Alternative turbo location

[The Mariner]

Hi Everyone,

After reading NitroDann's 'How to turbo your NA for $2000' thread I have decided to attempt to fit a TD04 turbo to my Clubman. It's not a MX5 Clubman, but a MX5-powered homebuilt kitcar very similar to this:

slades_clemente.jpg

Anyway, space around the engine is quite different to that of a normal MX5... the engine bay is narrower but longer & I am worried that fitting the turbo on a log exhaust manifold down the side of the engine might get very squeezy. It might even have to add a bulge or similar to my f/glass bonnet to make space.

But... today I had an idea & I would like your opinions on it.

I have more than 500mm of space between the front of the engine and the radiator, so could I mount the turbo somewhere in that space ?

Plusses/minuses I have though of so far are:

- Bracketing the turbo back to the engine will be a bit of a challenge.
- The ex. manifold will look really weird.
- The distance between the exhaust ports & the turbo will be much longer than if it was on a simple log manifold, which will increase lag.
- Need to do something special to keep the exhaust heat in the system between the head & the turbo.
- The compressor-to-intake manifold distance will be be shorter than with a conventional crossover tube.
- Getting cold air to the air intake & to cool the turbo will be easier.

Is this a completely dumb idea ?

Are there other negatives I haven't thought of ?

Thanks in advance :-)

[Dweezle]

A few pics of your engine bay would prob help, but it sounds very similar to what S2000s run when they go cho cho.




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[NitroDann]

You pretty much have got it spot on.

You need to ensure the oil drain path always slopes down and doesnt have any kinks if possible, and you need to have a very well braced manifold, B series engines have serious harmonics issues and so long manifolds need bracing.

Consider mounting the turbo to the body and using a flex from a set of headers to the turbocharger to eliminate this issue.

Dann

[The Mariner]

Hi Dweezle,

Thanks for your quick reply. Yes, that pic of a s2000 installation basically looks the same as I'm thinking.

I'll do some research to see if s2000 owners have any tips for that sort of an install, but are there any downsides you are aware of ?

Hi Dann,

Thanks for your comments. I hadn't thought of body-mounting & using flex connectors but I'll give it some thought. If I mount the turb off the front of the engine it's the bracket requirements that scare me a bit. I really need to bolt off the block & not off any alloy covers, so the brackets might look like they belong on a battleship, not a clubbie.

[Okibi]

Room to supercharge instead?

[NitroDann]

[RedMX]

well that sums that up then..... Dann I totally lost my sh*t

[Sean]

Room to supercharge instead?

Haha, this and the response made me laugh!

I was thinking similar though, depending on the goals for the car it may be a simpler option.