Turbo Cobra Project

[Turbo98]

All of the hardware to complete the turbo upgrade has arrived. Since I went with the larger .70 a/r compressor cover, the inlet increases from 3” to 4”. So I need new filters. Apparently these are a special custom filter made just for HP and since they are out of business, it poses a challenge finding them. They need to have a 20* angle on the flange in order to square them up so they tuck behind the bumper support. So I found a place that could make a couple custom ones. They turned out real nice and should work great.


Ported “S” compressor housing/Billet Wheel:


3” V-band outlet:


Precision’s new CEA “billet” turbine wheel:


I also had to get a couple of Precision’s 3” stainless v-band flanges and clamps (not pictured) for the downpipes in order to match the ones on the turbos.

Pic of the wastegate and remaining hardware. Obviously I have two of the wastegate assemblies, inlet SS v-band, outlet SS v-band, and fittings. These are some real nice quality v-band clamps! Also, each wastegate came with 6 different springs which is nice:




Now all I have to do is get the pipes fabbed up and install everything, lol.

 

[STERLING351]

God i love your car, that intake is sick and the exterior is modest but looks good, what do i need to do to be in your will to get this car?

 

[Turbo98]

God i love your car, that intake is sick and the exterior is modest but looks good, what do i need to do to be in your will to get this car?

Thanks. As far as the will goes, I'll keep you in mind, lol.

 

[STERLING351]

Thanks. As far as the will goes, I'll keep you in mind, lol.

It will be in a good home, from a huge mustang family, we have everything from very nice 100% stock collectors like my 1993 Cobra in my sig to my awesome 1969 Mach1 resto-beast also in the sig.

 

[ruthless]

That kinking in the hose kinda scares me.

 

[Turbo98]

Yeah, I know. I've been thinking abou that. I didn't set that up but will have to go braided at some point. I may do it when I swap the turbos.

 

[Turbo98]

I've had many small issues but IT’S ALIVE AGAIN!!!

Well, FINALLY got it filled up and fired up again. I still have 3 out of the 4 NPT joints at the temp sensors seeping fluid. I just got the new fittings in so I’ll fix that in the next day or so.

So we took it out on its maiden voyage!! Man, I really like how everything works and feels. This auto makes this beast a whole different animal. All I can say is I wish I would have done it sooner. Can’t wait to unleash it under some serious boost. The tune needs to be touched up as it will sometimes die when put into gear (you can see this at the end of the video). But other than that, I’m really impressed with how it performs and it has exceeded my expectations so far. One step closer to completion!

Again, it’s not the best video but you get the idea.

'98 Turbo Cobra First Drive After 4R70W Swap - YouTube

 

[Turbo98]

The old turbos are out. Here’s a comparison. So I’ll get these new ones in and then get the exhaust pipes fixed up:

 

[ruthless]

Oh my that a huge difference.

 

[90goldtsiawd]

Awesome! Plans to hit the track soon?

 

[Turbo98]

Finally got the turbo drain lines rebuilt in braided for a few reasons. I was going to do it later but figured now is the time while doing the turbo swap. One was to get rid of a kink which I didn’t like. Two because of the heat, over time the pushlock can split at the turbo fitting. Three is because one of the fittings at the turbo had a 3/8” NPT end instead of ½” like everything else.


This is the line that had a decent kink in it:


At some point soon, I’ll also replace the pushlock going from the scavenger pump to the pan. There is a small kink in that but it’s not as compromising because the oil is being pumped in that line.

Oh, I also got the turbos mocked up. They fit well even with the larger compressor housing. Waiting on a couple of turbo inlet gaskets and I can bolt them up for good:

Pass. side:


Driv. side:


I’m almost done running the vacuum lines for the EBC/wastegates/turbos. So it’s getting there I guess.

 

[Turbo98]

Awesome! Plans to hit the track soon?

When it's finished. It should be a 150-160 car.

 

[Turbo98]

Got all the vacuum lines finished up, turbos bolted up with all new stainless hardware, new drain lines on, feeds hooked up, went over all the silicone connector clamps, and did a few other misc. things. Oh, I also clearanced the bumper support on the pass. side so the filter clears better. Just a few pics before getting the pipes fixed up and putting the front back on, etc.

Downpipes are about 2 1/8” short:


Random, lol:




More later….

 

[Eatonualive281]

any reason you chose not to go with the new v band housings? simplicity im guessing

 

[Turbo98]

Well, I just didn’t see any real advantage with the v-band housing—specifically the v-band inlet. Yes, there is a benefit to the housing discharge outlet being the v-band as the exhaust is more streamlined when it’s still expanding which reduces backpressure. All other variables being equal, the backpressure at the inlet is mainly due to the housing a/r and turbine wheel size. The exhaust is funneled to the wheel within the housing. Precision told me that the inlet size on the v-band housing is like 2” in diameter which is smaller than the 2 ½” up-pipe! So in my mind, there’s no way I’m going smaller. If anything, I’d go with a T4 which is larger. But again, using similar logic, I don’t see the need with a .82 a/r T3. Plus the obvious changes I’d have to make to the pipes with a different style housing.

I also got to looking at my rectangular inlet flanges and when they welded it to the up-pipes, they squared the pipes off nicely for a good smooth flow. Here’s a quick pic:


So all in all, I believe these turbos will work really well with this combo. I’m sure there are better options but with everything considered, they’ll push close to 1100rwhp no problem if I wanted. With the converter, spool won’t be an issue either.

If I would have seen a benefit to the v-band housing, I would have jumped on it!

 

[Turbo98]

Well, I finally got the car in and out of the shop and the new exhaust is DONE. I took it to Craven Performance in St. Peters, MO. They did an awesome job! They basically re-made the downpipes. They could have modified the ones I had but by the time they spent a lot of time messing with them and re-welding, etc, it was just better to rebuild them from scratch for a cleaner set-up. The wastegate placements turned out real nice—right off the bends in the up-pipe like they should be. These wastegates are so compact and they fit really neatly. It should make extreme power with efficient wastegate dumping and good boost control. I still need to hook up the vacuum lines and tidy up some stuff but here are some pics:




Driver’s side:








Pass. side:

 

[SIr RicCuS]

Sweet ride. Can't wait for mine to be done.

 

[Turbo98]

Well, not much of an update. But I officially got invited to the KOTS (King of the Street) competition. Kind of cool I guess. I’m not sure I can make it if I don’t get the car back soon.

 

[ruthless]

How does one go about getting invited to KOTS? Not sure if I would ever take the Cobra but my current project should run pretty darn good. With any luck it might be done next summer.

 

[90goldtsiawd]

Well, not much of an update. But I officially got invited to the KOTS (King of the Street) competition. Kind of cool I guess. I’m not sure I can make it if I don’t get the car back soon.

That's awesome that you were recognized for it! You have an extremely efficient setup and I think it would run well if you get enough seat time in it. Hope you can make it!