im looking at getting a used rx6 turbo but i heard that they arent rebuildable for some reason. i would think they are but any insight on this from others would be appreciated. Also, does anyone know where i can get a ss manifold for that particular turbo. i tried looking but couldnt find anything. thanks

justin

 

There are many posts about the RX6 turbo and its rebuildability (*cough* search!). But here's the short answer: it is basically not rebuildable by any shops in the U.S. I called a bunch of different shops and no one could replace a damaged turbine wheel. However, I was able to get some minor turbine damage trimmed off my existing turbine wheel by TEC for a reasonable cost (~$250-ish). It worked fine after it was serviced by TEC.

-Max

 

yeah i did search *cough back* lol ive been part of this forum for a while just under a new name but thats where i was getting confused about ( not being able to get rebuilt here in the U.S. So if i bought a turbo with a few broken fins those would be able to be rebuilt? also if i wanted to put ceramic ball bearings would it be possible? I know the hp reads are reliably at around 350-380rwhp but im looking for 400 so i thought a rebuilt rx6 with trimmed turbine would put me at that number. thanks for the help max!

justin

 

Depends on which RX6 it is on how much power you can crank out of it, RX6A or RX6B, the B has the bigger hot side i belive. There are probably shops in AU or JP that could fix it. But thats a lot of shipping to do.

 

"a few broken fins" is probably not rebuilable in the U.S. unless you mean some tiny (no bigger than ~1mm) chunks. You can't get a new turbine in the U.S., or at least I was not able to get a new one when I was researching a rebuild for my RX6. What I was able to do was to have some material removed from my original, broken turbine to make it work again. I have seen posts from people that think I got a new turbine, so I'll say that again to make is absolutely clear: I did not get a new turbine for my RX6. I had TEC cut the damaged portion of my turbine off (resulting in a smaller major diameter by about 2mm) to make it work again. I believe they also rebalanced the rotating assembly after that. It worked fine for 20K miles or so after that until I blew my engine for reasons unrelated to the turbo.

Now, "not rebuildable in the U.S." does not mean "not rebuildable". Perhaps you could send it to another country to have it rebuilt. There is nothing magic about the turbo, and I am sure it can be rebuilt if parts are available.

The RX6 has stainless steel ball bearings. Short of throwing apex seals at it, it is bullet proof and spools very quickly. I don't see any advantage to running ceramic ball bearings (which, in contrast, have been associated with turbos with poor reliability -- even though I doubt it is the bearing material that caused the problems). Why change?

-Max

 

thanks for the input max. Did you notice any difference after the turbine was reworked ie any power loss or spool response? thanks

justin

 

I bought the kit with the damage, so I never got to drive it before it was fixed. I don't have any comparison info.

-Max

 

You think the turbo, which is bb but has some fin damage, is worth $225. Mind you ill have to find someone who has the manifold and ill have to get all the other accessories to complete the kit. thanks

justin

 

anyone here know if its worth it? let me know. thanks

justin