possible to remove turbos?

That's an awesome car - keep it like it is!

Ask around also at

Carl

It would probably be more expensive to properly bypass a failed turbo than to buy a replacement turbocharger. I had a turbo failure only once

-- an 85 Mazda 626GT. I was lucky that the thing would even run like this, as often, you'll get oil and/or coolant leaks when a turbo fails.

Even so, it ran very, very poorly in that mode. That's because the turbo became an obstruction in both the exhaust and intake when its bearings went. Even if you do bypass it (both intake and exhaust) and fix those issues, you have to remember that turbo motors are optimized for turbo operation, most notably in the form of a lower compression ratio, which hurts both off-boost performance and gas mileage.

FYI, I eventually fixed that Mazda myself, by buying a replacement "cartridge", which is essentially just the bearings (which is what failed) and turbine wheel and compressor housing, IIRC.

This reminds me of the guy who asked about any way of shutting off the turbo in order to tow. Of course towing would be a reason why you'd want a turbo.

It's so integrated into the engine, electronics, and exhaust that it would be a PITA to try and remove it only to end up with a severely underpowered engine. I don't remember if this particular turbo is oil or water cooled. If it's oil cooled, a cool-down cycle before shutting down could help prolong turbo bearing life.

A failed turbo isn't that difficult to rebuild or replace. I haven't done it myself, but I understand that most simply bolt-on. The engine itself is built to withstand the additional stresses from a turbo. A new one would be under $1000, but it should be far less than that to have an older one rebuilt if only the bearings are bad.

I made this repair back in the early 90s...shopping around, I was able to find a kit for around $700 back then. Conceptually, it was simple, but it was a major PITA, thanks to almost no room to work under the hood or from below (I skinned every knuckle) and the exhaust bolts had become almost fused on.

Yeah. There would probably need to be some sort of spacer to direct the exhaust that would normally drive the turbo. Not to mention tying off the oil and coolant lines. So this would be like a vasectomy for the car. ;-)

Not to mention the electronics. The engine control module would probably default to a "limp home" mode unless it were properly remapped.

It shouldn't even cost too much to have a mechanic do that. Most accounts of turbo failures seem to just be the bearings. I've looked up what comes in most kits, and it's usually just the replacement bearings and gaskets. The biggest problem seems to be when a mating surface is scored and needs to be machined, or so I hear.