3SGTE: ssautochrome t3/t4 any good?

[Adrians89MR2SC]

umm .. i gotta clock the compressor housing around so maybe i can take it off to measure real quick ..

compared to the stock turbo the ssac t3/t4 is about 1/2" bigger .. the inlet is 3" (where the filter hose connects) and its doesnt get reduced as much as the ct26 does before reaching the inducer on the compressor side ..

so ill probably clock it tommorow and see if i can get those measurements for ya

i do remember seeing something around 2.5" and 3" somewhere (for the compressor side) .. but dont remember where i saw those #'s so they may not be right even though they sound about right

[Adrians89MR2SC]

ok .. im almost ready to install the turbo kit ..

ive rebuilt the distributor, replaced all the coolant hoses (including both hoses from hell), all new timing parts, the correct spark plugs (previous owner stuck in e3's), and cleaned up a bit .. oh and put on a twosrus valve cover bolt kit (good quality, looks great, and you can torque em' down)

took the new turbo apart this morning .. the compressor wheel is about 1/2" bigger on both the inducer and exducer compared to the ct26 wheel ..

i dont have my camera right now, but ill take pictures of it before it gets installed ..

shouldnt be long untill the turbo kit goes in ..

[hmong337]

cool shiit!

[hell_rider]

hey m8 ive been running a t3/t4 from xs power ( same as ssautochrome ) and their 38mm waste gate and so far everything is going great . no problems at all . if you are getting an external wastegate make sure you get a harder spring for it cuz the one i got was something like 3.83 psi and got the 5.83 psi cuz the 3.83 sometimes on hard boost kept the wastegate open and was like the manifold had cracked lol . other than that u'll be very pleased i think


ps: i have not read anything on the thread so please forgive if all this have been said . dunno bout the turbo kit though . to me it seemed very different i chose the seperate way of t3/t4 turbo , 38mm wastegate , 5.83 psi spring (bought seperate, t3/t4 adaptor ( not for the 2nd gen 3SGTE because the port for the wastegate is on the right hand side and the oil filter is in the way) total was about $750

hope all this helps

[Adrians89MR2SC]

well i guess thats two people so far running the ssac t3/t4 turbo and havent had problems yet .. hopefully i can be the third in a couple days ..

i might go the route of the adapter too if the manifold cracks too much, got a mig / tig / and ark welder so welding up a crack is no problem .. only if it cracks often .. there $50 on ebay and just weld them up to the stock manifold i think ..

the downpipe that came with the turbo kit is (if not the same) VERY similar to the 3" dowpipe that came with my car .. they both are identical construction except for the turbo flange and external wastegate of course, but they both have the same o2 sensor location and the two bungs at the bottom .. so the downpipe shouldnt be a problem ..

only things im worried about are the turbo and manifold .. the manifold is a easy / cheap fix .. but the turbo would be a somewhat pricey fix if i were to get a name brand next, or gamble another ssac turbo ..

should start installing the kit tommorow, ill take pics but everything is ready to go .. just gotta tap a hole right before the throttle body for the wastegate line then ill start putting the kit in ..

[hell_rider]

hi again sorry i think you misunderstood the part about the adapter . the t3/t4 wouldn't fit on the oem manifold anyway . i purchased the adapter only to find out that it does not fit because the waste gate flange is right next to the oil filter for the 2nd gen 3SGTE engines like mine so i had a custom made adapter with the waste gate flange facing down . the oem manifold doesn't have any problem whatsoever.

my exhaust system is all hand made stainless steel and what the guy did on my car was to weld 2 pieces of metal on the downpipe which bolt on the engine on 2 other pieces of metal and in that way holding the weight of everything there . could be a good idea for you to do aswell to avoid cracking . the adapter sold is pretty heavy itself .

maybe i can get some pics to explain better about the downpipe cuz i dunno how to explain it in english lol but might take a couple of days to upload

[Adrians89MR2SC]

oh ... gotcha ..

but your still running the ssac t3/t4 and there wastegate .. how many miles do you have on the turbo?

[Adrians89MR2SC]

ok .. here is the start of the ssac turbo kit install ..

1) go buy a adapter from the 18mm x 1.5 thread in the block to the 4an line included in the kit .. i went to summit and bought two fittings a 18mm to 6an, and a 6 an to 4an .. ended up around $18 or so .. (ignore the really long oil line, its was INCLUDED in the kit and a few zip ties are cheaper than another hose, but i will be getting a shorter one later)



2) the kit comes with new nuts for the exhuast studs, and all the gaskets .. some are the silver composite stuff, and i got a couple metal manifold to turbo gaskets too .. tested the nuts / manifold and gasket before bolting them on .. so TEST FIT BEFORE INSTALLING would be good advise for this kit, in my case everything fit perfectly .. .. i also used some copper gasket stuff b/c its just extra insurance from having a leaky gasket ..

also check the flanges for being flat .. put them on a flat surface (ex. i used a granite counter top in my kitchen) .. mine were barely warped, but there have been people who say theres were WAY out and had to get them machined ..





tightening down the manifold is a somewhat long task, but not that hard at all .. there are only 3 of the 7 nuts that you can get at with a socket, the other 4 you have to use a wrench ..

i would also recomend replacing the hose from hell, hfhoe, all the o rings in the oil cooler, new gasket and o ring on the two metal pipes that lead into the waterpump, and any other coolant lines and misc. stuff that is in that area ...


i should have more later on today, got to go over to a friends house in a minute to tap a hole into the throttle body inlet for a vacuum nipple that will go to the external wastegate (has to be right before the throttle plate) ..

