Miata Mailing List: December 1999, Message #554

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Rick:

I was going to send this personal because I've heard that sometimes the net
members don't like to hear bad news.  I guess this will be a good test.

I have been through THREE aerodyne turbochargers.  The wastegate, or pop-off
will fail on random occasions and the turbo will overboost.  Something about
a design flaw that the iris sometimes sticks(???).  It always manages to
happen when I am distracted (such as merging onto the beltway).  It
eventually overworks and blows the turbo.

I get no satisfaction from Bell or Aerodyne, since it outlasts their limited
warranty.  They didn't even a discount on the rebuild, even though the
problem was there since day one.  Since they use a custom header
connection(?), it was cheaper for me to pay the rebuild fees, than pay full
fees for a new system.  Hindsight being 20/20, it would have been cheaper to
go with a different, higher quality system.

Having said that, I love having a turbo.  I have an electronic controller
that allows me to have three settings on the boost.  Whenever I want to
remind myself why I have the turbo, I run on the lowest setting, about 3
psi.  That makes my 1.6 competitive with the 1.8s.  I just not as much fun
and I don't leave it there very long.  Also, the difference between the 6
psi that most superchargers run and 9 or 10 psi is electrifying.

When I start over with an M2, I will definitely go again for a turbo
upgrade, I'll just be careful where I get it.

Good Luck

Ron Wyett
'92T
Pocket Rocket

----- Original Message -----
From: <DPAElectricalS@aol.com>
To: "Multiple recipients of list" <miata@realbig.com>
Sent: Sunday, December 05, 1999 9:58 AM
Subject: Turbo


> Could anybody recommend a turbo system for a '99. If possible list pros
and
> cons of having such a system.
>
> Thanks
>
> Rick
>
>