Rb26 Turbo Problem

[mina3139]

hey im bout to buy a gtr r33 and ive been hearing a lot bout the cermaic turbos failing and in result damaging the motor...should i be worried and how hard is it to change the turbos?

[EdGTR]

Hey mate alot of people will say different things about turbo failure causing engine damage but i can say 100 percent that on my r32 it happened and it did cause major damage. i have a block with scoring in the last three bores and dents in the piston and head.

if you are a bit mechanical it is somthing you could do at home if you have the time and want to do it. it is a bit involved and does require qiute alot of things to be removed so take your time and label everything or lay it out so it all goes back the same. pics may help.

Good luck

[mina3139]

so do they have a life expecancy on the turbos?

[51NNA]

If its a completely stock engine with no aftermarket boost controllers and it hasnt run anymore then 12-13psi then id say its safe but im only going off rb20/25's i honestly dont know about rb26 turbos, from experience ive had an rb20 running 1bar for 3 years without a problem and even sold the turbo too a mate and hes had no problems ither, ive also got an rb25 atm running 1bar and its still going strong after a year, but theres no power to be gained after 14psi, it was a 1kw difference from 14 psi too 18 psi lol, so if your hunting for more power and a peace of mind id change them.

Edited April 12, 2012 by 51NNA

[GTScotT]

more or less a GTR should not have stock turbos on it anymore, they are just too old and the risks are just too high.

you should aim to change your turbos ASAP. however, doing so is one hell of a money pit at the same time.

its much cheaper and easier to own a GTST dollar for dollar a budget build will go a lot further and faster in a GTST

[Hadouken]

That guy knows. But at the end of the day, if you want a gtr, you WANT a gtr.

There are people who run standard turbos on 1 bar boost and have done so for a long time. But then you have others who go to crank up the boost and bang, new engine, hello money pit.

It's the same as anything, do you feel lucky? Does the car look in good mechanical condition? Has it been boosted its tits off?

If the car was taken care of through our it's life then you won't have too many problems if you treat her (he if you float that way) right.

Or buy it, change those turbos but expect to pay some cash money to do it. It won't be a cheap endeavor but it will give you peace of mind.

[mina3139]

hmm yer i guess...so would youze go gt-3540?

[doo doo]

I was under the impression that R33 GTR's had steel exhaust wheels anyway and only 32's had the ceramic.

[Beelzebub89]

Fairly sure they all got ceramic exhaust wheels. The only ones that came factory with steel exhaust wheels were the N1 motors.

[Moodles2]

R32: normal GTR and V-Spec are ceramic (N1 are steel), R33: ceramic, R34: ceramic

Differences

R32's are 270degree journal bearing

R33's are the same but ball bearing

R34's are the same as R33's but a slightly different turbo design (different compressor housing)

R34 N1's are Garrett -7s which use an inconel wheels (mix of nickel and steel which results in a lighter wheel)

R32/R33 N1's/Nismo's are old laggy 80s tech with steel wheels

[doo doo]

Cool, thanks for that info.

[Don Dada]

R32: normal GTR and V-Spec are ceramic (N1 are steel), R33: ceramic, R34: ceramic Differences R32's are 270degree journal bearing R33's are the same but ball bearing R34's are the same as R33's but a slightly different turbo design (different compressor housing) R34 N1's are Garrett -7s which use an inconel wheels (mix of nickel and steel which results in a lighter wheel) R32/R33 N1's/Nismo's are old laggy 80s tech with steel wheels

Errrrrmmm......NO.

Only R34s are ball bearing.

[Moodles2]

Errrrrmmm......NO.

Only R34s are ball bearing.

Actually you are right my mistake, R33 N1's are 360 degree journal bearing while the R33 stockers are 270 degree.

[SiR_RB]

That's right

All gtr turbo are ceramic even the r34 gtr

N1 turbos are steel wheeled

Only r34 gtr are ball bearing

All are rubbish and should be upgraded