Looking into a 3L w/turbo install - have a few reliability questions

[random_rodder]

Hi everybody,

Started driving my 2000 SVT again recently (after having sold it then not sold it - long story). I have remembered just why I bought the car in the first place - regardless of the back and neck pain involved with getting into and out of the car, it's a VERY fun ride. Seeing as how fate has decided I should be a CSVT owner, I'm accepting that with pride.

Anyway, if things fall into place like I hope they will in the next six months, I'm looking at doing a 3L build with an NPG turbo kit. I know I'll have to have the MTX75 rebuilt (3rd gear synchro grinds) and add a Thorsen diff, MSDS headers, y-pipe and exhaust, etc...

The one question I have not been able to find an answer for involves driving the turbo'd 3L in a really dusty/sandy environment. I live in north central Florida, on about 1.5 miles of dirt road. The rest of the time is spent on normal pavement. As long as the engine is built right with a good air filter, are there any other issues I should be aware of? Is it possible for sand or grit to get into the turbo's bearings?

As it is right now, I check my stock air filter monthly and empty a couple teaspoons worth of sand out of the air box. Sorry if these sound like stupid questions, but, I've never owned a turbo'd car before and I am still a Contour newb...


Thanks,

Brian

 

[Smokinjoe]

I can't comment on a turbo Contour, but my cousin lives on 3 miles of dirt road. He drives a FC RX-7 turbo and his roommate drives an STI swapped 92 Legecy. Both daily drivers. I wouldn't worry about it. Just use a good air filter and check it often.

 

[random_rodder]

I can't comment on a turbo Contour, but my cousin lives on 3 miles of dirt road. He drives a FC RX-7 turbo and his roommate drives an STI swapped 92 Legecy. Both daily drivers. I wouldn't worry about it. Just use a good air filter and check it often.

Thanks for the info! I figured that would be the case, but, you never know...

 

[BrApple]

personally I wouldn't recommend a turbo contour as a DD. but thats just me ....

 

[rexxdoggy]

You better have a back up car just in case lol And according to your sig, I assume you do.

 

[random_rodder]

personally I wouldn't recommend a turbo contour as a DD. but thats just me ....

You better have a back up car just in case lol And according to your sig, I assume you do.

Yeah, I'll be looking at getting another CSVT to leave N/A. In fact, I may well Do the 3.0L hybrid on my current SVT to get my feet wet, and do the 3.0L Turbo on another Contour - SVT or not. By the same token, I'm not looking to build a trailer queen, either, but I do understand the inherent risks involved in trying to use a custom build as a DD.

At any rate this is gonna be a long term project. Due to my injuries from my car wreck two years ago, I can't work at the pace I used to. Some of it will have to wait for my brother in law to help with, as well as some Florida CEG'ers, if they're willing.

Thanks for being willing to share your knowledge, guys!!!


Brian

 

[bhiggs89]

There is nothing wrong with DD'ing a Turbo Contour, ask me how I know. I drive mine everyday, and with school during the week its about a 60 mile round trip. Heck my Dad even DD's his turbo contour now too.


Of course it is always better to have an extra car around, and if I had enough extra money I would get a DD in a heartbeat just to save the miles from my car. But I just want everyone aware that you can in face DD a turbo contour, even with a stock transmission.

Good Luck with your build

 

[BAD SVT]

There is nothing wrong with DD'ing a Turbo Contour, ask me how I know. I drive mine everyday, and with school during the week its about a 60 mile round trip. Heck my Dad even DD's his turbo contour now too..... But I just want everyone aware that you can in face DD a turbo contour, even with a stock transmission.

I guess i can see how it's possible. However, i wouldn't advice that as well. A turbo'd tour can be daily driven if u rarely get on it. But if u do race it periodically, it WILL IN FACT break sooner than later. So here's my .02; If u know how to work on cars or are familiar with thses cars, then go ahead. If not, leave it N/A

 

[Blackcoog]

Agreed, if you build a turboed Contour you've probably done it because you want more power. If you drive it hard every day it will break. It's a really bad idea for a daily driver.

 

[crewchiefpro]

I can drive my hard all day long, doesn't seem to bother it. The biggest thing is the transmission and keeping boost at or below 8 lbs. Above 8 lbs the rods and diff become the weak links. My trans has all the tricks plus a lower final drive so fuel economy and low gear performance is better. It is fairly quiet, idles great, and pulls hard in every gear. With 400 HP at the crank and 363 at the wheels it will get your attention.

Make sure you keep the SVT Cams on the 3.0 also, mucho better.

Yes you do have to work on them from time to time. The turbo doesn't really add problems, it just helps to find the weak links that you already knew were there.

 

[random_rodder]

When I do this build, I have every intention of using forged internals, higher volume injectors/fuel pump, better flowing exhaust, all SVT components except the heads, rebuild the MTX with a beefed up diff and stronger axles. I still have much to learn about turbos and the Duratec in general. I still have much to learn about turbos and am reading all I can find, so the turbo project is being pushed further out. The last engine I built was in 2001 - a 302 for my '74 Maverick. Still have all my tools, just haven't felt the itch for a project like this until now.

I'm planning on doing a N/A 3.0 with all SVT goodies in the spring. What I learn about the Contour's idiosyncrasies with that build, I'll apply to the next one, which will be a different car. This way, I can (hopefully) have the best of both worlds.

 

[bhiggs89]

personally I wouldn't recommend a turbo contour as a DD. but thats just me ....

