Turbo Removal

spartan

Veteran Member
Joined
Aug 25, 2011
Location
MI
TDI
05 Passat Wagon
So after battling my limp mode issue til I could take it no more I took the car to a local mechanic who is very knowledgeable with TDI's. The result was that he believes I have an internal issue with my 10k mile old turbo. I can get full boost at full throttle, but at part throttle he cannot adjust the new actuator to get the boost value requested. He believes that there is a problem internally either with the vanes (missing one?), or the vane actuation mechanism in the turbo is bent/ damaged. I would have him pull the turbo and examine it for issues, but I just bought the car and have already had to get the transmission rebuilt. Removing the turbo looks fairly straightforward. I am just looking to identify any tricks that I should know about and I am also wondering what parts I should replace while I have it off (gaskets, etc). Any help is appreciated, here's a pic for your time :)
 

Whitbread

Vendor , w/Business number
Joined
Jan 21, 2007
Location
Johannesburg, MI
TDI
Several
If the turbo was recently rebuilt, the vane ring could be upside down. Can't count how many times I've seen it. Causes all kinds of funky boost control issues.
 

thundershorts

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Jul 15, 2010
Location
west chester pa
TDI
2015 passat tdi sel premium 2015 golf s tdi gls tdi b5.5, 2002 eurovan,Peugeot 505 td,Citroen cx25 prestige
guess if the ring is upside down, it doesn't say much about the rebuilder's abilities.
 

spartan

Veteran Member
Joined
Aug 25, 2011
Location
MI
TDI
05 Passat Wagon
Thanks for the reply's. Supposedly, this was a brand new turbo (I have my doubts based on what I have seen from the PO on this car so far). I have also already replaced the N75 valve, the VNT actuator, intercooler o-rings, vacuum hoses, all filters, checked the MAF and MAP sensors, done boost leak tests, and ensured that the actuator is moving smoothly throughout it's range of motion. The mechanic also stated that the actuator arm from the turbo, although moving was not achieving the range of motion that he has seen from other B5.5 turbos, thus his suggestion regarding internal vnt actuation issues.

Regardless, is the turbo removal as easy as it looks? I am assuming that I remove the intake manifold, then the downpipe, oil lines, then unbolt the exhaust manifold and pull it out? Would this be all the gaskets and such I would want to replace: http://idparts.com/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=117&products_id=1544
 

oilhammer

Certified Volkswagen Nut & Vendor
Joined
Dec 11, 2001
Location
outside St Louis, MO
TDI
There are just too many to list....
Turbo R&R is easy, you don't have to remove either the intake or the exhaust manifold. It comes out towards the bottom.

Take the air cleaner assembly out, remove the downpipe nuts and slide the pipe/catalyst back, remove the oil feed pipe from above, the vacuum line from the VNT actuator.

Remove the upper fastener holding the turbo to the exhaust manifold.

Disconnect and remove the charge air hose underneath to the crossover pipe, remove the oil drain tube, remove the support bracket, then remove the remaining fasteners holding the turbo to the exhaust manifold, and slide it out.

Very easy job, but I would recommend just getting a new turbo from Volkswagen or one of our reputable vendors, and not playing around with "rebuilt" ones. These Garrett turbos rarely fail. Only ones I have ever replaced were ones starved for oil after the chain blew.
 

spartan

Veteran Member
Joined
Aug 25, 2011
Location
MI
TDI
05 Passat Wagon
Awesome, thank you for the help. If I hadn't just spent $3k on the transmission, I would go the new turbo route for sure. I need to see if I can get this one functioning before I take that leap right now.
 

spartan

Veteran Member
Joined
Aug 25, 2011
Location
MI
TDI
05 Passat Wagon
Got the turbo off today (while my wife was shopping, don't worry :)). Looks like there was a problem with the ring around the vnt vanes. I was able to get them moving correctly again, but I'm still gonna take it in to have it checked. Only problem was I broke the oil feed line as it wouldn't break at the union, it was loosening from the turbo and twisted the line before I realized what happend. Overall not a bad job, getting the turbo to exhaust manifold nut by the egr tube was the hardest part, probably took 1.5 hours total to get the turbo out.
 

spartan

Veteran Member
Joined
Aug 25, 2011
Location
MI
TDI
05 Passat Wagon
In my hopes of only having to remove the turbo once, I am asking for anyone's help to ensure that I am putting the turbo back together properly. I would like to make sure that alignment of the arm is correct at that I have the vanes seated properly.
First picture is of the actuator arm. They appear not to be offset and move in unison.

This photo shows the vanes and mounting ring moved all the way to the left, no vanes are visible in the housing.

Moved all the way to the right. You can see the tips of the vanes protruding from the housing.


Again, I appreciate any knowledgeable opinions.
 

