"I Made My Turbo Into a Hybrid"

Nevada_TDI

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Aug 17, 2008
Location
Reno, sort of...
TDI
2001 Jetta TDI
I am starting this thread as a piggy-back to, "VNT-17 Installation-How long does it take?" To make a long story short I mentioned that my old, dead, VNT-15 is now a 17/56, some members were interested in the details.

There is Youtube video of my actual turbo after being upgraded: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qPgFAL6U0tA
I am not financially or otherwise affiliated with their company, in case anybody was wondering. 2300:46
 
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jimbote

Certified Volkswagen Nut
Joined
Jul 10, 2006
Location
spiral arm, milky way (aka central NC)
TDI
Tacoma 4x4 converted to TDI
hey Nevada....I'm curious as to how they used the vnt15 turbine housing for the 17 turbine...isn't the 17 turbine larger on both the inducer and exducer?....seems this would require re-machining the hot side housing and possibly changing the vnt assembly ....cool turbo BTW and I'm also interested in the billet wheels as an option for repairing a vnt17 and a 17/22 i have on the shelf....
 

sledhead999

Member
Joined
Mar 1, 2016
Location
UT
TDI
2004 Jetta GL TDI Auto
Is it possible to take a stock VNT17, and have the compressor housing bored out to accept the 17/22 of the hybrid? Or do they use a different housing with the bigger wheel?
 

Nevada_TDI

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Aug 17, 2008
Location
Reno, sort of...
TDI
2001 Jetta TDI
Jimbote, the 17 internals drop right into a 15 exhaust manifold, I learned that one from Kerma, the "Stealth 17" came in two versions: a 17 compressor wheel on a 15 shaft (they are the same size) or a 17 cartridge into said manifold. In order to make a "Stealth 17"; theses are old terms I know, please forgive me, the 15 compressor cover inlet had to be opened up very slightly and the 17 wheel would "fit". I emphasize "fit" as it would fit but the shape of the compressor wheels are not the same and there would be almost 0.040 of clearance in the compressor cover when the factory spec is 0.008-0.012. So yes it would move more air, but in theory it would create a lot more heat as it was trying to create boost and for lack of a better phrase: It wouldn't seal the compressed air from backing up into the housing from the charge tube. I hope that makes sense, if not there some links I can find and post. As far as billet wheels go there is a giant selection of them available, talk to the machinists.
I need to mention up front there are some differences between my 17/56 and a "standard" 17/56, but let me start at the beginning:

The gt1749vb is the "stock" turbo that came on PD engines
The gt1749vb is made into a 17/22 by upgrading the compressor wheel to 52mm
The gt2052v is a 20 series and is not a plug-and-play option
The gtb1756vk also a 20 series has a 56mm compressor wheel, once again not plug-and-play.

IIRC, a 20 series compressor housing can be made to fit the 15/17 exhaust manifold to also make a 17/56 and with a little elbow grease the stock rubber hose will slide onto the 20 outlet.

I hope this info will help answer your questions, and if any of it is wrong, please PM me and I will fix it.

At present, I am still running my Stage 3, 18 PSI tune for .205 nozzles.
I currently have my 17/56 turbo and .230 nozzles installed; I set my timing to "advanced but within spec" according to Vag-Com, and my IQ is set to 3.8 and she runs like a beast compared to before and I am sure after the new Stage 4 tune I will need new underpants after the test drive.
Due to the 17 cartridge in my turbo, 26 PSI will be the max for my tune If I had "real" 17/56 (with the 20 internals) 31 PSI all day long should not be a problem.

I am sure there will be those that read this thread and want to talk about boost creep and the difference in size between the turbine and compressor puts extra load on the shaft... Here is my polite request: if you have done exactly what I have done as an upgrade feel free to comment, but if you haven't please don't sabotage this thread with conjecture.
I didn't have $850.00 to buy a new turbo, and another $100.00 or so to adapt a standard VNT-17 to my stock plumbing and pay for shipping too.
If your cartridge is still good (mine was not) the cost to upgrade is minimal but you will need to talk to Ian at TLA.



In conclusion, will my 17/56 flow the same as a "real" 17/56, probably not but I already know that. I am not trying to get 230 hp out of my engine. I live at 4600' elev and I wanted a turbo I didn't have to spin to it's maximum RPM to provide sufficient boost to occasionally toast a ricer. 1200 171
 
