Yep, they are leaking bad. 78,000 miles on them. I guess I should have joined the forum 4 years ago when I bought the car and found out I needed a downpipe to reduce heat. So any opinions? Go single turbo? Rebuild current turbos? Buy high-flow twins? Go with a V8? I know some of you have been in this situation, any opinions? Keep them until I'm losing a quart a week? Funny thing is, they boost like mad, 12psi. And the car still pulls hard.




Petros

 

Go single. If you can get a nice set of the twins used for under $400 then I would do that. Its so much simpler when you go single.
There are some good deals out there at the moment on single turbo setups.

Just my 2 cents...

Anthony

 

There must be a leak from somewhere else.... to leak that much.
Most 3rd gens do leak a little under the secondary turbo housing.
Small drips... Can't see a quart a week. And to have full boost as well.
Must be something else.... best of luck though... jc.

 

Are you sure it's the actual turbos?

I had a leak around that area too that was leaking a ton of oil as well. It was the oil lines into the turbos. I didn't do the work myself, but it was about $90 for the parts and around $1000 for the labor (they needed to drop the engine to get to it).

Mazduh didn't do a bad job, but then ended up screwing up a few other things that I had another shop take care of.

If it really is your turbos, myself, I would look at upgrading the twin turbo. I wouldn't go single, as from what I understand there are a lot of things to replace to make that happen.

Good luck..

 

I took it to my mechanic since I really don't have alot of time to mess with it. I also don't have a garage I can use to take stuff apart and such. Anyway, he told me a while back that the small drip I was getting was coming from the turbo. Now it got worse, it's not a quart a week, but its making a mess at the house and when the engine gets hot and there is oil on the downpipe, it can get smelly and smoky. I will have a look myself this weekend to see if it is the lines. Now my mechanic told me he doesn't think he will have to pull the engine to get them replaced. I'm going to look really hard at this single option, but yes, it would be cheaper to upgrade the twins. If I went single I would want more power, but I would have to remain streetable. Any suggestions?


Petros

 

You might want to list your current mods, so everyone can see where you are current at with you car. My answer is totally about where you are at with mods and how much $$ you have available.

 

My Twins Leak 1qt / week into the intake - But I drive 400+ miles/ week - however an external leak is most likely from one of the oil lines to/from the turbos - Bearing/Shaft seal leaks go up the intake (little or no smoke) or out the exhaust (lots of smoke) - an external leak of nearly 1qt/ week (or even month) would leave lots of drips and make a mess in the engine compartment and under the car
My other car was leaking just about 1pint/ month of Pwr Steering fluid (ATF) and after 6 months there was a big mess on the garage floor and all over the underside of the car

 

Oh yea. I forgot to post my mods. Well, here goes......



BONE STOCK.


Actually, I did install a boost gauge and water temp on the pillar. Also, I changed the head unit and put a 5 channel amp with 2 10" subs in the back. They look sweet through the glass on the hatch. (of course I always have the cargo cover over them)Although most of my music has no boom. And I put the drop-in K&N air filter in the stock box.

Before the turbo leak issue, I was looking into a downpipe and such.


Petros

 

I had this problem, the leak started very small, as in, maybe a drop every few days, then it just got bigger and bigger. By the time it got to 2 drops a day or so (on the garage floor), I got fed up and got them rebuilt. I HATE leaks, I can't stand any kind of leak, no matter how small... Mazdatrix pulled them and sent them to Turbo City, cost $800 for the rebuild, but the housings were still perfect and hey, no leaks, so I can't complain. Boost was perfect before and still is obviously.

 

I'm getting more than just a few drops a day. 2-3" diameter puddle. It used to be just a few drops.



Petros