trinydex
10-08-2007, 10:48 AM
Note: This how to article assumes that you are going to swap one entire manifold-turbo-O2 housing assembly for another one. If you're not going to do this, then it's really not much different if you still pull the original assembly out.
The first and possibly most critical step is to find someone nice enough to sacrifice many hours of his day to help you out. I was fortunate enough to have Tam find me and offer his help before I even requested anyone's assistance. Thank you, Tam!!! :thumbsup:
Remember that preparation for the turbo swap is the next most critical step. Not only do you need to compile a list of all of the part numbers that you'll need to change, but you'll also need to be prepared to change your coolant and oil. I was ready for the coolant part, and fortunately, Tam had a ton of Red Line oil in his shop, so I just bought that from him. Here's a list of all of the parts and other miscellaneous stuff / tools that I think you'll need. I'll start with my original turbo swap image from the Project TME thread (http://www.norcalevo.net/forum/index.php/topic,16121.0.html).
http://evo8.initialdproject.com/HowToInstallTurbo/turbo1.jpg
Turbo swap parts:
P/N Qty Description
MN119783 4 Exhaust manifold -> hotside bolts
MD062961 3 O2 housing -> hotside bolts
MD050073 2 O2 housing -> hotside nuts
MR224441 2 O2 housing studs
MD132933 9 Washers for MN119783, MD062961, and MD050073
MR323654 1 Exhaust manifold gasket
MR404547 1 Exhaust manifold -> hotside gasket
MR299686 1 Hotside -> O2 housing gasket
MR258477 1 Oil return line gasket, turbo side (paper)
1226A002 1 Oil return line gasket, oil pan side (plastic)
MR281085 1 Compressor outlet pipe gasket
MF660063 2 Oil feed line crush washer, engine block side
MF660064 2 Oil feed line crush washer, turbo side
MF660065 4 Coolant feed and return line crush washers
- bucket to catch coolant, or some other reservoir
- rubber hose to attach to bottom of radiator drain
- clean funnel for replacing coolant
- 1 quart of Prestone coolant or equivalent and 1 quart of distilled water, or choose your own ratio. I usually use 30% coolant, 70% distilled water. Tam said he uses all distilled water + some Water Wetter
- 5 quarts of sythetic oil, your choice
- assortment of metric sockets: 10, 12, 14, 17, 19, and 21 are the ones I think we used, plus 10, 11, and 12mm deep sockets
- Universal joint is helpful, most likely 3/8" drive if it matches your torque wrench and ratchet
- Drive adapters may save your butt, and I'm glad I had mine with me (mainly to attach the impact wrench to the O2 socket
- O2 socket
- Impact wrench
- Boost leak tester
- Air source
- Boost gauge
- Philips screwdriver, long and stubby kind
- a couple of razor blades to scrape off the old turbo oil return gasket
- PB Blaster
Okay, so here goes...
Step 0: PB Blaster
I don't know if you need to do this or not, but I did. Two days before you plan to install the turbo, drive around the block once to warm up the manifold a bit. Hit each nut with PB Blaster. Do this again the following day.
Step 1: Remove undertray
Yeah, painful. 'nuf said.
Step 2: Remove front bumper
You may be saying "WTF?". But we had to do it because I have the Nisei LICP (which has a bracket). If you don't have a bracket, then you can probably just loosen the T-bolt clamp on the compressor outlet end and coax the LICP off of the outlet pipe.
Step 3: Drain coolant
I am so glad we could use Tam's lift. Get the car up on a lift or jackstands, hook a rubber hose to the drain outlet of the radiator, put the other end into the bucket, and then loosen the drain plug. I believe it's a 10mm socket.
http://evo8.initialdproject.com/HowToInstallTurbo/radiator_drainplug_and_outlet.jpg
Step 4: Drain oil
While the car is up, now change your oil. Remove the drain plug and drain appropriately, and replace your oil filter and drain plug when all of the oil is out.
