Impact Damage

Impact damage caused by foreign material entering the turbine housing or compressor housing is clearly visible on the turbine wheel or impeller.

Never continue to operate a turbocharger with damaged blades as the
rotor balance will be affected and this could impact its service life.

Insufficient Oil Supply

Insufficient oil supply can be attributed to the following:

• Re-fitting a turbocharger without adequate priming.
• Long periods of non-use.
• Broken or restricted oil feed pipe.
• Low engine oil pressure due to malfunctioning lubrication system.
• Low or no oil in sump.
• The use of sealants, which can restrict the oil flow.
• Not priming a replacement oil filter with new oil. If this cannot be done then crank the engine with no fuel to establish oil pressure.
• Do not exceed idle conditions until oil pressure is established.

Dirt in Oil

Dirty oil damages the turbocharger by causing heavy scoring of critical bearing surfaces. To avoid damage, oil and filters should be of a quality recomended by an OEM. These should be changed when a new turbocharger is fitted and at regular intervals according to the vehicle/engine manufacturer’s specification.

Dirty oil damage could result from:

• Blocked, damaged or poor quality oil filter.
• Dirt introduced during servicing.
• Engine wear or manufacturing debris.
• Malfunctioning oil filter by-pass valve.
• Degraded lubrication oil.

Carbon build-up

Failure from excessive exhaust temperatures or hot shutdown of engine results in carbon build-up. It is recommended that you idle the engine for 2 to 3 minutes to cool the bearing system before shutting down. Turbine end heat soak into the bearing housing results in oil
carbonisation and corrosion of the bearing system. The main damage occurs to the shaft seal ring and grooves, turbine end bearing and bearing housing oil drain cavity blockage.
Carbon build-up can be caused by:

• Hot shutdown of engine.
• Degraded oil quality carbonising in service.
• Infrequent oil change intervals causing oil breakdown in service.
• Air and gas leaks.
• Faulty fuel injector pump/injectors.

Caused by:

• Dirty air cleaner.
• Air intake system restriction.
• Cracked mounting flange/gasket missing.
• Fuel pump/injectors/valve timing incorrectly set.
• Wastegate mechanism set incorrectly.
• Turbocharger damaged.

Caused by:

• Dirty air cleaner.
• Air intake system restriction.
• Cracked mounting flange/gasket missing.
• Exhaust for foreign object restriction.
• Fuel pump/injectors/valve timing incorrectly set.
• Burnt valves and/or pistons.
• Turbocharger damaged.

Often the noise comes from air/gas leakage due to pre-turbine exhaust gas or an air/boost leaks.

Check all joints - if noise continues check turbocharger clearances and wheels for housing contact.

Possibility :

• Fractured / Broken engine components damaged turbine wheel
• Cracked manifold pieces enter and damage turbine wheel
• Dirty air filter
• External dirt entered and damaged compressor wheel

What to look out for :

• Check cylinder head and engine parts
• Check air filter for holes

Possibility :

• Poor quality oil filter
• Oil not changed for too long
• Damaged engine bearings

What to look out for :

• Check engine bearings for failure

Possibility :

• Repetitive oil delay
  • Pressure not consistent
  • Delivery of oil not consistent
• Blocked oil inlet pipe
• Oil pump failure / weak

What to look out for :

• Check oil inlet and outlet pipes for blockage and bends
• Check oil pump for pressure

Possibility :

• Constant 'hot shut down'
• Wrong calibration of FIP (Fuel Injection Pump)
• FIP nozzle jammed / leaking
• Wrong turbine housing spec used

What to look out for :

• Allow engine to idle for 3-5 minutes before shutting down
• Ensure FIP is calibrated to OEM specifications
• Check FIP nozzle and injectors
• Ensure correct turbo part number is used on engine