# Malibu 1.5T turbo swap PN?



## HatchBatch (Jun 21, 2019)

Hi everyone,

I have been doing some searching and it seems the Malibu 1.5T turbo is a TD025, so its the same frame as our cruze TD02 but with a bigger compressor. Looks like they are a direct swap from looking at some old threads here, but not much info. 

Looking to hunt in a junkyard to snag a good low mileage one, anybody have the actual PN for easier searching? 

I plan on getting a Mamba wastegate at the same time I swap this on, so I should be able to get some respectable power without spending a ton. (I already have a tune and GFB DV+ and would be working to update the tune accordingly). 

If I can get ahold of one of these I will report back my findings and actual performance data of the improvements.

Thanks!


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## HatchBatch (Jun 21, 2019)

It seems really quiet around these forums....

I did find the latest PN for the TD025 turbo from the Malibu 1.5T (LFV). Its 12690543. Looks like it supersedes a couple older PNs, but when looking in a junkyard or car-part.com it seems like any LFV equipped malibu should have the TD025 turbo, so 2016- current 1.5T malibus should all be fair game. Obviously the newer and lower mileage most likely the better longevity. And Car-part is saying good quality units are about $150-200, seems very reasonable to me. 

Once I find the time to head to a junkyard and get this swapped in I will report back, unless that is, someone else that has done the swap wants to chime in?

A quick look at the turbo mapping shows a small but distinct increase in airflow across all pressure ratios for the TD025. seems like at the least it would be nice to have the same HP as current but with a couple PSI less boost to make the intercooler etc. not have to work quite as hard. Just more efficient of a system. This is again, assuming a good tune can be made to take advantage of the change.


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## Thebigzeus (Dec 2, 2018)

HatchBatch said:


> It seems really quiet around these forums....


I mean, I read your post yesterday, saw Malibu, that's not my wheelhouse so I skipped on. 🤷‍♂️



1.5 Turbocharged











BNR TD025R Turbocharger-BNR-TD025R






store.badnewsracing.net


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## HatchBatch (Jun 21, 2019)

Yea I suppose my thread title could lead to the assumption of me wanting to swap the entire engine to the 1.5, which is not my intention. Sorry about that.

And yes I have seen the BNR turbo, I know they have a custom compressor wheel so it should be better than the stock TD025 and it’s brand new, but I am looking for something that balances a power upgrade with low cost a little more and the BNR turbo is not cheap (I have paid that much for turbos before, I understand that new, high performance turbos are often expensive for good reason, not knocking BNR here, just not what I am willing to do at this time and I know I won’t be getting the absolute highest possible power with a stock turbo swap, I am okay with that).


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## jblackburn (Apr 14, 2012)

You're going to have to find someone to tune for it starting off with a relatively conservative tune. It will likely make for more mid-range torque with less of the vibration that goes with the 1.5T - the 1.4T is a smoother engine with its slightly shorter stroke. Just slapping the turbo on there on the base tune, you risk throwing constant overboost codes/piston damage if it ramps up too soon.


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## HatchBatch (Jun 21, 2019)

Yes I definitely expect a tune when I swap this on. I already have a tune on my car and will be in contact with them when I go ahead with the swap.


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## Louis.marti7 (Dec 4, 2019)

HatchBatch said:


> Hi everyone,
> 
> I have been doing some searching and it seems the Malibu 1.5T turbo is a TD025, so its the same frame as our cruze TD02 but with a bigger compressor. Looks like they are a direct swap from looking at some old threads here, but not much info.
> 
> ...


Pretty much all current gen Malibu's have a 1.5. but if I were you I'd go for a Malibu premier engine as it's a 2.0L turbo pushing 250 hp stock and there's guys that did a 2.0 engine swap on a Cruze with aftermarket engine parts and they pushed it to about 400hp.


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## HatchBatch (Jun 21, 2019)

The LTG swapped Cruze is a sweet car, and something I wish GM did from the factory, but its a bit more effort than I am looking for right now on my daily. And the stock LTG turbo is a TD04, which won't bolt up directly to our 1.4T engines without fabrication, if it could I believe that would be a common swap haha!

The turbo from the 1.5T malibu is a direct bolt in to our 1.4T cars while being just a little bigger. Seems like a simple way to get a little more out these cars without having to start hacking things up to get them to fit or making a bunch of custom stuff (if I ever get a gen2 as a pure project car, I wouldnt mind doing those things, but that is a long way down the road).


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