# What would you do if your turbo was bad???



## NCHEVYHEVN (Aug 5, 2012)

If it were me I would just get another stock turbo. Like you said with it being attached to the manifold the way it is makes it a pain the ass. Plus a bigger turbo is going to require custom tuning by Trifecta or someone else. I think someone on this board put a bigger turbo on but ran into tuning issues with Trifecta.


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## giantsnation (Oct 11, 2012)

You could try put the stock down pipe on and going to a different dealership.


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## NCHEVYHEVN (Aug 5, 2012)

giantsnation said:


> You could try put the stock down pipe on and going to a different dealership.


Most GM dealers will block a car's warranty after finding aftermarket parts that are determined to be a root cause of failure. It's worth a shot though. You can always call another GM dealer with your VIN number and ask them to run a VIS on it.


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## obermd (Mar 3, 2012)

You can manually check the wastegate pin on your turbo. If there's a lot of play that's the problem and it has nothing to do with back pressure.


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## ChevyGuy (Dec 13, 2014)

jbaker2810 said:


> They had told me the turbo went bad because this type of turbo needs the cat in the downpipe for back pressure.


I had to do some Googling. Apparently there's a concern that if there's no backpressure, the turbo can "chatter" back and forth along the shaft and cause bearing failure. If deleting the cat is enough to do it, or if the concern is real, I can't say. At this point, I'm not sure if that's GM's stance or just the dealer talking.




jbaker2810 said:


> If you had a bad turbo on your car would you: buy another used stock one? Upgrade the internals in the existing turbo? Or just get a bigger turbo?


Personally, I'd go with stock. Bigger turbos may take longer to spool up and result in more turbo lag. Or, perhaps they wouldn't be tuned for lower end torque like the car currently is. For a daily driver, I think the current turbo is pretty good. If you're racing, your needs will be different.


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## Blancmange (Jan 9, 2013)

jbaker2810 said:


> Hello fellow Cruze owners I have a dilemma that I need some input on.
> 
> I took my car into the dealership yesterday under the impression that either my fuel pump or fuel filter was having issues. The car under heavy acceleration would completely loose power. But the car drives normal under normal driving conditions (except going up a hill then I get intermittant power loss). The dealer had told me that the turbo was bad. Unfortunately if I had known the turbo was the issue I would have taken the K&N intake and downpipe off and put the stock ones back on. So because those were still on the car they would not warranty the turbo. They had told me the turbo went bad because this type of turbo needs the cat in the downpipe for back pressure. I have a hard time swallowing that line because so many people have the downpipes on their cars and their turbos aren't going bad. I know the 1.4t is known to have issues with the wastegate pin being bad and I suspect that is the problem with mine.
> 
> ...


Did it set any codes when the turbo went bad?


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## ChevyGuy (Dec 13, 2014)

Blancmange said:


> Did it set any codes when the turbo went bad?


Which immediately makes me ask - exactly what did go bad? Some users have reported wastegate pins failing resulting in underboost. That requires replacing the whole turbo. I don't think your mods could cause that.


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## boneheaddoctor (Dec 10, 2014)

I think you have a good reason to complain under the Magnuson-Moss act....they are REQUIRED to prove that the parts you used DIRECTLY cause the failure. THey can't simply say Oh, you have aftermarket parts and void it just for that alone.

If the Compressor failed due to being sandblasted by grit to the point of Failure...they have cause. The claim.."oh it needs Backpressure and that's why it failed" is total Bull manure.

I've never seen a requirement by a turbo manufacturer state..."This device requires backpressure to work or warranty is voided"

I have a 32 year old T-3 on a 32 year old Mercedes that has NO cat converter with over 220,000 miles...on a car proven to have very low backpressure from the factory.

I'd contact the Chevy Customer Care rep on this site if they don't read this and reach out to you.


Links to a posted copy of the Magnuson-Moss act. Both go into detail as to modified cars.

http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/keeping-your-mods-warranty-intact.html


http://www.impalasuperstore.com/naisso/magmoss.htm


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## Cruzen Vegas (Aug 27, 2015)

I would put it back to stock, then go to a different dealer....If that doesn't work, Title-transfer it to a friend or girlfriend then have them take it in...


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## NickD (Dec 10, 2011)

Price you have to pay for modifications to your car and not doing a bit of good except making more noise.

And if you think this is bad, don't get involved with an accident. First off, insurance companies tie up the very best law firms, you can only find second best. And they hire crooked experts to examine your vehicle. If they find any mods in your vehicle, will avoid paying a claim whether its your fault or not. And even though that mod didn't have a thing to do with that accident.

But they also have the judge in their pocket, we live in a very corrupt country and you can't fight city hall.


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## pandrad61 (Jul 8, 2015)

> I would put it back to stock, then go to a different dealer....If that doesn't work, Title-transfer it to a friend or girlfriend then have them take it in


this will do absolutely nothing other then cost a title transfer fee


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## peobey (Aug 9, 2015)

You do know that the original turbo is relatively cheap right? After all that money put in that car, if the warranty is ultimately denied, I'd replace it myself.

Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk


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## 170-3tree (Nov 4, 2014)

First is remove the custom parts then try again at a dealer. Play dumb and act like you've never modified a car before unless it says in their database with photos. 
Second if you want to upgrade with minimal hassle, call vtuner. Direct bolt on with a little extra range.


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## jbaker2810 (May 14, 2013)

obermd said:


> You can manually check the wastegate pin on your turbo. If there's a lot of play that's the problem and it has nothing to do with back pressure.


There is definitely play in the wastegate pin. 

Has anyone replaced the wastegate pin themselves? This is my first turbo car and have never taken one apart. Definitely not scared to, but am curious if there would be any other components that could possibly be compromised from the loose wastegate pin. Would like to do it in one shot as opposed to taking it apart multiple times to replace hardware.


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## jbaker2810 (May 14, 2013)

Blancmange said:


> Did it set any codes when the turbo went bad?


Ever since I put on the K&N intake (which was at the 5000 mile mark) I have thrown the P0299 code and it has been intermittant. I had reset the ECU by disconnecting the negative terminal on the battery and it had gone away for a few thousand miles. Once the downpipe was added I threw the P0420 code but I added the trifecta tune to the car literally a couple days after I put on the downpipe. The tune was able to get rid of that code being thrown. As for the P0299 code, it would come back with the tune installed. I would be able to clear it with the tune, drive about a thousand miles, then it would come back.


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## ChevyGuy (Dec 13, 2014)

jbaker2810 said:


> Has anyone replaced the wastegate pin themselves?


From what others have indicated, if the wategate pin is bad, you need to replace the whole turbo.

But this comes back to what's wrong with the turbo. If it's the pin, I don't see how your mods could cause the problems.


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