Obviously, you won't be replacing your coolant or oil yet. ;)
Step 5: Remove intake assembly
Remove the intake snorkel. Unscrew the two 10mm bolts holding in the intake box. Loosen the hose clamp that connects the DV to the intake. Loosen the clamp that holds the intake hose onto the turbo's compressor side. Disconnect the MAF plug. Remove intake assembly as once piece.
http://evo8.initialdproject.com/HowToInstallTurbo/intake_stufftoremove.jpg
Step 6: Remove radiator
Now you'll want to pull the radiator so you don't risk damaging it when replacing the turbo assembly. Remove the upper radiator hose (top of radiator to thermostat), disconnect the reserve tank hose (on the reserve tank end), and lower radiator hose (on the radiator side). Also, don't forget to pull off the electrical connection! (not shown in diagram)
http://evo8.initialdproject.com/HowToInstallTurbo/radiator_hosestodisconnect.jpg
You'll probably want to tip the radiator's outlets toward your coolant bucket to drain excess coolant from the radiator. Lean it against the wall and don't bump into it. :)
http://evo8.initialdproject.com/HowToInstallTurbo/radiator_leaning.jpg
Step 7: Remove / hang downpipe
You don't really need to remove the downpipe, and if you have a wideband O2 like I do, you won't want to. ;) First, support the cat-end of the exhaust with something. Tam used the rubber coolant hose and tied it around the driveshaft.
http://evo8.initialdproject.com/HowToInstallTurbo/exhaust_support.jpg
:shock: :lol:
Unbolt the downpipe from the cat, then remove the downpipe bolts that connect it to the O2 housing. If you have a wideband, be careful because you don't want to 1) lose the grommet, or 2) destroy the wires going to the O2 sensor.
Step 8: Disconnect everything to the turbo
This includes the oil feed / return lines and coolant feed / return lines. Since the car is most likely in the air right now, start with the oil return line. Look for your oil pan, and it's connected there.
http://evo8.initialdproject.com/HowToInstallTurbo/oil_return_line.jpg
You can note the orientation of the gasket, but it's probably not important. However, remember that this is the plastic gasket, not the paper one. The one that looks similar (but made of paper) goes on the turbo end of the return line!
Ok, now disconnect all of the other hoses going to the pipes coming out of the turbo. We decided to just remove the banjo bolt from the block, instead of from the turbo.
http://evo8.initialdproject.com/HowToInstallTurbo/oil_and_coolant_lines.jpg
Remove the upper exhaust manifold heat shield.
We wasted some time trying to get the lower heat shield off to remove the O2 sensor, but then realized that we just had to pull the spark plug cover and disconnect the O2 sensor there. Much easier! So leave the O2 and lower heat shield in place.
http://evo8.initialdproject.com/HowToInstallTurbo/o2_sensor_plug.jpg
Now, there are only a couple of things left -- the lower O2 housing bracket and exhaust manifold nuts. Remove them! The exhaust manifold nuts should be easy, especially if you followed Step 0. :)
http://evo8.initialdproject.com/HowToInstallTurbo/o2_bracket_bolt_and_exhaust_manifold_bolts.jpg
The manifold shouldn't just fall off, so you don't have to worry about holding it up right now. Double-check that everything is disconnected. If I missed something, please let me know so I can revise this how-to! Have your work buddy get under the car now and maneuver the oil return line around any obstacles, while you pull the entire turbo assembly up and out of the car!
Step 9: Assemble new turbo with old parts
Or if you did what I did, assemble the new separate turbo now. You could also have done this advance (which is what I did). If you wan to do this, look at my Project TME thread (http://www.norcalevo.net/forum/index.php/topic,16121.msg246897.html#msg246897).
Step 10: Remove the oil return line and clean gasket
When you pull the oil return line from the turbo assembly end, the paper gasket will remain stuck to the line and is hard to clean off. Get a couple of razor blades and patiently scrape it all off.
Step 11: Swap all remaining oil and coolant pipes from the old turbo assembly to the new one
Grab your crush washers from the above parts list and just match them up by size. They're all different sizes so it should be a piece of cake. Put the two turbo assemblies side-by-side to make it easier to match things up. Torque everything to spec. Also make sure you torque the bolts going from the exhaust manifold to the turbo, and the turbo to the O2 housing. See the image above for the torque specs. At some point, you're going to be tempted to rotate the assembly one way on the manifold end to attach a pipe, but don't do it or you'll bend it.
This is the one you don't want to kill:
http://evo8.initialdproject.com/HowToInstallTurbo/do_not_kill_me.jpg
Don't forget any gaskets!
Step 12: Replace exhaust manifold gasket
Nice and shiny!
http://evo8.initialdproject.com/HowToInstallTurbo/new_exhaust_gasket.jpg
Step 13: Install the new turbo assembly
Once again, have your work buddy go under the car and help maneuver the oil return line around any obstacles while you put the turbo assembly back in.
http://evo8.initialdproject.com/HowToInstallTurbo/new_turbo_in.jpg
Step 14: Install and torque down exhaust manifold bolts
'Nuf said here. I don't know what the proper order is, but try going and retorquing everything two or three times. You'll want to do this or the lower O2 bracket bolt may not line up.
