Switched turbos today

[Rabbit TD]

I put the original turbo on today to see how it worked since I didn't think think this stage 1 t3 was doing much and might be too big or other problems with it.  I just lapped the valve on the old t3 and stuck it on and it made all the difference in the world.  Just like they say the smaller ones build boost sooner and more also in this instance, I've seen it go to 10 so far and I still have the factory fuel setting on it with the N/A pump waiting to put the re-sealed T/D back on again.  I never got more than 5 out of the other turbo and this one feels way better all around.  This thing is starting to act like it's supposed to now and has lots more power all around than before and makes it a lot more fun to drive than before.  I'm not looking for maximum horsepower, maby 80 or so sometime down the road and I want to keep the mileage up and the smoke down to a reasonadble level, I already had my fill of smoke with the N/A engine. 
    I can't wait to get the T/D pump back on.

[Lazarus]

Feel great?
I took me 3 used turbo to get on that worked. When I finally did, WOW. Just put my intercooler and boost pump on last week!!
Must have given me 20 more horses, changed my life. The old west pulls the hills now!

David
81 diesel rabbit pickup
82 diesel westy

[carrizog60]

whats was the difference on that "stage" 1 turbo to the regular T3?

[Rabbit TD]

whats was the difference on that "stage" 1 turbo to the regular T3?

I bought this thing from a place online called mjmturbos.  I knew very little at the time about turbochargers and such and he said a stage 1 would give me a little more than stock and not affect mileage or anything.  I agreed and it is an exact replacement t3 like I have with a bigger compressor wheel on it but I think it is way bigger than what it should be for my use and shouldn't be called a stage 1.  I didn't even know enough at the time about these things to ask what size wheel it was but it is a good half inch or more bigger just looking inside the inlet.  I have a feeling it is a t3-t4 hybrid possibly.  He said he machined the housing to make it work but it's either too big or the valve is leaking or both and it never made over 5 psi.  It has that can type wastegate actuator on it that you have to pretty much destroy to get apart to lapp the valve which I will probably do and save it for later experimenting.  As for now this little factory one with all these miles on it is 10 times better as far as driveability and I don't even have the T/D pump on yet, I'm curious how it will be on my mountain pulls tomorrow.  I wouldn't trade the old one for 10 of these things like I bought, I kind of feel the valve might be bleeding off boost because of not being able to dissasemble it to lapp it and I doubt he touched it since replacement actuators like those arent available.  But at these lower levels you don't need the wastegage anyhow from what I've read so far and people seem to have no trouble with levels twice that much so I'm not too worried from what I will be doing with one

[Rabbit TD]

Feel great?
I took me 3 used turbo to get on that worked. When I finally did, WOW. Just put my intercooler and boost pump on last week!!
Must have given me 20 more horses, changed my life. The old west pulls the hills now!

David
81 diesel rabbit pickup
82 diesel westy

What do you think the reason was that some of them were bad, leaking wastegate valves possibly or bad bearings and seals.  The one I just started using on my Rabbit is off the 83 Jetta engine I rebuilt for it and the odometer in the Jetta showed 432,000 and this thing works fine but I did lapp the valve but it doessn't smoke at all.  It possibly isn't the original one though.
I've been thinking about an intercooler too but at the lower boost levels 3-8 does it make much of a difference or worth the effort, I don't know much about this part.  I have noticed on a hotter day though that I didn't have the same boost in the evening that I did in the morning when it was 60 compared to 85 at 4:00 that evening, I guess that's when the intercooler helps even down at the lower end.