alh build advice

I currently am in the process of just finishing up swapping my freshly rebuilt aaz into my Tacoma. its got:
arp head and main studs
holset he221w turbo with 5.5cm housing
giles pump
modified g60 intake

Now before even driving it I know I want more power and efficiency from a tdi. I built the aaz for a samurai which is kind of limited on the power it can handle. Plus my giles pump was built for a smaller turbo and I know its not capable enough to take advantage of the holset. The $1400 giles wants for a rebuild I could get another motor setup and just sell what I have now and get the cost to swap everything recovered, plus it still wouldn't make as much power or be as fuel efficient. Now that its in a heavier and stronger Tacoma I want more from it.

Tomorrow I am picking up an alh with 256,000km on it. Its missing the injectors, turbo and ecu, but it comes with the wiring harness and an 11mm pump and its fairly cheap. My plan is to do a quick and dirty "rebuild" over the winter. Basically just rings and bearings and carry over the arp studs from the aaz if everything checks into spec. Possibly a port and polish of the head.

I'd like to keep it electronic. What sensors would I want to keep and what can I delete (along with emissions) from the stock harness?

Now here's the fun part and what im thinking I want to do. Compound turbos with a k03 and my he221w. The truck is a rock crawler and the faster I can get it to spool the better itll push around heavy tires.

What size injector nozzles would I want to run with this setup?


How much power can these handle reliably without investing a ton into rods and pistons?


I know my aaz cam is more aggressive then the alh cam. I've read aftermarket cams can cause the valves to hit the pistons. Is the aaz cam safe/worthwhile to carry over?

I need to read more into compounds but whats the best way to set them up? Would an external waste gate between the turbos be ideal to limit boost from the k03 and reduce backpressure? Can Malone or the other tuners build tunes appropriate for compounds or would that be more of a local dyno tuner kind of thing?

GTD1752VRK, Race520 or near equivalent, tune. Start with this and go from there.

Well i already have a brand new he221w so buying another expensive turbo and manifolds and ditching this seems like a pointless waste of money. K03's are cheap as hell and welding up some piping to mount a second turbo and an external waste gate really isnt that hard.

K03 and my he221 should spool almost instantly and be good for 35psi which should put out quite a bit of power. Ive been working with idis for the last 5+ years. Trying to expand my knowledge into the tdi world and would rather use what i already have then just copy what everyone else does.

Here we go...

Alright I assume this gets asked a lot and isn't taken seriously.

How about I simplify this.

How much power can the alh stock internals (with arp head and main studs) handle reliably?


What injectors would be ideal to reach those power levels with an 11mm pump?

Does the AAZ cam cause the valves to hit pistons?

Stock ALH can handle 500Nm.

I would go for 0.280 nozzles.

Use stock cam and upgrade later if you need more flow.

Instead of asking how much power an ALH will handle ask yourself what power you want to make. Once you have a goal then do what is necessary for that power out look. Your main problem with the bottom end will be connecting rods. A friend of mine is making around 220-225hp with his ALH on 35+psi and it’s like a ticking time bomb.

There are a bunch of threads on here with answers to your questions already too. Hope this helps sir.

Yucca said:

Stock ALH can handle 500Nm.
I would go for 0.280 nozzles.
Use stock cam and upgrade later if you need more flow.

Click to expand...

This.
Engine has torque limit in strength of connecting rods, pistons and cylinder head clamping. Spin it faster and maintain same torque, you get more HP.
Pay the extra to deck the block and head while it is apart. I didn't and had to take it all apart again. Cut the piston bowls with a wood router to reduce compression somewhat, just remove the lip of the bowl and radius the edge. Just do it all the first time.

I've never messed around with a diesel k03 in person, from the 1.8t ones I know they're pretty small and generally pretty old. You can run the stock internal wastegate, but you will outrun it very quickly with no way for the computer to know that has happened. You'll also be limited to running it as sequential compounds rather than true compounds, as you can't easily run pressure on both sides of the wastegate actuator like you can with an external. Weld the gate and run a chinese 37mm external. LP can run internal gate and outrun it with no troubles as the HP external gate will still maintain a reasonable pressure ratio across the HP.

You'll need a tuner that knows how to work the limiter maps, as you'll have enough airflow down low to break stuff pretty easily, you limit this through limiting fuel just as you would with a mechanical engine by limiting boost.