I guess i can see how it's possible. However, i wouldn't advice that as well. A turbo'd tour can be daily driven if u rarely get on it. But if u do race it periodically, it WILL IN FACT break sooner than later. So here's my .02; If u know how to work on cars or are familiar with thses cars, then go ahead. If not, leave it N/A

Agreed, if you build a turboed Contour you've probably done it because you want more power. If you drive it hard every day it will break. It's a really bad idea for a daily driver.

I feel bad for you guys. Whats the point of having a fun car if you are scared to drive it all the time?

Why is it more likely to break? What do you consider breaking? We just recently had to replace an alternator, but it had 100K miles on it so it was bound to stop sometime, and I just consider that regular maintenance.

Of course I don't "race" my car, but I do drive it pretty hard. Full throttle is too much fun not to.

If the car has any sort of a decent tune, properly put together motor/trans, then there should be no reason to worry about anything. Everything else is just regular maintenance that would need to be done turbo or not.

I guess I just don't see the point in spending a bunch of money on a car, and then being afraid that it will break if you drive it a lot.

 

[BAD SVT]

I feel bad for you guys. Whats the point of having a fun car if you are scared to drive it all the time?

Why is it more likely to break? What do you consider breaking? We just recently had to replace an alternator, but it had 100K miles on it so it was bound to stop sometime, and I just consider that regular maintenance.

Of course I don't "race" my car, but I do drive it pretty hard. Full throttle is too much fun not to.

If the car has any sort of a decent tune, properly put together motor/trans, then there should be no reason to worry about anything. Everything else is just regular maintenance that would need to be done turbo or not.

I guess I just don't see the point in spending a bunch of money on a car, and then being afraid that it will break if you drive it a lot.

True. The biggest thing is this: Slapping a turbo on any car with stock internals is generally not a good idea. How do i know? I'm on engine number 3. I had a lotta fun with the first two. Putting my foot down just about everytime i drove it. My pistons got toasted. The first one leaned out due to a vacuum leak, while the second just had disintegrated pistons due to FI & heat. On a N/A car, if u lean out while racing, the car will live. Not so much for a turbo'd tour. If u peg lean while in boost, its adios. And we all know how notorious our cars are for vacuum leaks... How about if the shifter cable comes dislodged? U redline like theres no tomorrow, & POP! Another thing one can ruin is axles. Sure a N/A can break axles. Turbos make more power which means even more stress on the drivetrain. Here's what we're saying; When u turbo a contour, it means u're planning on using it. In my experience, the difference in longevity is the frequency of races. The more u race, the more probability sumthn breaks. Simple really...

 

[random_rodder]

Well, you both are correct. My feeling is that if I build a car, I'm going to drive it. I don't abuse my cars (much ), but, I do like to have fun. Even though it's painful getting in and out of the SVT, I have a BLAST when I'm driving it. Once upon a time, I could have seen myself taking it to the track.

Those days are gone. However, I still have no compunction about showing a ricer his rightful place when necessary :laugh: and having the turbo would afford me the ability to do so more often.

As I said earlier, I plan on building the turbo engine with forged internals. I understand from reading the mountains of info here that the stock internals are good for 400whp. I'm not going to take that chance. When I built the 302 for my Maverick, I allowed myself to be talked into hyperutectic pistons instead of forged; 'almost as strong as forged, but, lighter...' blah, blah, blah...

When the number two cylinder swallowed a screw the vibrated loose from the Holley (the ONLY one that wasn't covered up by the intake), that 'almost as strong as forged' piston shattered into about 12 pieces, the wrist pin punched a hole in the cylinder wall, and my money on that engine was gone. My fault because I skimped in two areas - the pistons and by NOT using blue Loctite on the screws because Holley said not to in their rebuild kit.

Even the best built cars experience failures at some point in time. It's the nature of the beast... :shrug:

 

[BAD SVT]

Well, you both are correct. My feeling is that if I build a car, I'm going to drive it. I don't abuse my cars (much ), but, I do like to have fun. Even though it's painful getting in and out of the SVT, I have a BLAST when I'm driving it. Once upon a time, I could have seen myself taking it to the track.

Those days are gone. However, I still have no compunction about showing a ricer his rightful place when necessary :laugh: and having the turbo would afford me the ability to do so more often.

As I said earlier, I plan on building the turbo engine with forged internals. I understand from reading the mountains of info here that the stock internals are good for 400whp. I'm not going to take that chance. When I built the 302 for my Maverick, I allowed myself to be talked into hyperutectic pistons instead of forged; 'almost as strong as forged, but, lighter...' blah, blah, blah...

When the number two cylinder swallowed a screw the vibrated loose from the Holley (the ONLY one that wasn't covered up by the intake), that 'almost as strong as forged' piston shattered into about 12 pieces, the wrist pin punched a hole in the cylinder wall, and my money on that engine was gone. My fault because I skimped in two areas - the pistons and by NOT using blue Loctite on the screws because Holley said not to in their rebuild kit.

Even the best built cars experience failures at some point in time. It's the nature of the beast... :shrug:

Sounds like ur mind is in the right place. Therefore, i say go for it. I'm @ the same place u are. I race my tour when i feel like having fun or shutting some ricer down quickly. There was a time i yearned for the tracks. Like u, those days are gone for me. I'm 30 now, & i just wanna have fun with the car. And when anything breaks, i've got the knowhow plus the folks here on CEG to see me through