[Ball vs plain bearing turbo]

I have been looking into an upgrade turbo for my RB30.....current T3...my local turbo shop says the ball bearing garretts don't seem to be lasting long on the installs he's done (as little as 3000km),he puts it down to the fact that the ball bearings have no lateral play(unlike the plain/oil bearings) to absorb movement created by the harmonic vibrations of the spinning shaft

he has been in business for a long time and has a respected reputation in my city,he sells 70% plain turbos to his customers,doesn't beleive the ball bearing turbos spool up significantly faster and seem to suffer from premature bearing failure.

Any comments for or against????

Any technical links/info to back up your opinion???

[rb30 turbo upgrade]

the turbo has just been rebuilt,it boosts well in other gears....particularly 3/4/5 when it spools up very quickly

i am leaning towards thinking that the issue is the gearing just too low in first,suppose i could always just take off in second OR try the auto(which i would prefer to drive anyway)

any thoughts on autos vs manuals for turbo (street)cars

any suggestions on converter stall speeds.....i am used to high stalling performance V8's with cams,don't know if this applies to turbod engines as well??????

[rb30 turbo upgrade]

thanks guys,appreciate the input,flaring the boost idea sounds appealing........real cheap and quick,lol

any ideas on the auto/manual dilemma??stall speed etc

cheers

paul

[rb30 turbo upgrade]

thanks for the reply guys

 

to answer some of the queries.....

 

i am not getting any wheelspin in first gear as the turbo doesn't seem loaded up enough to make boost,first gear is over pretty quick and you are reaching for second where some boost is made

 

the T3 came out standard on a car over here called the VL commodore which had a nissan rb30 sohc six in it,it made 150kw standared with about 5 psi,i reckon my car is making about 220kw at the moment

 

the garrett gt35 seems awfully big to make the low down torque/quick spool i am looking for,does sound good for top end hp though!!let me know if you have this turbo on a sohc 6

 

any input on spooling up the turbo with an auto vs a manual....and if so what stall converter should i be thinking of(high stall or "low" stall?)

 

thanks again

[rb30 turbo upgrade]

i have an rb30 with a T3 in my 240Z,it's a 5 speed,intercooled,15psi,standard turbo(plain bearing) 7th injector with a Wolf 3D computer.............i am a little dissappointed with the performance off the mark

it makes very little boost in first gear,possibly because ??the gearing(box and diff, already 3.36:1) is too low??the car is so light??

my question ,.....is it worth trying an auto box and a ball bearing turbo

if so is a higher stall converter of any use or should i be trying to load it up early with a very tight converter?

which turbo would you recommend for a quick spool up without completely loosing top end?

i am looking to use a standard nissan turbo off a factory import if possible,which ones are ball bearing and how do you tell from photos....you guessed it..ebay!!

thanks guys

paul

[best supercharger for 302 windsor]

i am thinking of supercharging the 302 in my 240z....the motor has alloy heads,edelbrock performer with injectors,the block is o ringed,forged pistons 8.5:1 comp ratio,roller cam,roller rockers,wolf 3d engine management system........it was previously set up with a big single turbo(previous owner),i have a z with an rb30 turbo and although it is fast when you race it,it lacks the torque for normal street driving as the turbo doesn't really spool up before you change gear(no high ratio diffs for z's!!!)

so i am reluctant to go the turbo route with the 302

my question is,out of the remote mount(ie not intake manifold mounted)units available,which do you guys recommend and why,i figure 9psi would be ideal but i could probably live with 6 psi.....i want around 500hp

i have been looking on ebay and have seen powerdyne,paxton and vortec units at reasonable prices

any thoughts,comments,advise or recommendations on my topic generally most welcome

thanks

paul

western australia

[The Classic "Best"]

i have a "fake" boss 302 in my 240.....in other words a 302 windsor bottom end with cleveland 302 heads and suitable aftermarket manifold.(and custom headers)......it is a fast revving motor that suits a light car,not as much torque as a SB chev though.

in australia it is a cheap performance option as we had the 302 cleveland over here both with 2V and 4V ports that allow the windsor bottom end to really breathe

paul

[propane for performance]

hi,

wondering if anyone has used this fuel(gaseous) for a performance V8 turbo application............it's popular here in australia for a cheaper fuel..........unleaded petrol/94 octane/US$4 a gallon versus LPG/110+ octane/US$2 per gallon.............but has a few advantages as i see it for HP turbo applications eg

 

more octane=higher compression=higher off boost performance=less knock/more advance on boost

gaseous already so no need for a big $ fuel(liquid) system capable of flowing 600HP

no need for full engine management system as no injectors(probably get away with a stand alone ignition retard unit....simple)...another big dollar/headache saver

cheaper to run ie less than 1/2 price

single point of entry fuel delivery in blow thru application(already under pressure when "injected")

 

anyone see any disadvantages(other than running out of fuel in a propane only application!!)

paul

western australia

240Z 302 windsor

[propane for performance]

hi,

wondering if anyone has used this fuel(gaseous) for a performance V8 turbo application............it's popular here in australia for a cheaper fuel..........unleaded petrol/94 octane/US$4 a gallon versus LPG/110+ octane/US$2 per gallon.............but has a few advantages as i see it for HP turbo applications eg

 

more octane=higher compression=higher off boost performance=less knock/more advance on boost

gaseous already so no need for a big $ fuel(liquid) system capable of flowing 600HP

no need for full engine management system as no injectors(probably get away with a stand alone ignition retard unit....simple)...another big dollar/headache saver

cheaper to run ie less than 1/2 price

single point of entry fuel delivery in blow thru application(already under pressure when "injected")

 

anyone see any disadvantages(other than running out of fuel in a propane only application!!)

paul

western australia

240Z 302 windsor

[r200 lsd option?????]

have any of you guys used one of these(see web page below)to convert an open centre r200 to a lsd unit?? http://www.phantomgrip.com/products.htm