Separating ALH turbo

Any tips on separating the turbo from exhaust manifold on alh? Pretty rusty, especially behind where the actuator mounted. I scraped, I scribed the parting line, I sprayed and brushed. Hammered along the manifold casting. Put it in a vise and sprayed inside with penetrant, so far no luck.
Any trick I am missing? I would like to send it to be rebuilt or for a core exchange for a rebuilt. Thanks

Try some heat and a BFH...

Ahh...a Michigander.
Yeah, not many that have faced a few winters come apart without serious torch heat to the circumference of the turbo housing. Don't hammer on the aluminum.

JETaah said:

Ahh...a Michigander.
Yeah, not many that have faced a few winters come apart without serious torch heat to the circumference of the turbo housing. Don't hammer on the aluminum.

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ran out of oxygen last night, hammer on exhaust manifold to try to vibrate some penetrant in there. .106 end play, loose radially, but not making noise or removing metal that I can tell. Actuator did not move smoothly. Just thinking it might be a good idea to put a rebuilt in while it's apart. Nearly 300k. Donna's has about 230k.
Yeah, salt city usa. Do you make it to Kirk's gtg in Cedartucky?

Pretty sure they can't rebuild the VNT mechanism.

You need heat, lots of it. Once it gets to the right temp the center section will fall right out.

Thanks for the replies, will pick up a fresh tank of oxygen tomorrow and put the heat to the manifold, I'll get it out. Maybe the ring and a cleaning will do. Has .106" end play, and loose. But the looseness mat just be pivoting on the bearing, not radial slop, not sure.
Vanes will touch the bore, but they look OK, and the bore doesn't look like it is getting any significant contact.

Time for new. You got yer money's​ worth out of it @ 300k miles. If you can measure .106" axial play and the compressor wheel can touch the side (I think that is what you meant, yes?) then is it really worth the trouble to take it apart and then reinstall it? Not in my opinion.

JETaah said:

Time for new. You got yer money's​ worth out of it @ 300k miles. If you can measure .106" axial play and the compressor wheel can touch the side (I think that is what you meant, yes?) then is it really worth the trouble to take it apart and then reinstall it? Not in my opinion.

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.106" endplay, with radial looseness. About 210,000k on this turbo. We get turbos rebuilt locally for the shop, I will take the center housing in and see what they can do for me. Dutch Auto Parts and also a shop in Georgia, I believe, have been recommended on this forum. I agree about the useful life being derived out of it. Might just be one of those, "pay now or really pay later" moments

Maybe you will have better luck with getting the rotating assembly rebuilt.

A customer brought over a rebuilt from a local rebuilder...can't remember the name now but, upon looking closely, the compressor wheel could touch one side of the housing leaving a mark and not the opposite side of the housing which in my estimation meant that something was cock-eyed.

The other thing is a problem that can occur on the hot side where the vanes float on top of a ring that acts as a side wall for the exhaust through the vane mechanism. Many times, when the vanes jam, it is because there is rust scale under that ring causing it to heave and interfere with the vane movement. Sometimes the ring is loose enough to just fall out but in my experience it is usually pressed in there quite firmly and there is not a lot of good ways to grab it to remove it so that you can clean underneath. Maybe heating it would do the trick...don't know...might warp it.

If it is your own car maybe it is worth a shot.

Cleaned mine out last year, heated it up until the center section fell out, pulled out the ring and about several pounds of rust. Put it back together and its been perfect since.

Heat is absolutely necessary though. It needs to get hot, I had it almost glowing before it let go.

We do a bunch of these and we've found a process that generally works. Turbo in a vise. Cartridge upwards, two guys, two hammers, and two long blunt chisels banging on cast iron.

If the two guys bang the hammers "in time" it works out evenly and doesn't break the casting.

Heat helps but is not the final solution. The "two guys" is the final solution.

It actually spins fine, and I have seen turbos at work that will touch the wall if pushed toward it, and not mark the wall when in service. But still, with the upgrades I have maybe I should upgrade the turbo also. RC2plus with 502's, 11mm pump, short shifter, lead foot.

We do a bunch of these and we've found a process that generally works. Turbo in a vise. Cartridge upwards, two guys, two hammers, and two long blunt chisels banging on cast iron.

Where do place the chisels, on the O.D. of the cavity where the cartridge sits? I don't imagine you want to get near the parting surfaces

Always hit the part you want loose (piece not clamped in the vise). Blunt chisels or drifts, even blocks of wood if you're real concerned about cracking something.
You don't need to hit especially hard, just get two people, have them tap on the vise (or something) to get in rhythm. Then strike the piece.

jmodge said:

Where do place the chisels,

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when you have it of with the cartridge up you bang up on cast iron not aluminum. Its obvious.

CoolAirVw said:

when you have it of with the cartridge up you bang up on cast iron not aluminum. Its obvious.

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Finally made time at work on lunch, heated one side with a rosebud and it pulled out. Do you recommend cleaning the vanes still assembled in the exhaust manifold? I pulled the ring, cleaned it and the area behind it.
I noticed the allen bolts, but am reluctant to remove those if there is a way around it.
Going to check a local rebuilder for a cartridge.

You've come this far. They are usually torx holding the vane assembly on a Garrett and they will come out without a lot of fuss. If it does not feel like it's letting loose, give it a little turn in the tighten direction. Sometimes that will crack it.
Check out DBW's tutorial in the how-to's sticky in TDI 101.
http://forums.tdiclub.com/showthread.php?p=1340914

A couple of days before I intend to separate the CHAR from the manifold, I spray the unit with Bolt Buster or something similar.... continue to spray two or three times per day. They usually separate fairly easy, even those that look really bad.

Here are some pics of before and after ..











Lots more pics at this link: http://pics.tdiclub.com/showgallery.php?cat=5302

great thread!!!! Now I see what coolair meant about chisels. I was thinking hitting the outside of the casting bowl the cartridge sits in. Chart answers endplay questions too. Definately replacing cartridge. Thank you much. I won't worry about plugging mine back up. Donna is another story, I have to take her car and hammer it from time to time.

Heading over to pick up my cartridge from Diesel Injection Service, Thanks to all for the help. This is a great site for info, and hats off to those who maintain the forum. VERY GENEROUS.
I would like to share a conversation I had at DIS. Steve had noted the excessive shaft endplay and stated this can be caused by plugged exhaust causing to much backpressure, or plugged air filters. I did not have him elaborate, but I assume a plugged intake would draw the turbine toward the same direction a plugged exhaust would, against the thrust surface of the bearing.
Just a tidbit for those who may not be aware of that. So keep those intakes clean. Also, though I have seen dyno tests that show no marked improvement in power by low restrictive exhausts and intakes, it may be better on the longevity of a turbo? Just food for thought.

post up some pics of that cartridge. Chinese?

CoolAirVw said:

post up some pics of that cartridge. Chinese?

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No pics, I don't buy chinese, brand new Garrett that was sealed and sitting on their shelf. They do heavy equipment and trucks, which is what I work on for a living. They rebuild our turbos and gave me a great once in a lifetime deal. OTD with gaskets, $276