Step 15: Reinstall lower O2 bracket bolt
Step 16: Reattach oil return line
Don't forget your new gasket! It's the plastic one, remember? If you only have a paper one at this point, :(
http://evo8.initialdproject.com/HowToInstallTurbo/oil_return_line.jpg
Step 17: REPLACE FLUIDS
Nothing would suck more than accidentally starting the car when doing Step 21. So put in your oil and coolant NOW. Don't forget to replace your oil and radiator caps.
Step 17: Reinstall downpipe
Bolt the DP back up to the cat, then bolt the DP to the O2 housing. Torque if necessary. Oh, don't forget antiseize.
Step 18: Reinstall LICP
Step 19: Reattach all other oil and coolant lines to turbo
http://evo8.initialdproject.com/HowToInstallTurbo/oil_and_coolant_lines.jpg
Step 20: Reinstall radiator
Carefully drop the radiator back in place and reattach it to the frame. Now reconnect all of the hoses that you took off before.
http://evo8.initialdproject.com/HowToInstallTurbo/radiator_hosestodisconnect.jpg
Step 21: BOOST LEAK TEST
Yep, please do this. If you don't have a boost leak tester, get one. http://www.siliconeintakes.com has a really nice one for $30, or you can build one from
DRFTR8's how to (http://www.norcalevo.net/forum/index.php/topic,15646.0.html).
Tam and I found 3 boost leaks! Two in the LICP and one in the hose from the DV to the UICP. So please do this.
Did I ask you to do a boost leak test? Yeah, I was serious.
Step 22: Reinstall undertray
More fun stuff.
Step 23: Reinstall intake and snorkel
This part is easy.
Step 24: Reinstall front O2 sensor
Just plug it in, and replace your spark plug cover
Step 25: Go for a spin!!!
This is the best part -- finding out if you've got a turbo that's running great in it's new home, or if you have a $35k paperweight on wheels.
Well, that's it! If I missed anything, please let me know so I can revise this article. Thanks for reading!
Mods, please sticky this thread. :)
The first and possibly most critical step is to find someone nice enough to sacrifice many hours of his day to help you out. I was fortunate enough to have Tam find me and offer his help before I even requested anyone's assistance. Thank you, Tam!!! :thumbsup:
Remember that preparation for the turbo swap is the next most critical step. Not only do you need to compile a list of all of the part numbers that you'll need to change, but you'll also need to be prepared to change your coolant and oil. I was ready for the coolant part, and fortunately, Tam had a ton of Red Line oil in his shop, so I just bought that from him. Here's a list of all of the parts and other miscellaneous stuff / tools that I think you'll need. I'll start with my original turbo swap image from the Project TME thread (http://www.norcalevo.net/forum/index.php/topic,16121.0.html).
http://evo8.initialdproject.com/HowToInstallTurbo/turbo1.jpg
Turbo swap parts:
P/N Qty Description
MN119783 4 Exhaust manifold -> hotside bolts
MD062961 3 O2 housing -> hotside bolts
MD050073 2 O2 housing -> hotside nuts
MR224441 2 O2 housing studs
MD132933 9 Washers for MN119783, MD062961, and MD050073
MR323654 1 Exhaust manifold gasket
MR404547 1 Exhaust manifold -> hotside gasket
MR299686 1 Hotside -> O2 housing gasket
MR258477 1 Oil return line gasket, turbo side (paper)
1226A002 1 Oil return line gasket, oil pan side (plastic)
MR281085 1 Compressor outlet pipe gasket
MF660063 2 Oil feed line crush washer, engine block side
MF660064 2 Oil feed line crush washer, turbo side
MF660065 4 Coolant feed and return line crush washers
- bucket to catch coolant, or some other reservoir
- rubber hose to attach to bottom of radiator drain
- clean funnel for replacing coolant
- 1 quart of Prestone coolant or equivalent and 1 quart of distilled water, or choose your own ratio. I usually use 30% coolant, 70% distilled water. Tam said he uses all distilled water + some Water Wetter
- 5 quarts of sythetic oil, your choice
- assortment of metric sockets: 10, 12, 14, 17, 19, and 21 are the ones I think we used, plus 10, 11, and 12mm deep sockets
- Universal joint is helpful, most likely 3/8" drive if it matches your torque wrench and ratchet
- Drive adapters may save your butt, and I'm glad I had mine with me (mainly to attach the impact wrench to the O2 socket
- O2 socket
- Impact wrench
- Boost leak tester
- Air source
- Boost gauge
- Philips screwdriver, long and stubby kind
- a couple of razor blades to scrape off the old turbo oil return gasket
- PB Blaster
Okay, so here goes...
