3SGTE: ssautochrome t3/t4 any good?

[Adrians89MR2SC]

well .. theres almost 9000 miles on my hunk of crap turbo

the glue seems to be holding pretty good for 12psi

[PETC]

You got lucky, plain and simple. When you want to start playing with the big boys dump that piece of Chinese **** and spend some real money on something not garbage.

No offense man, the price is tantalizing. But it's like that for a reason.

[Adrians89MR2SC]

actually .. theres four or five of us on here running the same turbo kit and ALL of us are "lucky, plain and simple" so far

I'm not saying its better then the expensive kits, IF I had the money for a $2000 turbo kit .. then I'd be running it right now instead of this cheapo one

but no job and being a college student doesnt by ferrari's .. I'm lucky to have a turbo'd mr2

[_Jim_]

Originally Posted by Adrians89MR2SC

actually .. theres four or five of us on here running the same turbo kit and ALL of us are "lucky, plain and simple" so far

I'm not saying its better then the expensive kits, IF I had the money for a $2000 turbo kit .. then I'd be running it right now instead of this cheapo one

but no job and being a college student doesnt by ferrari's .. I'm lucky to have a turbo'd mr2

Agreed that I am not comparing this kit against a 2000+ kit, there is no comparison.

But I wouldn't go out and say CRAP, because out of the 4-5 of us running an ebay turbo, 4-5 of had success with no catastrophic failure. Minor problems here and there that occur with building your own kits. My kit, I have had 0 problems with, but its a bit different then Adrian is running. So far 100% success rate with these turbos.

[PETC]

Enjoy your epic turbo failure in the future. If you're really lucky maybe some pieces of your compressor will end up inside of your combustion chamber! HURRAY Chinese Engineering!

[Adrians89MR2SC]

wow .. your a ****ing jackass

I got a spare motor ready if my chinese turbo turns into little pieces of metal like my stock turbo did

[PETC]

Here's an idea: How about you just don't use a Chinese turbo and build ONE motor that won't explode? huh? huh?

[Adrians89MR2SC]

b/c I dont have $2000 to spend on a "good" turbo

so I bought a $400 kit that has worked great for me

I dont get what your problem is, If you buy the good stuff and can build whatevery you want .. then good

the only reason I have a spare engine is b/c I bought it for the water pump .. the guy only wanted $200 for the whole thing .. so I got a 8000 mile motor with a bunch of new parts waiting if my motor breaks for some reason (related to the ssac turbo or not)

[farvaric]

Originally Posted by PETC

Here's an idea: How about you just don't use a Chinese turbo and build ONE motor that won't explode? huh? huh?

I'm sorry, i initially planned on only replying back once i was getting the car ready for the dyno for next season (the car is resting peacefully in the garage for winter), however I feel the need to respond.

What you choose to do with your money is your choosing, dont try to force that on someone else.

The general concensus as of now revovled around the turbo failing, in which case it has not as of yet. there are folks coming out of the woodworks stating that they have been running this kit/turbo for over a year on both low boost levels as well as mild boost levels with success.

The argument that paying a higher amount for a kit justifies its reliability is farce as all hell, that just leads to a sucker that is easy to rip off. the justification behind the pricing should revolve around regulations and certs such as iso and pcmm models that ensure as little deviation of build quality as possible. The simple matter is that EVERY company has parts that will fail and will be boxed for a ready to install application that unfourtunately the customer must eat. This is why there are warranties. SSAC/XS-Power does have warranty if purchased directly, not via ebay. There customer support is actually on par as far as resolving transactional circumstances from what i have seen thus far.

Feel free to base your outlook on opportunity for failure, it is a matter of taking personal risks on that gamble and going for it. As of now, the gamble seems mighty favorable for this kit. If and when you purchase a 2k kit and it fails, we will be here to welcome you to the club and empathize with how unfourtunate it was that you were out 2k.

Till that time comes, please provide feedback that actually allows this communitty to progress as opposed to staying stagnant...no one cares to see you rise to band wagon stardom.

bare in mind this is in defense for someone how is "trying" to provide feedback on a product

[PETC]

Things are not always expensive because they're a rip off but because they are engineered, by professionals, with degrees, who know what they're doing, with quality materials, tested over and over again, and had research done on it. You get what you pay for.

It is your money, that's true, and you can do whatever you want with it, but don't fool yourself into thinking that you are doing things correctly. You are cutting corners and looking for easy, cheap horsepower. Like I said, do whatever you want, as long as you enjoy your car that's all you need. I however, enjoy having a car that I can feel comfortable driving long distances, across the country, across a few states, and not be worried that I'm outside my AAA towing range.

I believe this is best summed up by:

Fast, Reliable, Cheap

Pick two.

[farvaric]

Originally Posted by PETC

Things are not always expensive because they're a rip off but because they are engineered, by professionals, with degrees, who know what they're doing, with quality materials, tested over and over again, and had research done on it. You get what you pay for.

