GUIDE: How to remove turbo and clean 'sticky' vane, which causes overboost

ecnirp98 · Jan 21, 2015

tdi-man said:
just use Mr muscle ive done it this week due to carbon build up with no problems .

also used this after wards - http://www.powerenhancer.co.uk/product.php/839/archoil-ar6600-professional-diesel-turbo-cleaner

works for me so probs spent 30 mins in total to de coke turbo

Looking at the pictures I wouldn't have the confidence to give it a go and don't have the tools anyways, so would rather have a local garage in Manchester do it than risk causing more damage ! so if anyone can point me to a better local garage where I can get this done I'd appreciate it.

Sayam · Jan 22, 2015

ecnirp98 said:
Looking at the code and the other threads, seems the turbo just needs cleaning rather than knackered, a refurb Turbo is being quoted around £800-£1000 fitted by my local Audi Garage VAG,

How much for a refurb?? Admittedly I'm in the north where prices are cheaper (not sure where you are) but thats too much dough for a refurb turbo mate. I wouldn't pay more than £500 for a refurb turbo and around £150 for it to be fitted topside. and that's VAG specialist prices...

so cleaning for £300+Vat and keeping original Turbo sounds better value, I thought if I got the Turbo cleaned/refurbed to stop the sticking vains it would be ok after?

again thats too much money for labour to clean the turbo. its 2 bolts to whip the EGR pipe off and squirt some mr muscle in there. leave it to sit for an hour and take it for a spirited drive

What's the difference between hybrid and normal Turbo? mapping is a tune up on BHP isn't it from what I have read, so its not required? I've not seen anything about that after a Turbo repair.

hybrid turbo is just that - a hybrid. so it's using the OEM casing but with uprated bearings, turbines etc meaning it can compress more air than the OEM. you then need the car remapped to take advantage of the higher airflow, the fuelling etc needs to be adjusted all to take advantage of it = more power.

ecnirp98 · Jan 22, 2015

Sayam said:
How much for a refurb?? Admittedly I'm in the north where prices are cheaper (not sure where you are) but thats too much dough for a refurb turbo mate. I wouldn't pay more than £500 for a refurb turbo and around £150 for it to be fitted topside. and that's VAG specialist prices...

again thats too much money for labour to clean the turbo. its 2 bolts to whip the EGR pipe off and squirt some mr muscle in there. leave it to sit for an hour and take it for a spirited drive

hybrid turbo is just that - a hybrid. so it's using the OEM casing but with uprated bearings, turbines etc meaning it can compress more air than the OEM. you then need the car remapped to take advantage of the higher airflow, the fuelling etc needs to be adjusted all to take advantage of it = more power.

Thanks for answers, I only look into cars when I'm buying one or have a problem !!! the VAG specialist sends the Turbo off to the refurbers who check it, then send a replacement back that has been refurbed, that's then fitted by the VAG specialist, its off the road for about a week which would cause me problems with work, so looks like I am paying for 2 companies to fix it, hense the £800 charge. I just want a car I can rely upon (limp mode in the outside lane on the M6 is not fun when it happens!!!) , so I'm not looking to increase performance particularly, so if I can fix what I have for a much lower charge, I am happy with that:

I just posted an ad on mycarneedsa.com and got this reply for £160 clean of the Turbo, which seems a more reasonable quote for the work you desctibed:

This quote is to strip and clean your turbo,however a common problem with these engines is the electronic wastegate not always functioning correctly so we would advise checking that first.

Its a local garage in St Helens 'Up North' called Cowley Hill Services Limited, they seem to have good feedback online, just abit concerned about going to a garage I don't know.... give a cheap quote and find lots of other things etc .... I phoned Lockstitch as they were mentioned in this thread as recommended and they gave me the £360 quote for the Turbo refurb/clean.

Sayam · Jan 22, 2015

ecnirp98 said:
Thanks for answers, I only look into cars when I'm buying one or have a problem !!! the VAG specialist sends the Turbo off to the refurbers who check it, then send a replacement back that has been refurbed, that's then fitted by the VAG specialist, its off the road for about a week which would cause me problems with work, so looks like I am paying for 2 companies to fix it, hense the £800 charge. I just want a car I can rely upon (limp mode in the outside lane on the M6 is not fun when it happens!!!) , so I'm not looking to increase performance particularly, so if I can fix what I have for a much lower charge, I am happy with that:

I just posted an ad on mycarneedsa.com and got this reply for £160 clean of the Turbo, which seems a more reasonable quote for the work you desctibed:

This quote is to strip and clean your turbo,however a common problem with these engines is the electronic wastegate not always functioning correctly so we would advise checking that first.

