4 TURBOS IN 2000 MILES.

General talk about the Subaru Baja.

Moderator: mikenmel08

Post Reply
harleyjohn45
Scoobytruck Contributer
Posts: 64
Joined: Fri Jul 12, 2019 12:52 pm

4 TURBOS IN 2000 MILES.

Post by harleyjohn45 »

I bought this 2006 Baja that has eaten 3 turbos in about 1500 miles. The first turbo went at 110k miles, The second turbo went shortly there after. I didn't know about number 2 until later. I bought the car last fall and number 3 went immediately broke the shaft. The first 3 had broken shafts, so I suspected oil starvation, the second 2 were Chinese (made by an outfit called Speeding Gods) They cost 115.00 each. I removed the banjo filters, they were coming apart. I also bought a Mitsubishi turbo from a member, although it was in good condition I decided to put in a seal kit and have it all cleaned up. The car didn't have much power, so I had it checked out and found something had gone thru the turbo. The turbo is still spinning, but the fan is all messed up. My mechanic took a picture and told me I might be getting 2 pounds of boost. I discussed this with my mechanic and we think there must be something in the up pipe, that went thru the turbo. The car runs perfect and has no CEL's. We suspect the catalytic converter maybe had a piece break off and damage the turbo. Catless up pipes are listed for a WRX and STI, but no Baja. I understand a up pipe for a WRX or sti will fit my Baja. A new Rotomaster turbo from rock auto is 600.00, I have to repair the car whether I keep it or not. Am I wrong in my thinking, I know a lot of members on this forum know more than me.
John
ZUBAJA
Scoobytruck Master
Posts: 276
Joined: Sun Apr 15, 2018 4:38 pm

Re: 4 TURBOS IN 2000 MILES.

Post by ZUBAJA »

I would think the cat would be DOWNSTREAM of the turbo. I also would not count "Chinese turbos" as failures. Because of the extremely high operating speed of a turbo, I would only consider a factory remanufactured unit, a new unit (quality) or a turbo specialist to work on it (one more reason I have an NA)
Was the failure in the compressor section, or the turbine section? Dennis
harleyjohn45
Scoobytruck Contributer
Posts: 64
Joined: Fri Jul 12, 2019 12:52 pm

Re: 4 TURBOS IN 2000 MILES.

Post by harleyjohn45 »

ZUBAJA wrote: Thu Aug 20, 2020 2:54 am I would think the cat would be DOWNSTREAM of the turbo. I also would not count "Chinese turbos" as failures. Because of the extremely high operating speed of a turbo, I would only consider a factory remanufactured unit, a new unit (quality) or a turbo specialist to work on it (one more reason I have an NA)
Was the failure in the compressor section, or the turbine section? Dennis
Dennis, the item that got damaged was the turbo compressor wheel, It still turns freely and does not make noise. You would think the catalytic converter would be down stream. As far as I can tell it's in the up pipe. A non catted up pipe is considered a racing item and will not pass inspection. That said my state does not have inspections, but a catalytic converter can be installed in the exhaust pipe. I am not driving the car at this time, but the turbo has not been removed. I inquired about a rebuilt Mitsubishi turbo, and was told they do not use OEM parts to rebuild them, so you end up with a Chinese turbo.

Update: The Nasioc site has a thread that discusses what fits and doesn't fit. They state that a WRX up pipe is a direct fit, I found a WRX non catted up pipe and guess what, it's not close. The up pipe on a Baja has a catalytic converter about 10 inches in front of the Turbo. The have me scratching my head why they would do this. There is also a catalytic converter in the exhaust pipe, so Turbo Baja's have 2. I still can't understand how something got into my compressor wheel. Still trying to under stand how these things actually work.
Post Reply