[Adrians89MR2SC]

oh, forgot about the turbo .. took pics earlier .. heres a couple for comparison between the stock and the ssac t3/t4 compressor wheel ..

the stock measures about 2.5" on the exducer, 1 3/4" inducer (approx)

the ssac t3/t4 is about 3" exducer, 2 1/4" inducer (approx)

[ixtlann]

i used one of those gaskets that came with there mani down pipe combo, and the gasket burnt out in less then 1000 miles, fyi just the facts....

[Adrians89MR2SC]

yea, ive had problem with the exhaust gaskets that came with my $500 set of hooker headers on my camaro .. blew one side out at 800 miles, and the other at 1200 miles, plus gaskets dont cost more than $20, so thats no big deal

ran into a couple problems, ill put up pics and how i fixed them later .. im trying to track down a new oil supply hose, i burned through it with my oxyacetylene torch ..

[shimric]

I love how when people take pics their feet are always in it.

Nice job so far man!

[mr2magic]

What the fark were you doing with the torch?????? LOL

Looks like it's coming along nicely!!

[Adrians89MR2SC]

haha .. one of the header pipes hit the compressor housing of the turbo so i couldnt bolt it all the way up ..

so i tried to take a oxyacetylene torch to the pipe and clearance it a little with it in the car and next thing i know the oil supply line was sizzling and got scorched a little .. so i ended up taking it all out and fixing the problem with the header .. i guess the 6 year old chinese welder messed mine up a little .. wasnt hard to fix and shouldnt hurt performance .. i just had to dent in the pipe a little to clear the turbo

got it all fixed and i assembled the turbo / manifold out of the car which was a WHOLE lot easier ..

i got pics uploading on my other computer, so as soon as they get done taking there sweet time yall can see my awsome "fix" .. lol

got my new supply line, went to summit and got a 2 foot 4an line and a 90* 4an adapter where it comes off the block b/c the line was touching the turbo ..

i also got a k&n valve cover filter while i was at summit .. looks friggen sweet and fits perfectly .. if yall want to know its a 5/8" clamp on filter and it was around $18

to add to the "cost" of the kit are the 2 foot supply line and 90* fitting which were $40 total ..

[Adrians89MR2SC]

ok .. here they are ..

one of the problems was the included bolts for the turbo adapters were two of the bolts were way to long, but a dig threw a bunch of spare mr2 bolts and i found a couple that fit ..





the kit included two metal gaskets and one composite gasket, i used one of the metal gaskets and sprayed the copper gasket stuff on this one too ..



here is where the pipe was hitting the turbo and i couldnt bolt the turbo up all the way



took it all off and a few minutes with a oxyacetylene torch and a ball pin hammer and it was fixed .. i guess i should of test fitted it before i tried installing it ..



here is the line that was included with the kit and i burnt .. and the new 2 ft line with a 90* adapter .. almost fits perfectly, just a few inches too long but it clears the turbo by a long way ..







and heres the filter .. i think it looks pretty good ..

[shimric]

You should put a towel or something over your trunk so it won't get scratched up more than it already is.

Looks nice though. Good stuff. Keep the pictures rolling in.

[Adrians89MR2SC]

yea .. i had one on there earlier .. but it was pretty scratched up to begin with and i see a paint job coming in the near future when i decide on a color, or a update of the original color ..

i take collision repair at college and got access to a paint booth and discounted paint .. weve painted about 5 cars there since i started last year and theyve all cost less than $400 in materials .. and its not the maaco paint, is almost top of the line sherwin williams, or ppg

neways, back on topic .. im happy with the way the kit looks, now i just need it to work ..

[shimric]

Did you also buy the SSAC intercooler or still running stock?

[Adrians89MR2SC]

still running stock .. if the kit turns out to be good ill probably get one when i get a boost controller, fuel cut defender, etc .. b/c i know the stock one will start heat soaking


EDIT: i cleaned out the stock one earlier today, LOADS of dirt / oil / some metal came out .. but a can of brake cleaner took car of it .. now its squeeky clean .. just gotta clean out the charge pipes and i should be metal shavings clean and ready to go ..

i gotta take the throttle body inlet (where the intercooler pipe clamps too) to college tommorow and get a hole drilled and tapped for a vacuum / boost nipple for the external wastegate ..

[shimric]

When do you think you'd be up and running/dyno'n?