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ALL4AMD

Veteran Member
Joined
Jul 9, 2012
Location
Dunbar WV
TDI
02 Jetta GLS
Jimbote, the 17 internals drop right into a 15 exhaust manifold, I learned that one from Kerma, the "Stealth 17" came in two versions: a 17 compressor wheel on a 15 shaft (they are the same size) or a 17 cartridge into said manifold. In order to make a "Stealth 17"; theses are old terms I know, please forgive me, the 15 compressor cover inlet had to be opened up very slightly and the 17 wheel would "fit". I emphasize "fit" as it would fit but the shape of the compressor wheels are not the same and there would be almost 0.040 of clearance in the compressor cover when the factory spec is 0.008-0.012. So yes it would move more air, but in theory it would create a lot more heat as it was trying to create boost and for lack of a better phrase: It wouldn't seal the compressed air from backing up into the housing from the charge tube. I hope that makes sense, if not there some links I can find and post. As far as billet wheels go there is a giant selection of them available, talk to the machinists.
I need to mention up front there are some differences between my 17/56 and a "standard" 17/56, but let me start at the beginning:
The gt1749vb is the "stock" turbo that came on PD engines
The gt1749vb is made into a 17/22 by upgrading the compressor wheel to 52mm
The gt2052v is a 20 series and is not a plug-and-play option
The gtb1756vk also a 20 series has a 56mm compressor wheel, once again not plug-and-play.
IIRC, a 20 series compressor housing can be made to fit the 15/17 exhaust manifold to also make a 17/56 and with a little elbow grease the stock rubber hose will slide onto the 20 outlet.
I hope this info will help answer your questions, and if any of it is wrong, please PM me and I will fix it.
At present, I am still running my Stage 3, 18 PSI tune for .205 nozzles.
I currently have my 17/56 turbo and .230 nozzles installed; I set my timing to "advanced but within spec" according to Vag-Com, and my IQ is set to 3.8 and she runs like a beast compared to before and I am sure after the new Stage 4 tune I will need new underpants after the test drive.
Due to the 17 cartridge in my turbo, 26 PSI will be the max for my tune If I had "real" 17/56 (with the 20 internals) 31 PSI all day long should not be a problem.
I am sure there will be those that read this thread and want to talk about boost creep and the difference in size between the turbine and compressor puts extra load on the shaft... Here is my polite request: if you have done exactly what I have done as an upgrade feel free to comment, but if you haven't please don't sabotage this thread with conjecture.
I didn't have $850.00 to buy a new turbo, and another $100.00 or so to adapt a standard VNT-17 to my stock plumbing and pay for shipping too.

If your cartridge is still good (mine was not) the cost to upgrade is minimal but you will need to talk to Ian at TLA.
In conclusion, will my 17/56 flow the same as a "real" 17/56, probably not but I already know that. I am not trying to get 230 hp out of my engine. I live at 4600' elev and I wanted a turbo I didn't have to spin to it's maximum RPM to provide sufficient boost to occasionally toast a ricer. 1200 171
You don't need an extra $100 as fixmyvw.com includes the adaptor and I rotated the housing 90 degrees when I put my VNT17 in.
 

Nevada_TDI

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Aug 17, 2008
Location
Reno, sort of...
TDI
2001 Jetta TDI
I'm guessing at these prices

If you don't mind me asking what does one of these turbos run(ballpark) to be upgraded?
If your cartridge is good then you need a compressor wheel, a high speed balance and the appropriate machining; maybe $300.00 and if you want the cartridge re-built maybe $400.00.

These are guessing prices off of the top of my head, I do not know what each of their services actually cost.
 

Nevada_TDI

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Aug 17, 2008
Location
Reno, sort of...
TDI
2001 Jetta TDI
You don't need an extra $100 as fixmyvw.com includes the adaptor and I rotated the housing 90 degrees when I put my VNT17 in.
$849.00 plus tax is $916 plus shipping makes the total about $960. I got a bigger more efficient turbo for less than half that price.

Hey, I'm glad you had the full retail price available to spend on a turbo, I did not. That is what this thread is about.
 
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ALL4AMD

Veteran Member
Joined
Jul 9, 2012
Location
Dunbar WV
TDI
02 Jetta GLS
$849.00 plus tax is $916 plus shipping makes the total about $960. I got a bigger more efficient turbo for less than half that price.

Hey, I'm glad you had the full retail price available to spend on a turbo, I did not. That is what this thread is about.
$849 with adaptor plus free shipping and a warranty and I had to use a credit card. At least a month ago it was.
 

Nevada_TDI

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Aug 17, 2008
Location
Reno, sort of...
TDI
2001 Jetta TDI
Thank you

I am impressed with your skills and that is a cool setup.
Thank you, I appreciate your comment. To be honest, everything I know about TDI's I have learned from this site and the people on it.
I have learned some valuable lessons along the way by acting first and thinking later, instead of thinking first and acting later.
I am a full-time student and have a serious need for my car to start every time I turn the key, and not to need to spend large sums of money that I really don't have.
I have had bad luck with (3) VNT-15 turbos over the last 7 years, and I am planning on not buying any more turbos for a very long while.
 

Nevada_TDI

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Aug 17, 2008
Location
Reno, sort of...
TDI
2001 Jetta TDI
So here we are 4 plus years later...I keep the boost controlled at 22PSI and she still runs like a beast. A couple of weeks ago off of the stoplight a 3/4 Ford Power Stroke was next to me, so I blipped the horn and nailed the throttle, he nailed his and he did not catch up to me until 80 MPH. Granted, the distance got closer as we sped up but initially I had seriously gapped him. Disclaimer: this was not done on a regulated highway, so no laws were broken.
 
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