Turbos

sm3ar

Rookie question here but turbos in cars, do they have to be changed every so often in cars? If they brake does that completely mess up a car in the same way a broken timing belt would?

biko

A turbo is a thing that uses exhaust gases to force more air into the engine,
It has moving parts and will become worn over time. Sometimes it breaks down for a number of reasons.
If it fails it will not cause catastrophic engine failure like a snapped timing belt, but it can be costly to repair.
When the turbo starts to fail it is usually obvious and measures can be taken to fix it in time before it fails completely.

honda boi

Apparently when I bought my car the oil was so bad the turbo broke off and pieces of it went into the engine and f**ked it up !!
But my engine is the delicate 1.6 Tdci .
So other engines prob aren't as bad.

rex-x

A failed turbo can cause worse damage than a broken timing belt, but it depends on how it fails, many times there will be no damage other than to the turbo itself

Cheensbo

Look up "runaway diesels" on youtube, thats probably the worst case scenario from turbo faliure - oil seals fail in the turbo allowing engine oil to be fired in the intake, the engine then runs completely ungoverned and will stay running by burning its own oil until it completely shíts itself in a huge cloud of smoke.

I find it fascinating tbh, but equally tragic.

sm3ar

So should you change them every so often then. Is that the done thing?

Cheensbo

sm3ar wrote: »

So should you change them every so often then. Is that the done thing?

No, unless its showing signs of faliure. Its not a "consumable"

..Brian..

I had a turbo take off on oil once. Was driving in the road and it started accelerating away from me by itself. Shat meself, thought the engine was going to explode and I was going to die a a ball of fire! It eventually sorted itself out by melting two pistons and killing the engine.

porsche boy

biko wrote:

If it fails it will not cause catastrophic engine failure like a snapped timing belt, but it can be costly to repair...

Quite the opposite biko, timing belt snap will cause valve to piston contact on interference engines. Replace bent valves & belt and away you go.
A failed turbo can lead to impellers being eaten by the engine requiring replacement valves, pistons, con rods etc. As stated oil seal failure can lead to diesel runaway requiring a new engine.

biko

Yes, but thinking like that - a puncture can also lead to a catastrophic crash but it is more common that the driver will notice the issue well in advance and rectify it before a spectacular event happens.