Turbo oil feed line crack!

AndyBees

Top Post Dawg
Joined
May 27, 2003
Location
Southeast Kentucky
TDI
Silver 2003 Jetta TDI, Silver 2000 Jetta TDI (sold), '84 Vanagon with '02 ALH engine
Comparing Inside Diameter of OE vs SS Braided Hose

I have practically everything it takes to build an ALH engine. I've looked at possibilities for an oil feed tube/line/pipe over to the Turbo for this future engine...:D

Below, are pics of the OE tube vs the eBay SS Braided Hose. Can someone assure me (us) the smaller diameter SS Braided Hose will provide adequate oil for the Turbo?





Below, is a comparison of the SS Braided Hose end at the Turbo (sorry about the focus). It appears the fitting in the Turbo is roughly the same size as the SS Braided Hose inside diameter (ID).



Below, or is the ID of the SS Braided Hose the same size as the fitting in the Turbo?



Experienced hands, tell us what you think!
 

IndigoBlueWagon

TDIClub Enthusiast, Principal IDParts, Vendor , w/
Joined
Aug 16, 2004
Location
South of Boston
TDI
'97 Passat, '99.5 Golf, '02 Jetta Wagon, '15 GSW
I had a conversation with our Garrett tech support rep the other day in reference to a PD turbo that had failed. The reason for failure was "insufficient oil flow" causing excessive heat and eventual turbo failure. What was interesting to me about the conversation was that the Garrett rep talked about oil flow, not pressure. He said that pressure can be fine but if flow is inadequate the turbo will overheat.

We don't carry braided hoses because I could never be sure that they would flow enough oil to support a warranty claim if a car with one has a failed turbo. We know that the OE lines do flow enough oil. And honestly, OE lines, when installed properly, work fine for a long time. I've replaced the oil feed line once in my wagon over the course of 350K miles and 4 turbos. And it hadn't failed. I just thought I wouldn't tempt fate by using the one that came with the car during the most recent turbo install.
 

flee

Veteran Member
Joined
Sep 19, 2011
Location
Chatsworth, CA
TDI
2002 Jetta GLS wagon
Thorp, I agree that a straight fitting on a braided oil line will not restrict the
flow if it maintains the hose's ID. Using high-pressure hydraulic fittings and
adapters with smaller ID's might create a restriction, though.
 

Thabo

New member
Joined
Nov 19, 2020
Location
South Africa
TDI
Audi 1.9 TDI
Wow this post helped me a lot on this day. i just found the same problem on my Audi a4.. after surfing a net i found this. similar crack same place... thank you so much guys.
 

Thabo

New member
Joined
Nov 19, 2020
Location
South Africa
TDI
Audi 1.9 TDI
Today when I left work I saw a puddle of oil under my car! Im glad I noticed it because it was leaking pretty good! I popped the hood and started it up. Instantly noticed a steady drip coming from the oil feed line down near the oil filter. I shut the car off and checked the oil. It was a little low but not much at all. I had about a 10 mile drive to get home. I decided to go for it... I stopped a few times to check the oil and make sure the leak wasnt getting worse. By the time i got home it was down to about 1/2 of the knurled part of the stick. What a mess! So question is.... What are the chances of any serious damage to the engine or turbo? The oil was a little low but not too bad.... and was the turbo starving for oil since it was losing pressure out the crack???? I didnt have many options other than drive it or walk from where I was. No cell service until about 2 miles from my house. So I drove it about 10 miles.... Its all back roads. I kept it under 2000rpm and did not go over 4 or 5psi boost. I put a spare line I had from my other car....cleaned up the mess and topped off the oil. It took about 1 qt. to get it back up to full. I wired wheeled the bad line to see the crack.... I couldnt even see it until I bent it a little to open it up. so you can see how fast you lose oil even from a 1/4" long hair line crack! What a crappy way to start friday night! Is this a common issue on these cars? Now Ive had this happen once on my TDI and once on my Mercedes diesel! what gives!











Thank you you this has been so helpful to my audi a4.
 

AndyBees

Top Post Dawg
Joined
May 27, 2003
Location
Southeast Kentucky
TDI
Silver 2003 Jetta TDI, Silver 2000 Jetta TDI (sold), '84 Vanagon with '02 ALH engine
I just ordered a SS line off ebay. I will post info when it gets here. "wolfsburg tuning" I think was the name.
I know it has been over three years, but you never posted any pics of the eBay SS line. And, you never told us the results (positive or negative).
 

Millennium Falcon

Veteran Member
Joined
Nov 2, 2016
Location
Central pa
TDI
2003 jetta wagon, 1949 willys cj3 ALH TDI swap
I know it has been over three years, but you never posted any pics of the eBay SS line. And, you never told us the results (positive or negative).
Once photo bucket blocked all my photos I lost my motivation. Haha! The oil feed line is still n my car working perfectly. It has really been 50,000 miles on it now with zero issue. I like it so much I put one on my alh swapped Jeep about 3 years ago. Zero problems. Highly recommended.
 

Tdijarhead

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Nov 10, 2013
Location
Lawrenceville PA
TDI
2003 TDI Jetta Daughters Car, 2001 TDI Beetle, Wife’s car, 2005 Golf TDI Mine, all 5 spds
I have three ss lines on three separate diesels. Golf, Jetta, beetle, I bought each from cascadegerman, my Golf has over 100k on the ss line, the other two vehicles have less miles. I like the ss lines so much better than the hard lines. Are they better or worse? Time will tell, definitely easier to route around the engine.
 
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