changes(auto) it jumps to 3 or 4 psi for a second (i normally let it off by then as i shouldn't be driving any faster than that on the roads i'm on..).

If its not a boost leak could it be anything else? would a copule of pin tip sized holes before the turbo in the exhaust cause something like this? if i put my hand over the turbo outlet when its idling i can't hold the pressure back, (previously when i had a big exhaust leak i did this and i didn't feel any pressure on my hand at all)

Hmmm if you don't have a blow off valve you'll get a boost spike whenever you take your foot off the accelerator. Boost spikes aren't very good for turbos.

How have you got your wastegate plumbed up? could it have gotten in a stuck position or so?

Apparently the usefullness of a blowoff valve is questonable, (as far as protecting the turbo). i also think the wastegate is ok but i'll double check just to make sure.

went for a drive home from work for lunch to drop of my car and pick up my mates, and the car wouldn't put down any power, at all. infact putting my foot down just a touch would buck and kick and miss when it was trying to accelerate. turns out a valve cover breather had come off, so i'm hopnig that fixing this will fix my issue, we will see tonight when i get home i suppose.

if thats the only problem you have then i think your doing quite well

yeah it a big problem but at least the car is still running lol

No BOV is definitely bad for a turbo thats why they stick em on from factory. when you com off the gas and the throttle is closed there is a large pressurised volume of air wanting to escape from the charge side it trys to force its way back through the turbo and over time can damage it id definitely recommend one. When it was boosting was there any lag? I wouldn't have throught the lag would be too bad even mounted that far back.

What are you using to manage your fuel?

give it a bov.

hrm, i think the turbo is ruined. Its got oil all over the exhaust housing and in the intake tubing, and with the scavanger pump running without the car going i can hear a sucking noise (think bath drain execpt much quieter) which sounds like its pulling from past the oil seals. i might attempt to rebuild this turbo, but it might be better for me to just purcahse a BB turbo in the end.

disappointing news, what do you think is the cause?

Why do you need a pump? My oil line is tapped using a 4an (i think) tee from the oil pressure sensor hole. The oil pressure sensor is plugged into the tee, and the oil line out the other side of the tee. I once ran it for a few seconds without plugging the oil feed line into the blower and she pisses oil out very quickly. I'm sure this would be enough for a turbo. Have you checked on the big org how theyre doing their oil lines for turbo setups? I haven't heard of them having to use pumps before - other than for fuel. A BB turbo might be a better option. Remembering that turbos sit on a layer of oil as they spin, hence the turbo timers that keep your car running until they stop spinning. It's very easy to ruin a turbo!

because my turbo sits where the muffler used to sit. so i need to be able to send the oil back to the oil pump.

It turns out i may have juts shut her down without allowing the pump to pull the oil back into the sump, becaues i started her today and she did't have any oil coming out.

I've also just fixed my wideband and just installed my walbro 255hr pump.

i got 2 lots of bad news and 1 good news

first bad news : wideband doesn't appear to be logging at all correctly .

second bad news: Turbo may still be broken (compressor wheel against the side of the compressor housing)

Good news: I f*cking FIXED IT!..

Accelerated in first and juts have the wheels spin once i was up to like 50-60kph.

turns out the compressor housing wasn't bolted in on one side (when i got it it was missing most bolts and the others where threaded.) which means behind the wheel would let out air and also grind against the compressor wheel aswell slowing it down. (hence possible broken turbo). but i can live with that now i easy see 7psi boost before i let her off.

now that i've rebolted it into place, she GOES!.. and how! Exhaust is a lot quieter now aswell.

Ace

Are you actually running a muffler at all? must be pretty loud otherwise.

Good sh*t dude. Good to see it's all working out. Fast eh?

, no muffler yet, thats my weekend project this weekend. its louder than stock (quite a bit louder than stock) and would probably be louder than legally allowed, but its much quieter than without the turbo and no muffler.

I'd say its about as loud as a lancer with a 4" cannon... maybe a little quieter.

well hopefully it doesnt sound as bad a s a lancer

i was gonna sk how the hell the exhaust works, are you just going to have a dump pipe before it gets to the turbo or what?

A dump pipe coming off the turbo should just point directly at the exhaust notch in the bumper so it should then just be a case of welding on a section of pipe then a muffler...

Actually come to think of it the design of the muffler could be pretty crucial as theres only a short section of exhaust between it and the turbo u'll wanna make sure ure not hindering flow and you could have the potential for the turbo to spool quite quickly as there will be bugger all resistance maybe eliminating any lag u get from mounting it far back?

the muffler i use will be a 3" straight thruogh and the pipe to the muffler is 1 section of 180* 3" mandrell bend and a section of 90* 3" mandrel bent pipe going into the stragith through muffler. its going to be tight and i'll probably loose some spool. but others who have done this haven't noticed much if any loss at all so i'm not too worried.

good to hear its all up a running properly man. you must be having fun! now, you have to go to the toilet, get some snacks and jump on the computer and do a write up for all the other 4th genners wanting to do this. haha what do you think the total cost will end up to be?

Running or not running a BOV doesnt make a huge differnce on the turbo's life unless you running 20psi+.

also about the ground clearnce.

can you mount the turbo any higher or even in the spare wheels well. i would be worryed about going over speed bumps etc it would be so easy to knock the turbo of IMO

but it looks very fun

i'm looking at redoing the exhaust feed pipe so it does sit a little higher. but as it is now its still above the legal height limit of 100mm. but i'll probably do all that after its engineered. also, i can't really run a BOV until after i get it engineered as it would be difficult to feed the BOV into the compressor inlet at the back of the car.

At the moment i'm just trying to get it ready for the modplate, so that means installing muffler, relocating the filter, supporting the turbo better and supporting the IC tubing better. i think thats about it.

oh, and as i got sick of driving my fiances celica to and from work (2door car, needs to fit 3 adults :/) , i've converted the car back to stock for now which took me about 45min. i'd just drive the car in turbo version but there are cops everywhere on my way to work and my car looks suspicious without a muffler and a loud rumble and a jet like noise coming from the back of it

45min change over time is pretty impressive, you can just bolt and unbolt when you feel the need for speed lol

im not sure on how the laws are in brissy, but you would not get through down here

Quick updates (no pictures as i'm at work)

basically all the exhaust piping is done, muffler included, and its really quiet, only a touch louder than stock but certainly not loud enuogh to get any real attention by the cops. so big bonus. i also relocated the turbo much higher and the turbo now supports itself on some generic exhaust hangers. so ground clearance is no longer an issue (it sits higher than the axle now)

anyway, i've taken the car down to a place to have them give it a once over to tell me what i need to do to get it mod plated, and the guys there seemed really keen, hearing about the rear mounted turbo but never seen it done in person the guy i was talking to pretty much had the entire workshop come over and check it out. which is much better than the exhaust shop i went to when i first started the project (pretty much laughed at me and told me i had no idea what i was doing). they said that they wouldn't have any problems doing a mod plate but i got to fix a copule of things first.

* fix CAI hole (either make it perfectly round or weld a bit of steel over the top)
* Oil leak from the turbo.
* secure the oil return line a bit more with brakets.
* secure the 12v battery cable (cable ties are fine)
* crank breather hose needs to rerout into the intake
* bolt down and secure the oil scavange pump
* put a heat shiled under the turbo (just in case i run over someone. lol... by the time they get to the turbo, i don't like their chances.)

Anyway i'll post a video and more pictures when i get home.