Step 0: PB Blaster
I don't know if you need to do this or not, but I did. Two days before you plan to install the turbo, drive around the block once to warm up the manifold a bit. Hit each nut with PB Blaster. Do this again the following day.
Step 1: Remove undertray
Yeah, painful. 'nuf said.
Step 2: Remove front bumper
You may be saying "WTF?". But we had to do it because I have the Nisei LICP (which has a bracket). If you don't have a bracket, then you can probably just loosen the T-bolt clamp on the compressor outlet end and coax the LICP off of the outlet pipe.
Step 3: Drain coolant
I am so glad we could use Tam's lift. Get the car up on a lift or jackstands, hook a rubber hose to the drain outlet of the radiator, put the other end into the bucket, and then loosen the drain plug. I believe it's a 10mm socket.
http://evo8.initialdproject.com/HowToInstallTurbo/radiator_drainplug_and_outlet.jpg
Step 4: Drain oil
While the car is up, now change your oil. Remove the drain plug and drain appropriately, and replace your oil filter and drain plug when all of the oil is out.
Obviously, you won't be replacing your coolant or oil yet. ;)
Step 5: Remove intake assembly
Remove the intake snorkel. Unscrew the two 10mm bolts holding in the intake box. Loosen the hose clamp that connects the DV to the intake. Loosen the clamp that holds the intake hose onto the turbo's compressor side. Disconnect the MAF plug. Remove intake assembly as once piece.
http://evo8.initialdproject.com/HowToInstallTurbo/intake_stufftoremove.jpg
Step 6: Remove radiator
Now you'll want to pull the radiator so you don't risk damaging it when replacing the turbo assembly. Remove the upper radiator hose (top of radiator to thermostat), disconnect the reserve tank hose (on the reserve tank end), and lower radiator hose (on the radiator side). Also, don't forget to pull off the electrical connection! (not shown in diagram)
http://evo8.initialdproject.com/HowToInstallTurbo/radiator_hosestodisconnect.jpg
You'll probably want to tip the radiator's outlets toward your coolant bucket to drain excess coolant from the radiator. Lean it against the wall and don't bump into it. :)
http://evo8.initialdproject.com/HowToInstallTurbo/radiator_leaning.jpg
Step 7: Remove / hang downpipe
You don't really need to remove the downpipe, and if you have a wideband O2 like I do, you won't want to. ;) First, support the cat-end of the exhaust with something. Tam used the rubber coolant hose and tied it around the driveshaft.
http://evo8.initialdproject.com/HowToInstallTurbo/exhaust_support.jpg
:shock: :lol:
Unbolt the downpipe from the cat, then remove the downpipe bolts that connect it to the O2 housing. If you have a wideband, be careful because you don't want to 1) lose the grommet, or 2) destroy the wires going to the O2 sensor.
Step 8: Disconnect everything to the turbo
This includes the oil feed / return lines and coolant feed / return lines. Since the car is most likely in the air right now, start with the oil return line. Look for your oil pan, and it's connected there.
http://evo8.initialdproject.com/HowToInstallTurbo/oil_return_line.jpg
You can note the orientation of the gasket, but it's probably not important. However, remember that this is the plastic gasket, not the paper one. The one that looks similar (but made of paper) goes on the turbo end of the return line!
Ok, now disconnect all of the other hoses going to the pipes coming out of the turbo. We decided to just remove the banjo bolt from the block, instead of from the turbo.
http://evo8.initialdproject.com/HowToInstallTurbo/oil_and_coolant_lines.jpg
Remove the upper exhaust manifold heat shield.
