The chance of blowing it is mostly based on cast pistons. They are pretty weak, and could probably be destroyed with stock heads much less twisted wedges. I just recommended the tw heads because they are cheap, make big power, and are known for good gasket retention.
Once again, I will add my $.02....FWIW (apparently not much) How long will a stock engine live? Depends. Some can get 600 HP out of a stock block & crank. Some can't get 400 without breaking something. What I did was a TRUE backyard (or was it backWard) attempt at a turbo Maverick. I succeeded in accomplishing the goal....effortless tire spin at any speed and in any gear (75 mph freeway rolling burnouts were a breeze). It was a little 600 Holley double pumper, a stock fuel pump (which was WAAAY too small!!) and at first, a set of 9.5 compression TRW CAST flat tops. Yes Cast. They worked. For a while. I never burned a piston as long as I had the turbocharger on the car. I did, however, split 2 blocks, break one crankshaft, and in the very first cast-piston motor, I blew a hole about the size of a quarter through the cylinder walls of #6 and #7 cylinders. It was all the way through for the most part. 'Course then the motor filled with coolant and bent those 2 rods. The pistons never showed any signs of burning/scorching. Not even the cast ones. BTW, I did take it to play day at the drag races once. I left the line with 5 psi boost, went about 75' and burned a couple plugs, so I shut 'er down. Ran the 60' timers with a 1.59 60' time....in a fully streetable '74 Maverick. Full interior and all, just as I drove it daily. I was running 14 psi on the street....was capable of 22-24 with good gas (non-intercooled). Speaking of intercoolers, where are you going to find one that will fit in the TINY Maverick/comet chassis? It'll be a crapshoot...and even then, you may end up making one. After the first attempt, I broke down & bought a set of SRP lightweight inverted dome pistons, about 8.3 compression at 0 deck. The lighter weight made it rev SO much faster, it was almost scary when boost came on. At 2600, you'd hear the faint whistle of the compressor...and at 2800, it was like getting hit in the rear by a mack truck. It pulled that hard, that quick. My SVO is the same way...except its' a little later in the RPM band (around 3500). I broke numerous head gaskets (felpro 1011-1), crank, blocks, lots of broken stuff....sent a few pieces through the turbo & tore up the turbine blades (had it rebuilt...which aint' cheap!)...in a nutshell I spent a ton of money on that thing. Was it fun? Dang right. Was it expensive? Yep..definetly. Initial investment including headers, turbo, piping, and everything else was just under $700. Then I had to buy a wastegate, and back then there were about 5 different ones...all over $300. The factory Powerstroke turbo (the early ones) were non-wastegated. Later, I bought the SRP pistons (400+) several blocks ($50/each) and all this doesn't count the tow bills, machine shop costs, and other "small" stuff. If you're going to do it, do as someone had mentioned earlier...figure out what your budget it, then double that figure...that's about what you'll end up spending. question of the day: would I do it again? No. turbo engines are a pain in the butt to keep running right, at least from my past experiences. We're talking about gas burners; diesels are different. They shouldn't make a diesel without a turbo or blower. I have an SVO here that I am struggling to even keep running...but when it runs, it runs like a raped ape.
jaybird, take a moment to think. With your lack of experience and knowledge about all this, your being told a rosey picture of all this. Yes you need to learn but understand the ramifications of all that your wanting to do. The engine under blower application needs to be built of high quality parts to begin with. Then building the blower installation and tuning. The carb is not just blown into from the top. Theres more to it than that. By the tme your done, the amount of money and expertise become quite large. Then ask why two turbos? Are you intending 1000 hp? and an engine worthy of holding togather. Get the bigger picture before you get to far into this and begin finding out you can't do it for one reason or another.
So true about turbos being a pain to keep running. I popped 3 sets of head gaskets before I said screw it and sold the turbos. This was before I learned how notorious stock e7s are for loosing gaskets. Mine had been milled TWICE, so my compression was probably around 9.5:1 or higher. The biggest problem with turbo cars is that once we do get them running good, we feel compelled to crank the boost. Then stuff really starts to break. This time around, I am o-ringing my block, buying a good set of heads, and a data logging wide band. Im going to start small and slowly creep up until Im (temporarily) satisfied with the power If you enjoy driving your car all the time without having to worry about what a bad tank of gas or a big change in temperature will do to your car, I would highly recommend NOT turboing it!