Its a local garage in St Helens 'Up North' called Cowley Hill Services Limited, they seem to have good feedback online, just abit concerned about going to a garage I don't know.... give a cheap quote and find lots of other things etc .... I phoned Lockstitch as they were mentioned in this thread as recommended and they gave me the £360 quote for the Turbo refurb/clean.

fair enough if you aren't looking to increase performance keep it standard...i guess even if you pay slightly more but know the work has been done to a high standard then it doesn't matter. i'd advise to use a garage you trust rather than the cheapest, i was just alarmed at the quotes you posted originally, thats all

ecnirp98 · Jan 22, 2015

Sayam said:
fair enough if you aren't looking to increase performance keep it standard...i guess even if you pay slightly more but know the work has been done to a high standard then it doesn't matter. i'd advise to use a garage you trust rather than the cheapest, i was just alarmed at the quotes you posted originally, thats all

I'm happy for all the advice I can get, I have never used either garage, so it's not like I particularly trust either, the only one I use regularly is the VAG specialist for Servicing, who was quoting £800+ for the refurb, so won't be using them !!!

The £160 quote garage looks ok, has decent feedback, just wondering if there's anywhere near Manchester that someone has used to clean the Turbo used and can recommend?

Sayam · Jan 22, 2015

ecnirp98 said:
I'm happy for all the advice I can get, I have never used either garage, so it's not like I particularly trust either, the only one I use regularly is the VAG specialist for Servicing, who was quoting £800+ for the refurb, so won't be using them !!!

The £160 quote garage looks ok, has decent feedback, just wondering if there's anywhere near Manchester that someone has used to clean the Turbo used and can recommend?

i know if awesome gti near manchester, there's another one too i've read about on here but the name escapes me. i can't vouch for awesome gti's work as they haven't done any for me but i've read good things

T8DPR · Jan 22, 2015

there's a guy right near me who is a terraclean agent, google terraclean and see what the reviews are like, I'm gonna book mine in soon, £108

not far out of wigan btw

tdi-man · Jan 23, 2015

or just buy some mr muscle for £2 take exhaust downpipe of and spray on outlet fins leave for 2 hours job done and also add some additive in fuel like I did

RiffRaffRetro · May 5, 2015

Excellent guide to DIY turbo removal.

Why does the Haynes manual specify that the RHS drive shaft needs to be removed to access the turbo (for removal) and that the turbo and manifold CANNOT be separated (2.0 Tdi 140 BKD)?

Qalaray · Jul 8, 2015

Hi all,
I did this terra clean and it did nothing. Being chemist by trade there is nothing on the earth which dissolve carbon so all these kits are just rubbish.
I did Mr Muscle last year and it worked well for few months but again at cold start it goes to limp mode. So I am assuming that turbo vanes are stuck and need cleaning properly.
If anyone has used a garage or mechanic to clean turbo by stripping and had satisfying results please let me know.

ecnirp98 · Jul 8, 2015

Qalaray said:
Hi all,
I did this terra clean and it did nothing. Being chemist by trade there is nothing on the earth which dissolve carbon so all these kits are just rubbish.
I did Mr Muscle last year and it worked well for few months but again at cold start it goes to limp mode. So I am assuming that turbo vanes are stuck and need cleaning properly.
If anyone has used a garage or mechanic to clean turbo by stripping and had satisfying results please let me know.

Earlier this year I got a quote of £160 to remove the turbo and clean the veins, when they took the turbo out the exhaust manifold (I think they called it) was knackered, and as it is integral with the turbo, it needed a new turbo, as the car was already stripped and the turbo out, they charged me £700 for a new turbo fitted, with filters and some seals that needed doing, plus oil change and a further oil/filter change after 400 miles. I had this done in February and since the A3 has been running really well with no issues, when I was getting regular limp mode when accelerating to 60-70 MPH, so its definitely fixed the problem.

Hopefully cleaing it will do the job for you, just bear in mind it might need a new turbo when removed, at that point I was already in for £160 if they just refitted the knackered one.

Qalaray · Jul 8, 2015

ecnirp98 said:
Earlier this year I got a quote of £160 to remove the turbo and clean the veins, when they took the turbo out the exhaust manifold (I think they called it) was knackered, and as it is integral with the turbo, it needed a new turbo, as the car was already stripped and the turbo out, they charged me £700 for a new turbo fitted, with filters and some seals that needed doing, plus oil change and a further oil/filter change after 400 miles. I had this done in February and since the A3 has been running really well with no issues, when I was getting regular limp mode when accelerating to 60-70 MPH, so its definitely fixed the problem.

Hopefully cleaing it will do the job for you, just bear in mind it might need a new turbo when removed, at that point I was already in for £160 if they just refitted the knackered one.