I dont have a specific power goal. I want as much as it can handle reliably without investing a ton of money on h beams and getting pistons modified. If my financial' situation changes in the next few months that will probably be an option but at this point in time i kind of just want to build it to what it can handle without breaking ****. Are those Chinese h beam rods on ebay that are super cheap any good? 200hp would be plenty. The Truck is for offroading, going into extremely remote places tow trucks cannot reach so reliability is the primary concern,with power and efficiency right behind it.

I already have the aaz cam. It's from a new head with maybe 150km on it at this point. Ideally I'd just swap the cams and sell my aaz with the alh cam so i wont have to track another one down. Its more aggressive, the only question about using it is if it causes the valves to hit the pistons?

The he221w can push 35psi fairly easily. Im more after quick spool without it falling on its face. I'm pretty sure pushing my turbo to its limits is enough to break stuff, so the question really is what can I make without blowing stuff up. Sounds like 200hp might be its limit?

I was planning on engine to he221w to external wastegate to the k03. K03 would be set for roughly 10psi and fed into the he221. Once the 221 spools the external wastegate would just bypass the k03 to reduce back pressure. Tuning would either be a malone stage 5 custom or just a local dyno tuner if i can find one locally that specializes in tdis.

Thank you for your replies the information is appreciated

Runninwild said:

The he221w can push 35psi fairly easily. Im more after quick spool without it falling on its face. I'm pretty sure pushing my turbo to its limits is enough to break stuff, so the question really is what can I make without blowing stuff up. Sounds like 200hp might be its limit?

I was planning on engine to he221w to external wastegate to the k03. K03 would be set for roughly 10psi and fed into the he221. Once the 221 spools the external wastegate would just bypass the k03 to reduce back pressure. Tuning would either be a malone stage 5 custom or just a local dyno tuner if i can find one locally that specializes in tdis.

Thank you for your replies the information is appreciated

Click to expand...

pretty sure the cams are a negligible difference

small turbo is always closer to engine in all piping
filter>221 comp>k03 comp>intercooler>engine>k03 turbine>221 turbine>downpipe
use external WG to bypass only k03 turbine

you could get more than that hp by spinning it further in the revs, wind it out to 6k or wherever it stops pulling.
if you are only planning on revving it to 2000 rpm then you're likely only going to make 120hp or so before there are troubles with parts breakage. Torque is the limiting factor.

ETA: the chinese rods are kinda sorta the same as the older high dollar ones, they just kinda really screwed someone on here out of the engineering work in true chinese business tradition. You'll run into bias against them on here for that reason alone, and for good reason.
They were the same japanese manufacturer, but with zero quality control. If you do get them, bring them to a good engine machine shop to get gone through. Mine were out of round in the big end, as though they were honed with the bolts finger tight.

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=450020178725803&set=p.450020178725803&type=3&theater&ifg=1

hopefully this picture link works for you... i never did get around to figuring out the forums image hosting after the photobucket debacle...

its a K03 and an HX30. i think the guy has a build thread on here but i cannot find it for the life of me... but you can see his home brew welded manifold with an external wastegate bypassing the K03 turbine as 486 mentioned. Not the most graceful looking arrangement but im sure it functions well. this arrangement is also in a toyota pickup.

I'm in for more learning.

Got the motor on Monday. looks fairly clean
https://i.imgur.com/29VqPdF.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/o25hIB2.jpg

It came with the harness but no ecu, turbo, injectors or alternator.
I just ordered an auto alh ecu which should arrive within the next week. I'll be keeping my eyes open for some cheap injectors. If anyone has any feel free to pm me.

For now the plan is to pour a bit of oil down the injector holes and roll the engine over a few times then stuff the holes with plastic bags or something to seal them up for the next few months (if I cant find injectors in the near future). I'm also going to tarp it up and get it as sealed from the elements as possible. Previous owner had it stored in a warm dry garage a few months so im not too worried about rusty cylinders.

I'm also going to start modifying the harness In my free time. Anyone know the basics of what is required? I've heard a 3 bar map sensor, crank sensor, and n75 valve are all that are really needed for a tuner?

Turns out Malone has a location pretty close by. I'll bring it to him dyno tune once its all together


I've been thinking about the pipe work to mount the turbos the past week and I've got an idea floating around in my head. I don't think itll be too terribly difficult to make work.