We wasted some time trying to get the lower heat shield off to remove the O2 sensor, but then realized that we just had to pull the spark plug cover and disconnect the O2 sensor there. Much easier! So leave the O2 and lower heat shield in place.
http://evo8.initialdproject.com/HowToInstallTurbo/o2_sensor_plug.jpg
Now, there are only a couple of things left -- the lower O2 housing bracket and exhaust manifold nuts. Remove them! The exhaust manifold nuts should be easy, especially if you followed Step 0. :)
http://evo8.initialdproject.com/HowToInstallTurbo/o2_bracket_bolt_and_exhaust_manifold_bolts.jpg
The manifold shouldn't just fall off, so you don't have to worry about holding it up right now. Double-check that everything is disconnected. If I missed something, please let me know so I can revise this how-to! Have your work buddy get under the car now and maneuver the oil return line around any obstacles, while you pull the entire turbo assembly up and out of the car!
Step 9: Assemble new turbo with old parts
Or if you did what I did, assemble the new separate turbo now. You could also have done this advance (which is what I did). If you wan to do this, look at my Project TME thread (http://www.norcalevo.net/forum/index.php/topic,16121.msg246897.html#msg246897).
Step 10: Remove the oil return line and clean gasket
When you pull the oil return line from the turbo assembly end, the paper gasket will remain stuck to the line and is hard to clean off. Get a couple of razor blades and patiently scrape it all off.
Step 11: Swap all remaining oil and coolant pipes from the old turbo assembly to the new one
Grab your crush washers from the above parts list and just match them up by size. They're all different sizes so it should be a piece of cake. Put the two turbo assemblies side-by-side to make it easier to match things up. Torque everything to spec. Also make sure you torque the bolts going from the exhaust manifold to the turbo, and the turbo to the O2 housing. See the image above for the torque specs. At some point, you're going to be tempted to rotate the assembly one way on the manifold end to attach a pipe, but don't do it or you'll bend it.
This is the one you don't want to kill:
http://evo8.initialdproject.com/HowToInstallTurbo/do_not_kill_me.jpg
Don't forget any gaskets!
Step 12: Replace exhaust manifold gasket
Nice and shiny!
http://evo8.initialdproject.com/HowToInstallTurbo/new_exhaust_gasket.jpg
Step 13: Install the new turbo assembly
Once again, have your work buddy go under the car and help maneuver the oil return line around any obstacles while you put the turbo assembly back in.
http://evo8.initialdproject.com/HowToInstallTurbo/new_turbo_in.jpg
Step 14: Install and torque down exhaust manifold bolts
'Nuf said here. I don't know what the proper order is, but try going and retorquing everything two or three times. You'll want to do this or the lower O2 bracket bolt may not line up.
Step 15: Reinstall lower O2 bracket bolt
Step 16: Reattach oil return line
Don't forget your new gasket! It's the plastic one, remember? If you only have a paper one at this point, :(
http://evo8.initialdproject.com/HowToInstallTurbo/oil_return_line.jpg
Step 17: REPLACE FLUIDS
Nothing would suck more than accidentally starting the car when doing Step 21. So put in your oil and coolant NOW. Don't forget to replace your oil and radiator caps.
Step 17: Reinstall downpipe
Bolt the DP back up to the cat, then bolt the DP to the O2 housing. Torque if necessary. Oh, don't forget antiseize.
Step 18: Reinstall LICP
Step 19: Reattach all other oil and coolant lines to turbo
http://evo8.initialdproject.com/HowToInstallTurbo/oil_and_coolant_lines.jpg
Step 20: Reinstall radiator
Carefully drop the radiator back in place and reattach it to the frame. Now reconnect all of the hoses that you took off before.
http://evo8.initialdproject.com/HowToInstallTurbo/radiator_hosestodisconnect.jpg
Step 21: BOOST LEAK TEST
Yep, please do this. If you don't have a boost leak tester, get one. http://www.siliconeintakes.com has a really nice one for $30, or you can build one from
DRFTR8's how to (http://www.norcalevo.net/forum/index.php/topic,15646.0.html).
Tam and I found 3 boost leaks! Two in the LICP and one in the hose from the DV to the UICP. So please do this.
Did I ask you to do a boost leak test? Yeah, I was serious.
Step 22: Reinstall undertray
More fun stuff.
Step 23: Reinstall intake and snorkel
This part is easy.
Step 24: Reinstall front O2 sensor
Just plug it in, and replace your spark plug cover
Step 25: Go for a spin!!!
This is the best part -- finding out if you've got a turbo that's running great in it's new home, or if you have a $35k paperweight on wheels.
Well, that's it! If I missed anything, please let me know so I can revise this article. Thanks for reading!
Mods, please sticky this thread. :)