Thanks. Where are they based? can you give me their number? Is car running well after that?

ecnirp98 · Jul 8, 2015

Qalaray said:
Thanks. Where are they based? can you give me their number? Is car running well after that?

Hi Qalaray

My A3 is running really well after replacing the Turbo in January, I live in Manchester, It was done in St Helens which is not far away, at:

Cowley Hill Services Limited
8 Cowley Hill Lane,
St Helens.
WA10 2AB.
01744454925

I actually got the quote from them by advertising on:

http://mycarneedsa.com/

as I could not find a local garage that cleaned Turbos/Veins, so I would recommend you put an ad for a quote on there for the work, hopefully a local garage will give a quote if St Helens is not nearby.

Paul.

Qalaray · Jul 10, 2015

thanks, I am in Norwich and its long way up to Manchester. I will try to sort something locally. If someone is from Norfolk area and can do the job at reasonable price, let me know. Thanks

Chas96 · Sep 27, 2017

Hello Craig1.8t & all

Im new to this so sorry for bringing this back up... currently in the progress of taking out my turbo for cleaning with the fault code overboost.
A few questions, i cant seem to unscrew the oil feed pipe on top on the turbo, i cant see the pictures - it states "enable 3rd party hosing" lastly what is best to remove carbon?

Thank you
Charlie

mazza7282 · Feb 9, 2018

Chas96 said:
Hello Craig1.8t & all

Im new to this so sorry for bringing this back up... currently in the progress of taking out my turbo for cleaning with the fault code overboost.
A few questions, i cant seem to unscrew the oil feed pipe on top on the turbo, i cant see the pictures - it states "enable 3rd party hosing" lastly what is best to remove carbon?

Thank you
Charlie

Hi Charlie

this is for the turbo in the BKD140, might help .
I was able to remove both oil pipes from too and bottom of the turbo using normal open ended spanners whilst laying underneath.

I had the downpipe fully removed for easy access when I removed my Turbo.

I havr attached some picd which may help you get a visual aid, which shows the new turbo, oil feed and oil return locations.

If Craig didnt originally post the original thread way back when I would have been cursing for even longer than I already was lol.

I was able to get some pics from the elsawin manual on google for support aswell.

M

Jezza16v · Feb 11, 2018

I used Wynns 'Turbo Vane' cleaner on my 1.9tdi, it worked a treat for me. Got to be worth a go before stripping everything down.

PlatinumR · Dec 18, 2019

Right, bringing back a well old thread here but if Craig 1.8t is still floating around I wanted to say he rocks for this how to!
My 2008, 160K miles BKD Touran has been overboosting for a while and getting worse until this week when it wouldn't sustain motorway speeds without limp!
got the actuator arm off and the vanes lever was solid down.
did the hard route over the top with battery, intake etc removed to get egr pipe off and afer a day it was still really stiff and needed hitting with a hammer and drift to move it.
the actuator couldn't push it back.
left overnight and took for a run, even worse! came back and went fom under. Much easier!
split exhaust and in with the muscle but still couldn't get it smooth but could excercise it with ring eng end of a spanner over the lever by hand so better but still jammed every now and then.
Needed the car this Christmas so with nothing to lose, used this guide to get the turbo out and thank you, thank you, thank you for the exhust tunnel tip, access is brilliant! Suprisingly after 11 years and some plus gas everything came off and no snapping although the front to rear exhust clamp is a gonna with rust.
split the turbo, vanes well stuck but unfortunately the turbines had damage and missing material so didn't want to risk failure by putting it back in.
maybe it was the overboosting taking out the vanes?
however after just spliiting wiping and rebuilding it was lovely and floppy
I would not hesistate to rip the turbo off one of these for a proper clean as the Mr Muscle didn't really show signs of achieving much? Perhaps it needed washing out after each application?
anyway, new turbo in tomorrow and merry christmas to all!
Forums rock when this sort of info is so freely available!
Cheers
Jez

audijerry · Apr 2, 2020

Big ups Craig for this post it is still going strong! Blew my turbo on a3 2.0 tdi and thought I would have a crack at getting it off before taking it to a garage. Got it recovered home and up on jack stands and after a few evenings battling stubborn bolts from underneath I finally got it off. Now looking to trade it for a reconditioned unit and install along with new gaskets and oil feed pipe, if it ever runs again it will be a miracle!

GUIDE: How to remove turbo and clean 'sticky' vane, which causes overboost

Registered User

Well-Known Member

Registered User

Well-Known Member

Registered User

Well-Known Member

T8DPR

Guest

Registered User

Registered User

Registered User

Registered User

Registered User

Registered User

Registered User

Registered User

mazza7282

Attachments

Registered User

Registered User

Registered User

Similar threads