I do agree with you in regards to R&D costs. Initial sales circumvent initial R&D products that are now massively produced. it is the guarantee and process that revovle around that guarantee that keep prices up on an on-going basis once initial overhead costs for R&D have been offset overtime. Additionally, the obvious being higher cost of labor and ownership while being positioned in any 1st world country (US, Japan, ect.)

Originally Posted by PETC

Like I said, do whatever you want, as long as you enjoy your car that's all you need.

this is what we should all drive towards. this thread has gotten so far off topic it makes your eyes bleed.

to sum up what this thread should consist of:

-cheap kit
-is it worth the savings on price over supposed piece of mind
-reliability testing needed on normal as well as realistic performance boost of an average owner
-what are the numbers
-ultimately is it worth it

What no one cares about:

-i believe it will make/it does make this much power and i can sense that it is stronger then stock
-i read old threads posted by other folks with different cars that there kit which was installed incorrectly broke which led to the kit sucking which i come to the conclusion this kit is garbage but i have no experience with the product or this specific product

there will be obvious discussion about interest in relation to the product and individuals asking about perceived thoughts of individuals who have it installed. likewise, the counter are those that are skeptics, but lets try to keep it on point :-)

Happy boosting everyone and i DO hope this proves nay sayers wrong as it can be a new option for others on here if it is proven. Till then, i will envy all of you who can drive the lovely ladies while i deal with the BRICK for winter.

[hmong337]

this is cool that this ebay kit is still kickin' around...

here's a dyno of an ebay kit on a civic. no glue, sorry... we all know that these turbos arn't the best, but for the price, can't really beat it. especially in adrian's case, if it's better than stock, then it's better! a rebuilt ct26 for $400... or his entire t3t4 kit for just a bit more. my choice would be the latter.
Evans Tuning • View topic - Eg hatch, Built d16z6, Ebay turbo kit, 285whp/235tq, Neptune

[MR2SW22]

Originally Posted by hmong337

this is cool that this ebay kit is still kickin' around...

here's a dyno of an ebay kit on a civic. no glue, sorry... we all know that these turbos arn't the best, but for the price, can't really beat it. especially in adrian's case, if it's better than stock, then it's better! a rebuilt ct26 for $400... or his entire t3t4 kit for just a bit more. my choice would be the latter.
Evans Tuning • View topic - Eg hatch, Built d16z6, Ebay turbo kit, 285whp/235tq, Neptune

HAHAHA those ricers think 350hp are big numbers ahh, gotta love dem honda boyz, always finding ways for me to do this . i should be in the 280rwhp range, and my head/pistons are stock. turbo is a ct-26 with 50 something trim, and i have most of the bolt ons. plus, i know my turbo will last years/many thousands of miles.

my outlook on all this is, if it isn't broken don't "fix it," if you can't afford to do the right job the first time, you bet your cheap a$$ (im cheap too ) your gonna be forced to do it again, again, and maybe even again. so why go through all the hassle of spending more money, and a hell of a lot more time to get what you really wanted in the first place, a sweet turbo kit that is proven to put out good reliable HP? now in some cases, i see why people might replace their stock turbos with CDM turbos, but you can find reliable ct-26's and upgraded ones like mine for about the same if not less money, the fit is perfect EVERY time, and they are reliable, and you get piece of mind. those CDM turbos are suppose to sucker the honda kids into turbocharging their civics, IMHO.

spend your money on what you want, just remember the old saying is pretty much always true, you get what you pay for.

[0bLiViOuS]

^^^ do what he says, dont go cheap. There honestly is a reason why people pay the extra money... espeically if you are looking to make power. There are 3 things: Power, Money, Reliability.. you can only choose 2. If you want reliable power, it wont be cheap, but you get what you pay for. I am a honda guy and I have seen kids put these cheap ebay kits on their cars. With the right tune, I have seen them last years and years, but then you sacrifice some of that power you want. I have personally used one on a motor i was intending to blow up (stupid i know) and the turbo crapped out before the motor. You have to decide what you want in the end... which 2 things matter to you.

[DrWonderEyes]

new hate i see lol

[kblake]

Originally Posted by 0bLiViOuS

I have personally used one on a motor i was intending to blow up (stupid i know) and the turbo crapped out before the motor.

Originally Posted by DrWonderEyes

new hate i see lol

Hmm, sounded more like personal experience being related than hate to me.

[eckoman_pdx]

Originally Posted by kblake

Hmm, sounded more like personal experience being related than hate to me.

Still the voice of wisdom and reason in this thread. Thanks Ken

[hmong337]

bill strong has an ebay turbo

ROFL!!

[ixtlann]

Originally Posted by eckoman_pdx

Still the voice of wisdom and reason in this thread. Thanks Ken

Is that leather wrapped interior pieces in your siggy i see?

[Spyderdan]

Is this the kit you guys are running?
MR2 T3/T4 KIT Toyota Turbo Kits, XS Power Inc.

A friend of mine is running their down pipe and exhaust. It looks and sounds really good.

It would be nice if the xs power kit came with this manifold instead:
eBay Motors: 91-95 MR-2 MR2 CELICA ALL-TRA T3T4 TURBO CHARGER KIT (item 250355417054 end time Jan-17-09 18:12:01 PST)