oil coming from compressor side

Mk1 gt tubby

Fresh Recruit
Hi all,

I have a starlet gt running the following mods.

FMIC, decat, aftermarket exhaust manifold, HKS actuator, powerflow exhaust. running airfilter in stock position, HKS SSQV.

Problem is i've noticed oil coming out of the compressor side of the turbo where the intercooler hot pipe connects. Also abit of oil in air inlet tract which has been blanked off from the re circ valve which rules out any oil coming in from rocker cover breather. No smoke coming from the exhaust at all? this probably rules out the turbo oil seal on the exhaust side. What would cause the oil seal on the compressor side to go? my turbo failed last time but was the exhaust side seal which was leaking into the de-cat causing blue smoke but no oil from compressor side at all. I have a catch can but the PCV is still in place, fitted to the other breather to stop oil mist going on the rocker cover. checked the pipe to the catch can and there is very slight oil mist in there so the engine isnt breathing heavy. sorry for the long post but need to find the root cause before i replace turbo.

Thanks
 

Jay

Admin
I've seen that happen before, as Skiny says check the impeller for play.

Has the turbo been rebuilt recently?
 

SKINY

Lifer
Have you compression tested the engine yet bud ? Just sat thinking mine was/is putting a tad of oil through the compressor side but shaft feels good with minimal play, I had thought the turdo had went but was only puffing from the exhaust every so often in traffic, stopped for months then the odd puff then nothing for months. Turns out all 4 cylinders are down to around 150 psi, gummed rings :cool:
A slight bit off up/down play is perfectly normal as the turdo uses a floating bearing as such, so a wee bit of wear in the seal would cause it to leak a tad. in/out play it would need opened up and inspected.

I'm told by many Starlet folks that Laim at midland turdos is the best about for these :)
 

H_D

Member +
Have you compression tested the engine yet bud ? Just sat thinking mine was/is putting a tad of oil through the compressor side but shaft feels good with minimal play, I had thought the turdo had went but was only puffing from the exhaust every so often in traffic, stopped for months then the odd puff then nothing for months. Turns out all 4 cylinders are down to around 150 psi, gummed rings :cool:
A slight bit off up/down play is perfectly normal as the turdo uses a floating bearing as such, so a wee bit of wear in the seal would cause it to leak a tad. in/out play it would need opened up and inspected.

I'm told by many Starlet folks that Laim at midland turdos is the best about for these :)


Liam rebuilt my td04. Done abt 700 miles on it. So far so good
 

dac69er

Super Moderator
can you post a pic of your breather setup? i doubt this is the cause of your issues, but they way you explained it makes it sound wrong to me!?

i get a bit of oil in the inlet on mine, but i still run the stock intake and breather system, so could just be from there. I have always found that with the stock setup you get some oil floating around in the inlet.
how much oil are we talking? like someone has emptied a bottle of oil in there or just a light coating?
 

Mk1 gt tubby

Fresh Recruit
Thanks for the replies. The turbo hasn't been rebuilt but was in good condition when fitted and wasn't blowing oil at all. Not compression tested it yet but will do at weekend. how do you fix gummed rings without taking them out? is there any additives that will sort this? not losing too much but it is seeping out and running down the outer casing of the compressor as it is stained. DSCF0282.JPG DSCF0281.JPG DSCF0280.JPG
 

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Mk1 gt tubby

Fresh Recruit
Dac69er, as you can see the breather isn't connected to the inlet tract so that rules that out. there was always oil in there with the stock set up. The breather which everyone puts a filter on is piped to a catch can which has a filter on. just to stop oil mist going on rocker cover. Could the air intake be too restrictive causing abnormal pressure on turbo? i only put it back to stock efi pipe to stop creep. There is also oil around the intercooler pipe which connects to the turbo, couldnt capture it on the pictures.

Thanks for any help.
 

dac69er

Super Moderator
seems like your seals are a bit worn. in the warmer weather the oil is more likely to pass as its thinner.

your turbo needs a rebuild by the looks of it.
 
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