converting turbo to non turbo??

[johnceggleston]

converting turbo to non turbo??

 

is this doable? or practical?

 

i've never owned a turbo and have only a very basic understanding of one, but sometimes they seem to be problematic or high maintenance engines. and normally i would look for and but a non-turbo car, but if the deal was too good to pass up, could a conversion be done? would it save fuel?

 

thanks,

john

[NoahDL88]

don't "fix" what works. if-when it breaks then worry about it.

[WoodsWagon]

What year turbo car are we talking?

 

Turbo car's aren't that much more high maintenece, but they have usually lived a harder life due to the buyers they attract. Go by the condiditon of the car, not turbo vs non turbo.

 

You will grow to enjoy the turbo a lot more if you get one. If you never get one, you won't know what you're missing, so it works out the same either way.

[ericem]

My turbo car is just as economical as my non turbo, you just need to stay out of boost. Remember a non turbo is faster then a turbo without the turbo. I have found my 94 SS to be just as reliable as my N/A 93 wagon. It is just I am driving alot faster, and having a whole bunch of fun

[Fairtax4me]

No reason it can't be done but the car will be a complete slug without the turbo. Turbo engines are generally lower compression than their naturally aspirated counter parts. Power would suffer quite a bit compared to an N/A engine, and I suspect fuel economy would as well. The turbo actually increases the efficiency of the engine. When driven correctly turbo engines are entirely capable of higher mpg with slightly more power than a comparably sized non-turbo engine. But that hardly ever happens because its so much more fun to drive it like you stole it.

[Subarupusher]

Turbos do need more oil changes and the old Subaru XT Turbos I had really cooked the hoses.

 

My best average mileage for a Subaru was 30-32 with a MT FWD 4 cyl Subaru XT Turbo with a lot of highway driving. The 4WD version averaged 25+ in mixed driving.

 

Keep it well maintained, check the hoses on a regular basis, and worry about taking the turbo out when it breaks.

[idosubaru]

having converted a turbo to non-turbo (though in an XT) JCE - i say exactly what they say, just fix whatever breaks.

 

there's not that much more to them in some regards. turbo's have coolant and oil lines that are prone to leaking and i'm not sure what they're made of in the EJ's but make sure those hoses/lines aren't cracked, rusted, old. if they are, put all your preventative maintenance there.

 

if the wiring harness is similar enough you can swap motors and ECU to match but i haven't looked into EJ stuff enough to know if they're close or not.

 

i have a scanned copy of the 91-94 EJ22 and i believe it has both in it - EJ22 and EJ22T. i can probably be coaxed to mail you a copy some day.

[wtdash]

converting turbo to non turbo??

 

is this doable? or practical?

 

i've never owned a turbo and have only a very basic understanding of one, but sometimes they seem to be problematic or high maintenance engines. and normally i would look for and but a non-turbo car, but if the deal was too good to pass up, could a conversion be done? would it save fuel?

 

thanks,

john

 

John,

A couple of comments, as I've done a swap, which I realize isn't the same as 'de-turboing' a turbo engine.

 

1. You'll need to swap the exhaust manifold, since the up pipe goes into the turbo...unless you can make your own 'adapter' between the up pipe and down pipe.

2. If you use an NA exhaust manifold you'll need the NA crossmember as the Y-pipe won't fit...trust me on this one - been there, done that.

3. If you run the NA ECU, you'll need to swap the cam/crank sensors @ the ECU connector - I would think the extra wiring for the Turbo's sensors will just be ignored by the NA ECU.

4. Gas MPG will be less-compared to an NA, as the Turbo's compression is 8.0 vs. the NA's 9.5:1. The best I get w/my EJ22T is 25mpg highway (going easy on the boost); the EJ22e regularly got 28MPG.

 

The EJ22T engines are solid and very similar to the NA in terms of maintenance.

 

If you do come across one they are worth it and I think you'd enjoy the extra power, even if you leave it stock. For us boost-addicts, they are too much fun!