Smoke coming from bottom of center section... S366
 

Just like the title says I have a 93' with a s366 single turbo and smoke seems to be coming from the bottom of the center section. Oil drain defiantly is not kinked and there is no restrictor in the oil feed, also does not have a oil catch can, no shaft play either, impeller does not spin very fast at idle, motor does not smoke at all so its in the turbo section. Any ideas?

Also the center section is clocked at a slight angle maybe 10º. thats only so my oil drain doesnt look like a upside down ? dont know if that matters. Turbo sounds normal driving no screaches so the bearings must not be shot yet. Anyone have any ideas?

It's an external oil leak. Check your oil feed flange/fitting going into the turbo. More than likely its the oil return flange that's leaking off of the CHRA. An easy way to confirm this is you won't have any smoke for the first minute of the car being started up. If the smoke is immediate from a cold start-up it's most likely then a manifold downpipe leak.

Isolate the problem and you'll find your solution...

If there are no obvious leaks by the flanges I would say its another bad/failed BW turbo. how long have you had it and how much boost does it see ? BW turbos have not been too reliable lately especially when pushed.

Hearsay?

BW turbos are VERY reliable. The only times I have seen them fail quickly is serious track use, and thats because journal bearings dont handle the loading that ball bearings will. The turbos must be reliable because many come from industrial and agricultural applications, and they must withstand countless hours of use, many in less than ideal conditions.

Its shooting oil out of the cold side... so guess a rebuild or a replacement is in need? If im replacing this turbo im going garrett, cause this is the 2nd BW turbo in under 7k miles im replacing.

Can you post some pictures? What kind of oil pressure are you running? Maybe I can help you narrow down the issue.

Im in the same boat as you, as well as a few others I know personally that have gone thru more then 2 each. With decent boost 25+ on a big turbo which is where its efficiency begins basically they have been lasting a few passes at the track,, from my own experience as well as a handful of others.

My next turbo is definitely a garrett. Where did you purchase the turbo from ? Im convinced that either they are not getting assembled/balanced correctly or BW is just plain junk when not used in a truck.

25psi on what turbo and motor combination? 25psi isnt a definite number, like lb/min. 25psi on an improperly sized turbo can be running the turbo near its limits. Over-speeding will quickly pull a turbo apart, especially a journal bearing.

Properly building a turbo system is key. When multiple people in a group are having issues while most others seem to have trouble free use, it usually says something about what the small group is doing. Not to be rude, but when I see it happening its usually something the owners are doing wrong.

Now, there is another factor. If someone is buying a slightly modified turbo rather than an off the shelf unit, the problem can be with the person doing the work.