Wanting to turbo my car, but....
 

Before I start, I am just planning ahead right now, I still have to pay off my car before I do anything to it. So I will not be buying a turbo kit any time soon until about a year. I am making this post so I can look back and reference to it when the time comes. I have been researching as much as I can and I have used the search feature and Google as well. The 2 biggest issue I been wondering is emissions and tuning.


I been looking at this turbo kit, Full Blown is the name. It's a turbo kit I really been interested in getting. The problem where I live at we have to pass emissions. Almost every turbo kit I've looked at for this car removes the cat converters.

I spoke to a FullBlown vender here and he said they can make a downpipe with a cat in it but that doesn't guarantee that I'll pass when the time comes, hell what about that OBD test.

I really don't wanna supercharge my car, I have nothing against SCs I just don't like them as they should only be in V6s and up (Yes, my opinion I know)

So I'm asking, what are some of the work arounds you guys do?

Another topic I would like to ask you guys, is the tuning process. Regardless of a turbo or supercharger I'm still going to need a tune. From what I've read I have to take my car to a local tuner in my area and they put it on the dyno and tune it from there. What I don't understand is what is a good tune compared to a bad tune, and why are they so expensive on kits like the basemap for example. I've read a thread here says something like "Anyone blown a stock boosted motor yet" and I read a lot of posts there and from what I'm seeing our motors were blown because of a bad tune.

I'm not going to keep typing because this post was already long enough as it is but you all probably all get the idea.

Good job on the research.

First issue I see is your concern for emissions. To the best of my knowledge, there is not a single turbo kit out there (including ours) that would pass strict emissions or is CARB legal. Not only do you need to keep your OEM cats, but the tune will need to be set up correctly as well. I understand your issues with superchargers, but they will offer everything you are asking. All supercharger kits such as the Sprintex, Kraftwerks, Jackson Racing, Vortech will allow you to use your stock header and front pipe with the OEM cats, and most of those kits also offer a CARB legal tune as well.

As far as knowing a bad tune? Well there are a lot of variables, but the big ones are running too rich, or worse, too lean, poorly set up ignition timing that could cause detonation, starting and stalling issues, and the list goes on.

I would say that a properly catted downpipe and properly placed O2 sensors could allow you to pass emissions testing. You don't have to have a dyno tune, but you need a good tune which means you need to datalog it and have corrections made to the tune based on your setup. A good tune is worth any amount of money or any distance you have to drive to get it. I would say making the drive to HRI Tuning would be worth it for you.

Guess takes a year to plan out what you want. By then there will be new products, new research, new lots of things. A year out sounds like a long time. Good luck

Also, find out what is needed to pass emissions in your state. Modding turbos and emissions is a big thing on the VW side of things. ECU tunes, down pipes, upgraded turbos are all options but they mess with your car's readiness codes or can cause CEL's.

Some tuners have tunes to turn off the CEL but they merely mask the code on the ECU but it is still there being reported on OBD-2.

Depending on your tune and state you could play with O2 sensors as mentioned but it's tricky or you can try some of the more drastic things that some VW guys do like swapping downpipes back to stock when state inspections come up.

Have you ever heavily modified a car before? You need to be prepared for it...if you owe any money on the car I wouldn't even think about a turbo.

this.


In the mean time, you can pick up supporting mods! Suspension, bushings, oil coolers and other "bolt on" items

He mentions he is planning ahead once his car is paid off......t'was the first sentence.

No cat? Spark plug defouler on the secondary oxygen sensor should take care of the code.

I said before he even thinks about it, not does it....I am pushing him to really think about whether or not he wants to do this. One little mishap with the tune and pop, time for a new engine. I'm not saying I WOULDN'T do it, I am just encouraging him to think about the negatives. I boosted an N/A platform before and it caused a lot of headaches, especially ones I didn't want to sort out when it was snowing outside.

OP also mentions just 'going to a local tuner', where I would caution that as well. I wouldn't bring this platform to just anyone, tuners usually specialize.

I don't know if you're messing with me, or insulting me because I'm asking questions. I'm not mad at your or anything it's just stuff written through text online gets blown out of proportion. I was just hoping you'd leave some feedback if you come back to this thread since you drive some BAD ASS cars lol.

Yes, emissions is a big thing for me. I don't wanna dive into the turbo route like some of my friends did and now they gotta figure out how to pass emissions now.

I probably should add this to my OP post but I did look at some SC kits, (Vortech, Jackson, and Innovate) Yeah ironically as much as I don't like superchargers. I probably will have to go this route.

This is the part where it was a bit harder for me to understand. So let's say I do install my turbo kit or SC kit. I was told that I can't drive it anywhere because I need to get it tuned. I read somewhere about the turbo is that. I'm fine as long as I don't hit boost. So maybe you can educate me on this subject. Regarding turbo and Superchargers.

Most turbo kits will come with a basemap. This is a tune designed to safely get you to a tuner to get a proper tune for the car.

The superchargers that are out there for our cars are pretty decent. They can't match a turbo for all-out power production, but you can get 275-285 whp without too much trouble. And with less heat underhood, as well.

More importantly, a few of the supercharger manufacturers have CARB-legal kits that come with a tune already. So hypothetically you could get the Jackson Racing CARB-legal kit, install it or have it installed, flash the ECU, and drive out with much more power without needing dyno time. Granted, a good tuner and a dyno can fine-tune the base map, but you could still drive out on just the base map if you wanted to.

Since you have a year before you move on FI, you should look at supporting mods. Engine and drivetrain bushings, maybe an oil cooler, wheels and tires, suspension, etc...