VN 3.8 Turbo Wagon

[VN Wagz]

coils wiring now sorted- i've added 40cm of length to 6 of the wires, and will be mounting the coil packs near where the boost pipe comes up through (old airbox location), or in front of the strut tower on the passenger side- hoping to put them down near the airbox location, but it depends on what i can sort for ignition leads. this will move them far enough/low enough away that they dont get roasted by the under-bonnet heat, which is apparently what kills them. Going to buy leads at lunch today, and will have pics up tonight!

[STL17]

im liken how this is going i have a boosted vs wagon and man the people that are spun out when you blow them off a set of lights and hand there asses to them lol im only running 6psi yeh its small boost but its enough to make a stock 5l v8 cry good luck with it all and keep us updated

[VN Wagz]

wow, its been forever since i got on her to update this thread....

Coils are now behind the engine, bolted to a bracket on top of the gearbox, i have a new 3" dump pipe that doesnt touch anywhere (but still needs ceramic coating), have just installed a pro-ratchet shifter and a fully built full-manual TH700 from Craigs Autos goes in early next week, im making a trip up to sydney to have them fit it for me on site.

Got all i need now for the tuning- 36lb fuel injectors, Walbro pump, 3 Bar Map sensor, and im currently pricing my options. At the moment, its looking cheaper for a Haltech E6GMX + custom tune (1250 for ECU + 600 for tune) as getting a Kalmaker job done on the factory ECU..... (1500 for tune, plus 600 to unlock the Kalmaker Key... or something like that). Once i decide (and once auto is in) its off to the Dyno, followed soon after to WSID. No idea what it'll make on the 8psi i want to start with, but should be enough for a 13, fingers crossed.

We're keeping the stock convertor, and using the turbo's fast boost response to run quick using lots of low/midrange torque more than horsepower.

I'll get some new pics up soon in relation to all the new stuff i've done!! Therers a lot of changes....

[delcowizzid]

my wagon did 13.9@106 on low boost 7-8ish psi traction was an issue off the line

[Ace_VP]

What has the turbo set up cost so far Delco?

[delcowizzid]

$1200 or there abouts

[Ace_VP]

Thats cheap mate, what did that $1200 include? Is that just the turbo on its own or does that include the pipe work?

[chrrr]

That included everything, he just hunted and got things really cheap. And made the manifolds himself. My setup is similar to his, and owes me around 2500(NZD)

[Ace_VP]

That included everything, he just hunted and got things really cheap. And made the manifolds himself. My setup is similar to his, and owes me around 2500(NZD)

not bad at all, just wondering cause I have seen a few kits on ebay for like $4000 or there about. Just goes to show what hunting around can do.

[VN Wagz]

i got my setup on eBay from a fabrication shop in QLD, for $1800. However, i really only have used the headers, crossover and turbo- all other bits were chucked and replaced, or modified...

Has cost me about 5K so far, but if i did it again, i'd only spend 3K to get where i am now, easily.

However, i do have a T70 and a spare T3/4 jsut sitting around... you know, just in case.... and two sets of 36Lb injectors, a spare Turbosmart FPR800 fuel reg... a spare GSS341 walbro in tank pump... i have enough fuel system crap to do two turbo V6s

Auto will be ready next Monday/Tuesday- so excited

[Ace_VP]

i got my setup on eBay from a fabrication shop in QLD, for $1800. However, i really only have used the headers, crossover and turbo- all other bits were chucked and replaced, or modified...

Has cost me about 5K so far, but if i did it again, i'd only spend 3K to get where i am now, easily.

However, i do have a T70 and a spare T3/4 jsut sitting around... you know, just in case.... and two sets of 36Lb injectors, a spare Turbosmart FPR800 fuel reg... a spare GSS341 walbro in tank pump... i have enough fuel system crap to do two turbo V6s

Auto will be ready next Monday/Tuesday- so excited

Sounds good mate, its looking good aswell

[VN Wagz]

wow, over a year since i've updated this.... okay, here goes.

Wagon's been on and off the road a few times in the last year or so, with only a few ks being put on her, although she's nearing the big 300K mark. Still has great compression on all pots, runs smoothly and loves the boost

Now running a 3" cat-back exhaust, Haltech E6GMX with custom tune, 36lb injectors and it goes like a rocketship. From memory the dyno reading was 213rwkW on 9psi? And thats with bugger all timing and running fairly rich. Going to throw some 1.9 ratio rockers on her soonish (MACE ones) and send her back for a tune checkup, should see a comfortable 220+ like that. With the enhanced airflow this will give all over the rev range, should see some great torque gains as well. Oh, and its still limited at the factory 5500 limiter too, even tho the power keeps going right up to this point

Next on my list is to chuck in a timing chain, new balancer, new water pump and reconditioned power steering pump (its leaking everywhere!). Should remove a lot of the rattles i have at the moment...

Once i have these sorted we'll head to WSID to chase a 12 second/ 110mph pass with this small turbo, and we'll then step it up later with something bigger. For the moment, the fast spooling T3/4 is great with my stocker 3.08 LSD. Thinking GT35(1.06 rear) on 15psi, 42lb injectors, 3.45 diff rebuild and 2600 stally as the next step and will then aim for high 11s at 120.... i have a set of 15x4 and 15x7 chaser rims ready for drag radials for when this happens

Damn Buicks are tough as nails- I have a spare engine stashed away but i have no idea how long it'll take for the current one to die...

[delcowizzid]

we are getting overun with spare buicks we bought as many as we could as spares but havnt killed any yet hardy little beasts chrrs one has seen over 20psi on a few occasions LOL the VB lives on 15psi its just getting comfortable at 15 LOL

[Morton]

This is relevant to my interests

More pictures and details about the current setup would be most intreaguing ^_^

[VN Wagz]

righto!! So, after some soul searching its been decided that some changes are in order. Within a month or two there should be some more cash available to mechanically revise the wagon, i'm going to sell off the current headers, crossover and the two T04/T3 turbos that I have to make way for a new setup. As I want to reposition the turbo next to the number one cylinder i'm going to source some new manifolds, this will also have the added bonus of letting me run a bigger and thicker radiator and a factory shroud and fan. Will retain the current dump pipe and might just be able to have someone modify it to fit the new turbo location...

For turbos i'm not too sure yet- i'll be looking to throw a 2600-2800 stall in it as well, so i'm leaning towards something equivalent to a GT3540 with anything from a 0.82 to 1.06 housing for some decent top end power. The diff will remain 3.08 for the time being although a 3.45 rebuild will happen when it blows up (not if :P). Wondering if anyone knows of a suitable BorgWarner turbo that would fit the bill- I hear they are a lot cheaper than a Garrett but are of a good build quality.

If I really cant decide or if funds are tight i could always just throw on a T70, i've seen a few people make good power from them..... but i'd prefer not to.

So in the next month or so, assuming it all gets off the ground- financially speaking- im going to have the headers, crossover pipe and two T04/T3 turbos up for sale. This would be awesome for someone wanting the basis for a bolt-on single turbo kit, or even for use with some simple 90 degree extensions off the front of each header to run twins!! The headers are rock solid construction and absolutely beautiful- they flow so well... will be sad to see them go, but i want to change up the engine bay and intercooler layout.