So again specs are, unless anyone has any suggestions ( I may contact Malone for some input)
alh head/block with fresh rings and bearings
Any benefit to running a 3 hole hd to lower compression slightly?
possibly ebay h beam rods
aaz cam
g60 intake
k03 with wastegate tied shut
external wastegate set to 10ish psi
holset he221w 5.5cm 25-30psi for a total pressure of 35-40psi (which im thinking should make pretty close to 200hp?)
mid sized ebay intercooler
relatively straight 2.5" exhaust with vibrant ultra quiet resonator

And the truck its going into:
2000 Tacoma
rear 4 link with fox air shocks (eventually coil-overs) and e locker
front solid axle swap with Detroit locker and trail gear 3" leaf springs
1985 ford e-150 22 gallon fuel tank
Soon to be on 35" mud terrains
https://i.imgur.com/NFXFRWm.jpg


I'm hoping for 30mpg which should give me roughly 600 miles of useable range.

Good luck bub! I hope to see this soon! Very interesting.

Running a thicker head gasket than you need is not the way to go about lowering compression. It increases the quench? area which is never ideal. If you wan to lower compression do what 486 did and take a router to the bowl lip. Thats what I did. bit of varsol on the cutter and some gentle dremmel work after will get you a pretty nice piston. Go look on therangerstation at whitbreads build thread. Ranger swap with bhw I think and k03/hx30 compounds. If you are going to get this properly dyno tuned after then you could get away with stock rods because you could more accurately limit the torque made. Just a thought.

you will need 4 bar MAP instead of 3 bar MAP, 3 bar MAP can read up to 29PSI (2 pressure + 1 for atmospheric) but you want to be running less than max so the pressure doesnt spike above that and the ECU not know about it. im still using 3 bar due to lack of ambition to re-tune for 4bar... so i limited mine to 26PSi.

that 5.5cm housing will light up decently as a single but never as fast as a K03... sequential like that is probably what i will do to make mine better down low as well.

Im using HE221 with a 6cm housing and its tolerable as a daily and if i were better at tuning (or more ambitious to keep fiddling with it...) it could be better.

might also need to go to the 12.9 head bolts (cheaper) or to ARP studs (not cheap) at that high pressure, depending on how early/hard it hits.

sounds like it will be a great build, keep posting pics as you go along. The more pictures you post, the more ppl get interested, the more help you get from the other mad scientists on here.

I already have arps from my aaz I'll just carry over. All this is really going to cost me is tuning, a k03 and some pipework. I should be able to recover most if not all my cost from selling my aaz and accessories. I already have a freind that wants it just have to figure out a price. I'm thinking like $2000 but I got a few months to think about it. 2k for a freshly built aaz with giles pump, new high output alternator and new power steering pump is a fairly good deal.

man, I should not read this thread. I am starting my tacoma ALH swap, and have a nice AHU k03 and manifold sitting here....bad thoughts....

I'll take the k03 off your hands for cheap and save you the bad thoughts ��

So I've finished modding my harness, I got some injectors and all the rest of the stuff I was missing from the wreckers a couple weeks ago. I'm thinking I want to build it for fairly high power, around 250hp or as much as I can make with it reliably.

anyone have any idea how much power a build with the Chinese h beams, asv pistons and arp head and main studs could hold together reliably? is 250-300hp realistic? I don't think pushing enough air with the compounds is going to be an issue. Are the race 520's up to this with an 11mm pump or would I be better off with the hflow-x .280 nozzles? will the .280's smoke like crazy or return poor mileage?


Can a stock head flow enough air for this or does it need to be ported? Are the stock valve springs strong enough or should they be upgraded?

Approximately how much boost am i looking at for those goals? 10psi from the k03 and 25-30psi from holset puts me 35-40psi and it should spool fairly quickly. is that realistic or is more then that required?


