I have just recently (2 days ago) picked my 1997 A4 1.8T back up from the dealer from having the turbo replaced. It was all done under warranty but they didnt tell me what had happened to it except that it was "faulty". How many people have also blown their turbo's and will a turbo timer help this. ??

 

I had a new turbo installed on my '97 A4 1.8T after 28,000 miles. The wastegate rod broke.<p>I'd try to get a better explanation from the dealer if I were you. If your wastegate rod broke, I doubt that a turbo timer would have helped much.<p>On the other hand, if you actually had a "blown" turbo (bearings seized, etc.) a timer might have helped especially if you don't use synthetic oil or let your turbo cool down after driving.<p>Andy Hedin<br>'97 A4 1.8Tqms, Wett 1.0 Bar, ABT Filter, Tint, E-code Headlights, new turbo!

 

Richard,<p>What exactly were the symptoms of your "blown turbo"? Any and everything you can remember will be helpful. The term "blown" means a lot of things to different people, it's also a loaded term, so we want to be precise.<p>There has only been one turbo on this board that failed from something other than a broken rod (NOT a blown turbo). It apparently lost a bearing (which can be caused by dozens of things, including operator error).<p>A timer is only really valuable IMHO on a chipped turbo that does not run synthetic oil (even if the timer worked with the alarm). The theory is that the turbo is so hot that it needs to cool down after a hard run (true). The problem associated with a hot shutdown is the oil in the bearing and return line carbonises from the excess heat. Now for low pressure (stock use) turbos this is a minor issue because the oil is cooled (oil/water exchange system) and there is a coolant system in the turbine housing.<p>With a chipped turb you are generating a lot more heat, but this can be resolved with synthetic oil WHICH DOES NOT CARBONIZE in the turbo lines. At worst synthetic forms a soft clot which blows out under normal oil pressure. <p>For sanity, I let the engine cool down for a minute or two after a hard run and use synthetic. If you change your oil regularly and let the car cool for a minute you should never have a problem with this turbo (exc. for the stupid rod).

 

Is there a positive correlation between broken wastegate rods and how hard the car is driven, or is it mostly random?

 

As someone posted a while back (I hope I'm paraphrasing correctly here) the wastegate rod is breaking due to thermal cycling of the metal rod (i.e., heating and cooling).<p>Now if this is the case, you could assume that a 1.8T that's driven hard might have the problem versus one that's driven very conservatively. I don't consider myself to be a "hard" driver and I've run Synthetic Mobil-1 since 7,500 miles. I also allow the turbo to cool down prior to shutting the car off. However, I did chip my car at 22,000 miles and my wastegate rod broke at 28,000 miles. Is the breakage due to the chip? I don't think so. Could it be a contributing factor? Perhaps. Am I worried about it? No, I re-chipped my car within 2 days of getting it back from the dealer. I've heard that the earlier 1.8T's were known to have problems with the wastegate rod. When I called to make an appointment with my dealer, the service writer asked me a few questions and then immediately told me that it sounded like a broken wastegate rod. They've apparently fixed a couple in the past. The new turbo includes an additional heat shield and another oil line to help keep things cooler. From my understanding, there is no recall on the turbos but some owners have gotten their dealers to install the parts as a preventative measure.<p>Andy Hedin<br>

 

Very informative ... thanks!

 

I agree with your assessment: a big fat maybe. The solution sure sounds like heatcycling. But the problem is probably metalurgy. So it's a crapshoot. My turbo hardly ever glows in spite of continiuos high boost on the freeway.

 

I drive how you might say.... HARD. The turbo glows just about every time I pull into the driveway. Mine is a June '97 build with 30,000 miles on it, 29,000 of those being Hoppen chipped miles.<p>I do run Mobil 1, and let it cool until the turbo is not glowing every time I drive. So I doubt the driver has anything to do with it.<p>Rich Quinlan<br>"the pearl blur" '97 1.8tqms<br><ul><li><a href="http://home.att.net/~richquinlan">Quinland</a></li></ul>