n/a to turbo question

[cre]

Okay, sorry about that... your screen name and the 'slap-dash' advice you've been getting from somewhere... well, I couldn't resist.

Originally Posted by suicidal

i keep on hearing that all i need to do to swap my car from n/a to turbo is manifold, turbo, intercooler and oil lines. is this true or do i need to get other things?

The question is: How long do you want it to last?

There are some significant differences between the GTE and the GE. While the GE will get by fine without some of them with a turbo, others make a significant difference in the longevity of the engine.

The GTE has a different ECU with ignition and fuel maps designed for a boosted engine. Fuel is better adjusted for a given load and RPM and timing is better tailored to reduce knock. The GTE has a different fuel pressure regulator which increases fuel pressure are manifold pressure increases to a much larger degree than the GE's FPR. The VAFM which the GE uses to measure air flow is not well suited for a boosted 7M. The GTE also has an oil cooler (a must have in my book for a turbo'd engine) and oil squirters to help lubricate and cool the pistons. The oil feed and return for the turbo are not drilled on the GE block, as such you will need to add a drain and you will need to source the oil supply from another location... the oil supply is easy, the drain sucks... you'll need to pull the engine and either drill the stock drain location (recommended) or you'll need to pull the oil pan and get a drain bung welded to the oil pan as high as possible and make sure it's pointing at a main cap (the concern here is that the drain may get covered and thus obstructed if you are boosting in a hard turn... this could ruin a seal in the turbo. The GTE's also got higher flowing fuel and oil pumps and a more efficient fan. The GE has higher compression pistons and as such is more prone to preignition issues as well, higher octane fuel will help with this as will pulling spark advance.

At a minimum, I recommend: a set of serviced and flow tested GTE injectors, a fuel controller (SAFC II or Neo; MAFT Gen II or MAFT Pro would be great as they'll allow you to replace the VAFM with something more accurate too), pull ignition timing a few degrees, a GTE FPR, a full flow oil cooler, GTE spark plugs, a new GTE fuel pump (or better), a wideband O2 sensor and gauge.

While I'm running a N/A-T I don't recommend it really... not unless you're very capable or have another car to drive when it's down. Doing a swap isn't really much more work actually and it gives you time to rebuild the GTE and make sure it's going to be reliable and solid.