I'm going to start gathering parts and want to get the plan dialed in. Ive done a lot of forum searching but its hard to find all the relevant information. especially when it comes to nozzles.

pressure ratios multiply across the stages, and turbo compressors only really see the pressure ratio (and volume flow) across them, so the addition of pressures is kind of improper from the perspective of using relevant units.

bigger than r520, smoke is entirely dependant on quality of the remap
cut the bowls out of the pistons, ASVs got the oil channels in them and lowered ring lands, right?
deck the block and head, they are not flat any more and the new gasket will not hold
you'll want better valve springs, google around for what others are running, I'm still on stockers and it kind of sucks limiting myself to a 6k rpm governor
the head can be ported somewhat, focus on the transition around the hardened seats and on the exhaust ports, intakes are already fairly nice though the manifold is trash

ETA: getting 48 mpg with crappy DSS-r .360s, so that should tell you about the effect of nozzle size on fuel economy

Ive got a modified g60 intake, its huge with fairly long runners, shouldn't be a restriction

Yes the asv have the oil channel and lower ring lands

What makes you say the block needs to be decked? As of now its still stock and assembled and was running when pulled. I was going to see how the cylinders measured out before i ordered the pistons. If its still in spec ill just get standard size and rehone them to save on machining costs.I know oversized asv pistons are shorter so the block does need to be decked for that but the standard size are supposed to be the same size from what ive read?

Would you suggest the 520 or the .280?

Is malone or kerma up for tuning these kind of builds? I know absolutely nothing about tuning and would like to pay someone to do it properly. I know their sites only list moderate tuning?

Runninwild said:

What makes you say the block needs to be decked? As of now its still stock and assembled and was running when pulled. I was going to see how the cylinders measured out before i ordered the pistons. If its still in spec ill just get standard size and rehone them to save on machining costs.I know oversized asv pistons are shorter so the block does need to be decked for that but the standard size are supposed to be the same size from what ive read?

Click to expand...

the firering waves in the head gasket wear into the iron and aluminum over the thousands of heat cycles, makes for less tension on the gasket where it is most needed

Runninwild said:

Would you suggest the 520 or the .280?

Click to expand...

.280 or larger

Runninwild said:

Is malone or kerma up for tuning these kind of builds? I know absolutely nothing about tuning and would like to pay someone to do it properly. I know their sites only list moderate tuning?

Click to expand...

they'll do it yes, but you're going to have a lot of back and forth getting it set up right, if they'll even do it by sending back and forth a binary file I don't know. The best option is someone with the know-how taking the car for a day and working it out strapped down to the dyno.

I have vw golf mk2 AHU TDI-m 220whp

- HE221w 5cm housing 32psi
- DSSR 0.360
- Dieselmeken 12mm super pump
- PD150 Inlet Manifold
- 2.5" pipe , FMIC 2.25 Inlet / Outlet
- 2.5" Straight Exhaust
- External feeding pump 7psi pressure 255 L/min
- 6 Speed 02M ARL gearbox
- XTD stage 4 clutch

zehair said:

I have vw golf mk2 AHU TDI-m 220whp

- HE221w 5cm housing 32psi
- DSSR 0.360
- Dieselmeken 12mm super pump
- PD150 Inlet Manifold
- 2.5" pipe , FMIC 2.25 Inlet / Outlet
- 2.5" Straight Exhaust
- External feeding pump 7psi pressure 255 L/min
- 6 Speed 02M ARL gearbox
- XTD stage 4 clutch

Click to expand...

Sweet, do you have any video of it running? I have a good ASV engine on my garage and I was thinking on a build same as yours.

zehair said:

I have vw golf mk2 AHU TDI-m 220whp

- HE221w 5cm housing 32psi
- DSSR 0.360
- Dieselmeken 12mm super pump
- PD150 Inlet Manifold
- 2.5" pipe , FMIC 2.25 Inlet / Outlet
- 2.5" Straight Exhaust
- External feeding pump 7psi pressure 255 L/min
- 6 Speed 02M ARL gearbox
- XTD stage 4 clutch

Click to expand...

How quick does the 221w spool? what time does it start making boost and what rpm is full boost? ive had trouble finding any real info on this setup.


Are there any negatives to larger nozzles? I know more smoke but it seems that can mostly be eliminated with tuning. Is there a rule of thumb? Do you usually try to match the nozzles to your power goal or go 1 or 2 sizes above?


As for decking the block. Is that more of a high power thing? ive replaced many headgaskets without decking the block and ive never had one leak. I've never really heard of an argument to deck a block/head if they are flat.

The head should be skimmed (lightly) as part of any head rebuild or repair.
If the block is undamaged it's harder to justify taking it apart to deck it.
Maybe use the glass plate/400 grit method but I didn't bother when I did mine.