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Long term reliability of turbo engines

1K views 7 replies 7 participants last post by  voyager89 
#1 · (Edited)
Turbo engine's reliability in long term
So every new car and especially crossover SUVs are coming with Turbo charged engines.
A friend of mine and a friend of my colleagues who we both consider car aficionado have advised me against a turbo charged engine for a long term use.
online near me copies
My commute is very small, about 5km one way and my wife's is about 15km one way. Would turbo do better with my wife as it will get time to warm up a bit?
I did a bit of my reading and it seems that turbos were quite unreliable a two decades ago but they seemed to have improved quite a bit, however have they improved enough to last 200-300k?
What do you fine people of Reddit think?
Thanks everyone, this was very enlightening!
 
#2 ·
30 year exp and I've seen turbo engines go as long or longer than N/A. Biggest issue is people who own them and who works on them.

Owners who run oil too long and don't run premium fuel. Mechanics that don't have a clue and can't put a timing belt on correctly ect.

Good turbo driving habits help as well. Just remember, you have a turbo that it spinning 150,000+RPM when spooled, so proper lubrication is all that's keeping it alive. Let your oil break down and turbo will be the first thing to suffer. Drive it hard and shut it down Hot and turbo will be the first thing to suffer. Run regular fuel and depending on boost level, mtr may be the first thing to suffer. lol

Do proper maintenance and run proper fuel and good turbo driving habits and it should treat you as well as any other vehicle.
 
#3 ·
I bought my car new in 12/89, currently have 182,000 miles, car has been my only car and daily driver since 1997. (I do not travel much but when I was working I was always in traffic, 4 mile ride took 20-25 minutes)
As stated above, proper maintenance and common sense are the keys, QUALITY Synthetic Oil and Filter (In my case that would be Mobil 1 for both), Fuel Octane Rating 91 or above and allowing the turbo to cool down after driving, NEVER shut the vehicle off immediately.
Even after normal driving I always wait at least 30 seconds before shutdown, the Chrysler turbo's are water cooled so I also never shut the car off if the cooling fan is running allowing the turbo to cool as much as possible.

From Chrysler
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#4 ·
I agree with NAJ and Shadow, but I have another 2 cents to add to the conversation. This caveat: Not All turbo cars are equal. Case in point: the VW 1.8T has a plastic oil dipstick holder. It turns out that the oil level is critical on this motor, and once the plastic dipstick tube breaks, it is hard to know the correct fill. Obviously, too little oil is bad, but too much oil can blow out the turbocharger, too. If the oil is too high, it can block the oil return from the turbo into the sump. This situation can blow out the seals on the turbo. The waste gate is integral to the turbocharger, and the bearings wear out inside the waste gate swivel, causing the waste gate to mis-align, leak, and not hold boost. The Dodge Turbo is more robust and, since the 2.2 and 2.5 are non-interference designs. losing the timing belt is a mere inconvenience instead of total destruction of the motor.
 
#5 ·
The problem is many times people who don't want to work on the car, or learn to work on the car. They buy a turbo Dodge, and just drive it as-is. Many times this is a car that is totally factory original that has sat for a long time, low/medium/high mileage, doesn't really matter. There's a 30 year old head gasket in it that was of poor quality when it was installed. It may even have been replaced under warranty multiple times, but they still would have put in a gasket from that time period. So, it's doomed to blow out. Even if not a big blowout from detonation from either sticky/dirty injectors, or an overboost issue, or just someone who thinks because the decal says "premium recommended", it means that it's fine to run regular, it could still have a seepage issue at the rear passenger corner between the water jacket and the cylinder. All in all, for me anyway, TBI cars are for daily drivers. There is much less that can spring a leak at any moment. Though they share some of the same head gasket issues, you are not at risk for a critical engine failure due simply to all the factors that lead to detonation coming together at once. Much of the issues with TBI are keeping coolant in the cooling system, and fighting with a wiring harness damaged by years and years and many miles of heat from the exhaust. If you can repair and protect the wiring that runs along the back of the valve cover, and make sure all of the radiator, radiator hoses, heater hoses and heat control valve are new, or in excellent shape, you should be golden. Other issues may be a pain, but not nearly as bad as those two things. A major overheat is about the only thing that can kill a low or mid mileage 2.2 TBI. As long as they are stock, they can't breathe well enough to really over-rev, and there just isn't enough power to break engine or trans components, even when clutch or neutral dropping I have found. A 2.5 doesn't have the longevity a 2.2 has and is not able to take nearly the beating or revs, but they can be reliable to over 200,000 miles with a bit of care. Access to the starter is another thing I like about TBI.

Either engine system is going to take plenty of effort to get to the point they are reliable for daily use. Really it's up to you. With the right work done to them, they can both be reliable enough to enjoy for many years. If you do get a turbo, definitely make sure to keep a proven hall effect ignition pickup in your glove box. I've never had to replace one in a TBI car in 19 years of driving them and working on them.

-Mark
 
#7 ·
Turbo engine's reliability in long term
So every new car and especially crossover SUVs are coming with Turbo charged engines.
A friend of mine and a friend of my colleagues who we both consider car aficionado have advised me against a turbo charged engine for a long term use.
online near me copies
My commute is very small, about 5km one way and my wife's is about 15km one way. Would turbo do better with my wife as it will get time to warm up a bit?
I did a bit of my reading and it seems that turbos were quite unreliable a two decades ago but they seemed to have improved quite a bit, however have they improved enough to last 200-300k?
What do you fine people of Reddit think?
Thanks everyone, this was very enlightening!
I was told by a mechanic before I bought my first 84 Daytona turbo to always let the car idle for a full minute prior to turning the engine off, this will let the turbo to cool. If you don't allow the turbo to cool the oil will fry in the turbo and kill the turbo. I have a 2013 Dart with a turbo and we drive 6 miles each way to work and no problems, I have always let it cool for a minute. I do the same with my second 84 Daytona turbo Z
 
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