Rebuild ct26 or buy a 57trim ct26

[Suprajay]

I have a pretty much completely stock, except for a 3" exhaust, mk3 with a 7mgte. My turbo has a fair amount of shaft play and my compressor fins are pretty worn out which is weird because the car only has 108,xxx miles. I also have a cometic mhg and arp headstuds. My question is should i just get my stock ct26 rebuilt (or buy a rebuilt one) or would it be ok to go ahead and buy a 57trim ct26? I'm not planning on cranking up the boost or anything because i am just riding stock and know i can't support more boost without engine damage. I just don't want to buy another stock ct26 and have to buy another turbo when i start buying the other stuff ie: intercooler, lexus afm, 550cc injectors, etc. If anyone could help it would be greatly appreciated.

 

[GrimJack]

I would be hesitant to go with a 57 trim without fuel upgrades first.

On the other hand, I'd be hesitant to throw money into a simple turbo rebuild. Is there some way you can swing a fuel pump, fuel pressure regulator, and 550cc injectors at the same time as the turbo?

 

[Suprajay]

I probably could i guess my main concern was the expensive of dyno tuning it. If i was to get the fuel upgrades with the 57trim and kept the boost low, Like 7-8 psi, would it need to be dyno tuned? Or am i within safe limits sounds like stupid questions i know but i love my car and it would kill me if i did something to blow it up. I just want to get it done the right way the first time.

 

[mecevans]

You will not it fuel cut with a 57 trim at stock boost.

 

[Suprajay]

Ok so i should be ok with the 57trim on stock boost with fuel upgrades. ok guys thanks a lot. I've been searching for that answer for like two weeks!!!!

 

[Nihiliz]

Ok so i should be ok with the 57trim on stock boost with fuel upgrades. ok guys thanks a lot. I've been searching for that answer for like two weeks!!!!

Hey bro. i actully had somewhat a same situation as you. on my old 2jz swap ( yeah i know its a 2j but still lol this is craaazyyy) i bought the motor.......did not touch anything.... BUT i removed twins, threw on a manifold, greddy t78 with .96 a/r hotside. and 50mm hks wg. and made 15 psi! (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k0pcdwXxR_8) i know the video is really blurry,. after fixing the fmic couplers at prestons (blew a golf ball size hole in the coupler where it exits the turbo lol) i decided to take him for a ride......he was working on cars all day...phone in his pocket....yeah. lol but yah id def do a 57 trim and go from there bro. saves you money.

 

[Suprajay]

Yea that's definitely the plan now. im going to upgrade the fuel system, turbo, and get a wideband and bic divorced downpipe. and then later on because i know ill be running rich i will get the lexus afm and intercooler taken care of. just don't have enough money to do everything at once but the turbo is a must right now i don't want it blowing up and shooting shrapnel into my motor.

 

[radiod]

It is very possible for the car to be boosting to the point of hitting fuel cut on a 57-trim, but it needs to be a very free flowing exhaust and intake. I had a 57-trim, BIC DDP, Cat-delete, and custom 3" straight back exhaust along with 2.5" IC hardpipes (stock IC) and my car was constantly creeping up to fuel cut (11psi - 12psi depending on the environment conditions) around 3.5k - 4k rpm. My buddy's car had a similar setup only with a 3" integrated downpipe instead of the BIC DDP and stock IC pipes, and he was fine until cold weather hit (below 40F). If you've got the stock elbow on it though it should be restricted enough to keep it from getting that far though.

Don't do the fuel unless you're doing the Lexus AFM or some sort of piggyback/standalone at the same time. 550cc injectors in a stock system will make it absolutely pig rich and you'll blow through O2 sensors like no tomorrow. My suggestion would be to do the BIC DDP/Fuel/Lexus AFM/wideband all at the same time if you want things to be as happy as possible. Intercooler can be very easily taken care of after the fact once you have the setup running.

 

[Dan_Gyoba]

If you're going to do the upgrades, then get the turbo that you'll eventually want. Don't buy anything that you're planning to replace later. This might mean bypassing the upgraded CT26 altogether. It's a pricey solution, but cheaper than getting the 57 trim upgrade then the "real" turbo later.

For the fuel system, a better fuel pump is a good thing, but at stock boost levels, the 57 trim should drop in fine. The only problem there is that once that turbo goes in, you'll want to play with more than stock boost. If you can avoid the temptation, then you should be good to go. FCO is a good deterrent to pushing up boost until the fuel system is ready, so it's probably not hard to keep off the boost 'till then.