50harleyrider

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Jun 16, 2007
Location
charleston,wv
TDI
2005 B5.5 TDI/geared BSM, BV43A turbo,stage 2 TDTUNING. 2005 5sp manual passat tdi stage 2 tdtuning,BSM delete. 2015 Passat TDI 6sp manual.
When you get it assembled, go buy yourself a mighty vac or a cheap vacuum tool from Harbor Freight works well. Connect it to the actuator and check the vacuum at initial movement and at full movement. The thing should start moving at arround 4-6" vacuum and give you total movement of about 3/4" at arround 18-20" vacuum. Since you can do it now while it's off, see if there is any catching as you increase vacuum. It should be smooth or you'll have problems. My experience with these VNT-17 is they are really tough and reliable but the vnt can get coked up and cause problems. Italian tuneups are a must for these cars. My wife runs the crap out of hers and never has had turbo issues. I tried babying mine-big mistake!!
 

spartan

Veteran Member
Joined
Aug 25, 2011
Location
MI
TDI
05 Passat Wagon
I put the turbo back in and it was doing the same thing, super frustrating. Even with the stop adjusted all the way back I could not get it to hold more than 14-15" of vacuum. I have a new turbo coming, I am pretty sure this one is a Chinese knock off as "GARRETT" is not molded into the compressor housing, as it is on the other OEM turbos I have seen. More than likely the car is getting sold once I get it running properly. I am going to loose my shirt, but my wife absolutely hates this car right now.
 

oilhammer

Certified Volkswagen Nut & Vendor
Joined
Dec 11, 2001
Location
outside St Louis, MO
TDI
There are just too many to list....
Seems like a self-fulfilling prophecy. My wife loves ours, but I keep it running properly. Which, if it did have a turbo problem, would have meant installing a new one from Volkswagen in the first place.

You only need lose your shirt if you let yourself. Sounds like that is what you want to do. Chinaboost, indeed! :(
 

50harleyrider

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Jun 16, 2007
Location
charleston,wv
TDI
2005 B5.5 TDI/geared BSM, BV43A turbo,stage 2 TDTUNING. 2005 5sp manual passat tdi stage 2 tdtuning,BSM delete. 2015 Passat TDI 6sp manual.
Sad to see someone who has posted photos so well is giving up so easy via prothe
 

spartan

Veteran Member
Joined
Aug 25, 2011
Location
MI
TDI
05 Passat Wagon
Success! I sourced a used turbo that ended up being in great condition. No more mid throttle boost issues, requested is matching actual. I may end up keeping this car after all.
 

oilhammer

Certified Volkswagen Nut & Vendor
Joined
Dec 11, 2001
Location
outside St Louis, MO
TDI
There are just too many to list....
I'd rather have a 200k mile used turbo than anything "rebuilt" or ANYTHING from prothe, LOL! Glad you got it going!
 

spartan

Veteran Member
Joined
Aug 25, 2011
Location
MI
TDI
05 Passat Wagon
So I have another turbo related question now. I have installed a TDTuning stg 1 tune and a boost gauge. I am consistently seeing spikes in the 25-26 psi range before settling around 20. I am guessing this is too much, but I am not sure what to adjust at this point, I am thinking that the VNT arm needs to be lengthened? I would just like to confirm that before I start tearing into it. The actuator on the used turbo I got had never been altered from the factory settings (still had the white paste on the nut).
 

oilhammer

Certified Volkswagen Nut & Vendor
Joined
Dec 11, 2001
Location
outside St Louis, MO
TDI
There are just too many to list....
Every TDI, even stock ones, will spike the actual boost over requested if you view it on the graph. This is normal.

Now, one that is tuned, depending on who did it, may spike a bit higher and may be a bit more aggressive on max boost, but so long as the ECU is happy and not triggering any overboost conditions, I'd not worry.

It seems the BHW may be a bit finicky with respect to this, as the only 3 of these cars that I know of with RC2 have had issues with this... and going into limp mode randomly for overboost for no reason. Not sure if Jeff ever got to a resolution on that or not. My BHW is running RC1 with no problems.

Keep in mind, the BHW normally runs higher boost than the 1.9L cars... and it has a lower compression ratio. So again, if the car runs well, and no overboost DTCs are being flagged, I'd not be too concerned.
 

spartan

Veteran Member
Joined
Aug 25, 2011
Location
MI
TDI
05 Passat Wagon
Great, thanks for the confidence, I guess I need to follow the adage, "drive more, worry less!" I am not getting any limp mode/ overboost issues, so I'll just enjoy it.
 

gotsoot

Veteran Member
Joined
May 28, 2012
Location
Piedmont S.C.
TDI
`04 passat tdi
turbo repair

can anyone supply a part number for a replacement "cartridge" to rebuild the turbo on a `05 passat
 

50harleyrider

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Jun 16, 2007
Location
charleston,wv
TDI
2005 B5.5 TDI/geared BSM, BV43A turbo,stage 2 TDTUNING. 2005 5sp manual passat tdi stage 2 tdtuning,BSM delete. 2015 Passat TDI 6sp manual.
can anyone supply a part number for a replacement "cartridge" to rebuild the turbo on a `05 passat
Leave it to the verifiable experts. I've tried rebuilding twice with no success. If you go that route,let me know how it turns out.
 

50harleyrider

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Jun 16, 2007
Location
charleston,wv
TDI
2005 B5.5 TDI/geared BSM, BV43A turbo,stage 2 TDTUNING. 2005 5sp manual passat tdi stage 2 tdtuning,BSM delete. 2015 Passat TDI 6sp manual.
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