all this turbo stuff is new to me i understand how they work but you have all these different timers, ECUs, well i guess my question is i had my turbo installed by a mazda pro.. i had some used stuff and he has installed it greddy TD04..he said the turbo timer is not working properly it cuts on and off like a short in it or something. he tried to ground it. do i have to have this timer? i am planning on building a megasquirt. will this take care of all these issues? and can i drive the car like it is? i believe the timer has something to do with the oil temp before you cut it off..i need some advice on driving without the timer..cause it looks that way for a lil while..

 

The TD04 turbo's are oil cooled only, meaning that it would benefit the turbo to be cooled down after hard driving. Just don't beat the **** out of your car and shut it down immediately following and you will be fine. You can also run fully synthetic oil which has a much lower tendency to "coke" in the CHRA.

 

You should get a replacement turbo-timer, you'll easily pick up a few ponies.

 

Plenty of us running around with TD04 turbos, myself included. As Jeff said, run synthetic oil, don't shut the engine off while you're braking at the end of a 1/4 mile run, and you'll be fine. I typically just let the engine idle for the 20 seconds or so that it takes me to remove my seatbelt, gather up whatever things I have with me, and exit the car.

This turbo timer nonsense grew out of the 1980s, when folks were running cheap oil through their OEM-turboed cars, changing it every 10,000 miles, and wondering why their turbo shafts were getting destroyed. It's just not a real problem if you actually take care of the car.

 

Alternatively, you could also swap out for one of these: Water cooled td04h

Any TD04H will fit into that housing. You would just need to swap over your compressor cover, and install that assembly into your exhaust housing (which is super easy on Mitsu turbos because they use a v-band)

Edit: Another alternative: bearing section
This + gpopshop rebuild kit = profit. Mitsubishi turbochargers are component balanced from the factory, so you could just swap in your turbine shaft and compressor wheel.

 

I thought about buying a turbo timer and it seemed at the end way over-rated.

IMO, like others say, don't boost it to redline before shutting it down. So everytime arriving home as much as I am tempted be it by another car or showing off to the hot chicks running around the block, I dont boost it.

So I follow the golden rule of no boost at least 5 minutes before parking the car anywhere I go.

 

Where I work I occasionally drive a 2009 model, $500,000 front end loader. Its turbo is oil-cooled only. Caterpillar did not find it necessary to install a turbo timer to protect a half million dollar machine.

Come to think about it, I don't think a single automobile exists that comes with a factory turbo timer.

Maximum Boost is a great read; I'd get a copy before you start messing with your ride too much.

 

Unless you have a system to keep the water circulating after shutting off the engine, a water cooled turbo doesn't offer much advantage on a red-hot shut down. The most prudent way is to let any turbo cool off by running the engine at idle for awhile.

I don't trust myself to allow the engine to idle long enough to cool the turbo and many times need to jump right out of the car after stopping. A turbo timer has allowed me to do so. For me, it is good insurance.