turbo madness

[velocifunktion]

about three weeks ago i bought my 00 svt contour. already i'm thinking about building up a custom turbo install for it. i've done it a couple time before on various cars so i know a few things, but not enough. my first question would be how well the internals of the motor can handle boost. after alls said and done i'd like to push anywhere from 8 to 12 pounds of boost, but thats a way down the road. all i need to know is how the pistons and head will hold up to boost and any other knowledge you may be willing to spare.

 

[GR8WHITE]

Unless memory is off today, the Contours' compression is a bit too high for that much boost. The problem will be with the crank and pistons. The heads flow quite well, I think the internals are a little weak though.

 

[velocifunktion]

i was planning on getting the head stacked, but most likely not because i don't want to trust a gasket with 10 pounds of my hard earned boost. more than likely i was going to look into lower compression pistons, if they exhist. i've heard of places making custom applications for not too much dough, so pistons were my plan on lowering compression. but you say that internals are weak, so you don't think the crank and rods will hold up to the stress. if there are any other weak areas i'd like to know bcse when i do this i'm gonna do it right, even though it'll be a year and a half down the road.

 

[GR8WHITE]

Check and make sure the crank is forged. I don't think the factory one is, but I may be wrong. The connecting rods will need to be forged as well. I know the factory ones are cast. You'll need some good bearings and ARP hardware to hold it all together. JE and Eagle will make the pistons and rods you need. They probably won't kill you either. They may even have them in stock.
You'll also need to do a shitload of under the hood heat insulating. Turbos generate so much heat it is unreal. Coating the outside of the intakes is also a small trick to help keep them cool and save HP. All the exhaust should be coated as well.

I'll keep adding as I can think of things or find then out.

The SHO Shop may have all the items you need. SHO Shop

 

[Rara]

In all honesty, the con rods are the limiting factor. Some testing by ford and other independant shops, put the stock rods good to ~280hp or so. Though there are a few guys out there running more than that on stock rods without failure.

The next weak link is the pistons, then the block, then the crank.

I would think that you could run up to maybe 10psi of intercooled boost (with a proper tune) and still maintain some semblance of reliability, though keep in mind that doing this to any kind of car not meant for it has some risk associated w/ it.

I would highly recommend fitting a Dual mode damper to the engine as well, this will help w/ engine longevity (the Duratech crank is susceptable to crank whip w/ the stock damper, doesn't break the crank, but will wipe a bearing eventually)

check out www.contour.org and look around for Chris Hightower. He is working w/ a company called StreetFlight to develop a turbo kit for the SVT Contour. The kit uses a Garrett T3-based turbo and a water to air intercooler. They are getting close to being ready to offer the kit for sale, and IIRC they are around 280-290 hp at the wheels at 9 psi of boost. I know Chris personally, and I have been following the turbo project for quite awhile, and I am quite impressed w/ thier efforts, in fact much of what they have done is EXACTLY the way I would have done it myself.

 

[Ryan]

I'd rather have a bottle or 2:-D

 

[GR8WHITE]

Originally posted by RTStabler51
I'd rather have a bottle or 2:-D

A junky is born ;-)

 

[Ryan]

:thumbsup: :thumbsup: :thumbsup: :thumbsup:
:beer: :beer: :beer: :beer:

 

[04Mystic]

Originally posted by RTStabler51
I'd rather have a bottle or 2:-D

And when those bottles run out of squeeze i'll be passing you bye:thumbsup: :-D :coolman:

 

[Ryan]

You should be passing me anyways!!!