BTW, Lonnie, those pics look strikingly similar to mine Edit: fixed pics. guess yahoo doesnt care too much for hotlinking...
It's a pain to keep running just because it's an SVO Just kidding!!! I'm a turboforder myself. '87 and '86 turbo coupes. Getting the TFI and PIP sorted out and setting the TPS and all that was the hardest part to get it to run right. Then the inertia switch kept tripping for some reason. The timing mysteriously retarded itself somehow and burnt a valve. After I put the head back on, rebuilt the dizzy, and got the timing settled out and the idle adjusted it ran great. Then the stock clutch took a dump. D'oh!! Nothing really related to the actual turbo that caused problems, just the side affects from using a 18 year old 90 hp truck engine to make 250 hp. Finally sold the '87 after a while. The cost of keeping a car that was almost 20 years old up and running just wasn't working with my money situation at the time. If I ever get enough money together again I'm buying it back! Power leather seats, sun roof, electronic climate control, factory amplifier and equalizer.... ahhhh.... The '86 lost a fight with a mail box and some other stuff and became a donor my dad's '72 pinto. I need to keep on the old man about finishing that car up. It hasn't been touched since I moved out. We got the engine and T5 in there, power buckets, all wired up, new 8", and there it sits. The car hasn't run since '82 or something like that. Maybe '84. Anyway, I'll have to agree that was the most fun car I've ever owned. Not the fastest, but definitely the most fun. I can't wait to do another turbo car.
so what i got out of that is turbos are hard but fun. cost alot but im not in a rush car may be drivable by the end of the year with about 3-4000 bucks in it. so far what im going to do is buy a good shortblock(forged stuff in it) 86+ put on some good heads and try from there. (im just buying the 302 mounts today so i know its a long process) and after all that i still need a kit for my c4 and a new rear end and brakes my car isnt even primered yet. im just in the research phase im not even going to start on stuff till im back from kuwait (hopefully i go) 4 month tour.
Buy an 87+ roller block. The 86 models have flat top pistons which means higher compression and less piston to valve clearance for aftermarket cams.
Roller motors stand up pretty well until you make rediculous hp numbers. A standard block MIGHT handle SLIGHTLY more power than a roller, but you give up a 1 piece rear main seal, roller cam, and forged pistons(unless you buy aftermarkets).
Uhhhhhh....no. Roller motors last a loooooong time under most circumstances. Well beyond 200k if properly serviced. They are good engines.
I'm in the process of building a twin turbo sleeper maverick myself and have learned a LOT from the turbomustangs site. I've opted to take my time and collect parts as they become available and my budget will allow. I've got two nice turbo's from turbocoupes...the reason two? They are much cheaper and more plentiful than one large one. There was a web site a long time ago about a guy that turbocharged his maverick...my apologies if he's on this board and see's this, since I can't find it again or do I remember his name...and that was what inspired me. I'm of the opinion that there are so many forced induction 5.0's out there that are running with belt driven superchargers that if you build a turbo the same way it will work also...boost is boost. In the end, it all comes down to how you drive it and how well you tune it. The turbo in itself will not wipe out your motor (with a good tune)...but driving it to it's limits will. Having said all that keep in mind that a boost in horsepower, be it turbo, nitrous, or a built motor, will require a stronger rear end, transmission and most of all...better brakes than the original drums. Lastly I want to say, don't get discouraged by peoples opinions. That's just what they are, opinions and everyone has one. They told me when I was 15 that I shouldn't try rebuilding a Q-jet. Then they told me at 16 that I was too young to rebuild my 429. Even at 30 before all these stroker kits came out, they told me that I couldn't do it. I ignored them and built a 521, the 429 and that old Q-jet. Yeah, I fail occasionally and I chalk it up to a learning experience, but if you want to try something...learn all you can about it and give it a shot! That's how us old hot rodders have been doing it forever! It wasn't always a bolt on sport.
well my dad is giving me a pretty good gift a 302 shortblock all eagle forged alum inside and i think he even said stroked. but he is saying that even if i wat to put on turbos that high compression is better i just have to use like 2lbs less boost to make it the same. what do you all think about that?
