Turbo Problems

Car is a Ford Focus 1.6TDCI. 83'000miles regularly serviced and oil changed by me regularly at 6k intervals since in my ownership. The car is fitted with the Garrett GT17V Turbo.

A few days while driving home, whilst under full power they turbo started to make a sound not disimmilar to an air-raid siren vacuum cleaner.

I immediately kept the power out of the boost and drove the 2miles home. The car is down on power.

My initial thought was that one of the hoses has split such was the sound. There is no sound off boost/tickover and turbo can be heard spooling up indipendent of the new loud noise.

Rev it harder and the sound sort of sneezes.

On closer examination the sound was coming from within the Turbo and when reved smokey exhaust was seen coming from the back of the turbine housing. The car was a bit smokey not excessively.

In fear of it running away at some point I took it to the locally recommended turbo specialist/engineering guru, who has today had a first look at it and has said that there is little boost and has confimed it is leaking exhaust from the turbine housing.

Turbos are of course a week point on these with the two gauze filters gumming up, but from what ive seen this does not seem to be the usual mode of failure.

As much for sport as for my own interest any idea on what the problem may be?

He is going strip it of more tomorrow... I'm bracing myself for the cost of a new Turbo!

Reply to
Tom Burton
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Sounds like a cracked housing. Been through any deep fords or puddles lately, whilst it's good and hot?

Reply to
Adrian

On 15/02/2014 17:45, Adrian wrote:> On Sat, 15 Feb 2014 17:41:59 +0000, Tom Burton wrote: > >> As much for sport as for my own interest any idea on what the problem >> may be? > > Sounds like a cracked housing. Been through any deep fords or puddles > lately, whilst it's good and hot? >

Nothing especially out of the ordinary that I know of, but then again it have been very wet.... Even for ooup north.

Thinking outside the box, what about blocked/partially blocked exhaust (dpf?) causing excessive pressure and causing a seal to fail?

Reply to
Tom Burton

It's not really a "seal" between the housing and the downpipe. It's a steel gasket. It's no more nor less likely to blow than any other exhaust joint. Same for between manifold and housing.

B'sides, neither would really cause that big a loss of boost.

Reply to
Adrian

Yup. The turbo's f***ed!

Reply to
The Revd

Turbo's let go by the sounds. Not at all uncommon on this engine.

Usually caused by poor lubrication flow. How often have oil changes been done? Reason I say is partially blocked pickups in the sump are common, as is a restricted from carbon turbo feed line. There is an updated feed-line with larger bore and no gauze in it now, which must be changed along with the turbo.

You'll find the turbo wont be warranted unless the sump is removed and the pickup checked / cleaned.

Tim..

Reply to
Tim

Sorry didnt see the bit about possible housing being cracked or similar.

Surely the "turbo guru" could have told you the exact method of failure and remedy? After all it's mounted right up high infront of you upon opening the bonnet, access could hardly be better!

Tim..

" snipped-for-privacy@hotmail.com" Turbo's let go by the sounds. Not at all uncommon on this engine.

Reply to
Tim

Turbo has now been stripped...

It has got a bent shaft some marks/bits missing from the exhaust turbine and one of the fins on the variable geometry things is bent.

Conculusion thus far is that it has passed something from in the engine... possibly heater plug tip?

Investigations continue.. But it is looking at being a new core as a min.

Reply to
Tom Burton

On 17/02/2014 18:59, Tim Sorry didnt see the bit about possible housing being cracked or similar.

Yup, he is doing as and when he can get to look at it around his booked in stuff, currently turbo has been stripped (see other post)

Oil changed around 6k for the last 25 - 30k in an effort to avoid this issue. Annoying thing is i was planning on taking off the sump replacing come spring as the thread on the plug has been bastardised at some point. While the sump was off, i was planning on replacing /cleaning the pick up and replacing the pipe.

It seems the turbo has been replaced in the past as the heatsheild has been battered and the housing shows signs of being sandblasted rather than beadblasted.

From looking at it is there an easy way to tell if the lube feed pipe is the new type or the old type? When was new type introduced?

Noted, at this point, its looking like being repaired rather than replaced, but sump cleaning, gauze removal, 3 oil changes have all been mentioned as being in hand.

Reply to
Tom Burton

It looks like it has passed part of a heater plug out of the engine and into the turbo.

Worryingly there was a little bit of aluminium in the inlet ubend thing on the head but no trace of where they have come from....

Mechanic says it looks like the type of metal you get from a burning piston, but its on the inlet side and it all seems fine. Despite checking, checking again and re-checking.

Compression fine and ticks over like a beaut, just awaiting a new sump plug of all things to get it back!

Glad I didnt strip it myself now!

Reply to
Tom Burton

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