Modern Turbo Engine Reliability and Durability

[wolverine86]

I'm curious what the BITOG community's experience with modern turbo engines is. Are they durable and reliable? Can they last 200K miles or more without major repairs or maintenance (other than oil and coolant changes)? To me, it's hard to visualize turbo engines lasting as long as NA engines. But maybe your experiences will prove that wrong! Turbochargers can spin at 100,000 rpm or more, and I saw a video on YouTube (hey, that alone means everything in it MUST be true, right?! ok, sarc off) in which a guy recommended that a car with a turbo engine be warmed up for a minute or so after startup before driving off and also be allowed to idle for a minute or more before being shut down. Apparently this is to prevent or at least reduce oil "coking" and leaving harmful deposits in the turbocharger. It appears that manufacturers are moving to these types of engines in part to meet the increasingly onerous fuel economy regulations the government is imposing and to provide more engine power from a smaller displacement engine.

All the vehicles we own currently have NA engines, and I've never owned a vehicle with a turbocharger in the past - so I have no experience with turbos. So I'm curious what your long term experiences and thoughts are with turbo engines. One thing for sure is that the number of newer car models with NA engines is steadily decreasing, so many of us in the future may be forced into buying turbo engined vehicles whether we want them or not.

About 3 years ago or so my mom purchased a late model used compact SUV to replace her 2007 Honda CR-V (which my son is now driving). I steered her away from later model CR-V's primarily because they use turbo engines. So she got a 2018 Mazda CX-5 instead, which has a NA 2.5L Skyactiv engine. It is direct injected, which has its own problems and risks, but that's a whole other discussion! But at least it doesn't have a turbocharger spinning at 100K rpm or more.

 

[SHOZ]

I have 133k miles on my 2L turbo in my Genesis Coupe. No problems engine wise. Makes 20+ PSI at times.

 

[supton]

Hard to make general statements. H/K is doing a good job showing that NA motors aren't "always" reliable.

Low pressure turbos that Volvo used to use were quite reliable. But that's not quite modern... no idea what they are doing today, but their "old" turbos were not problematic.

IMO it's manufacturer and engine model specific. Not all DI motors had carbon problems when they came out, and a great deal of them have gotten past that. So I'd focus more on a particular model and find out if it's reliable, rather than look for blanket statements.

I had an older turbo model (2004) and I always loved it. Turbo lag is generally hated, but I kinda liked it. Just a split second, then you knew the power was going to pour on (ok a bit over the top there, mine was slow, but still, it really widened the power range).

 

[atikovi]

I'd be more concerned about the transmissions on modern engines than the turbo. Even if they do fail, they are relatively cheap. I remember looking up the price for a Chevy Cruze turbo a few years back and it was like $400 right from GM.

 

[Propflux01]

Turbos in diesel trucks have been used for years and 100's of 1000's of miles. If the bottom end is beefed than no issue other than turbo itself. The "idle for 2 minutes" thing was for older oil-only cooled turbos. Now, most have a water jacket that cools them down eliminating this need.

 

[SC Maintenance]

I'd be more concerned about the transmissions on modern engines than the turbo. Even if they do fail, they are relatively cheap. I remember looking up the price for a Chevy Cruze turbo a few years back and it was like $400 right from GM.

Also depends. The ZF and Aisin ones have proven reliable. I mean ones they actually build themselves - not ones they license which then get screwed up by the licensee.

 

[b_b]

this horse has been beat to death on bitgo. a N/A engine is less prone to issues just based on statistical analysis. less parts, simpler system. That does not mean a turbo engine cant go 200k+ miles without major failure. Its just statistically has higher chance of having an issue.

 

[atlsrt45]

Last turbo car i had was a 2005 neon srt4. I had the mopar stage 3 turbo on there. Had to have the turbo rebuilt after about 50k miles.

Thats been almost 20yrs so i imagine they have improved since but in my simple brain a boosted engine is under alot more stress than a larger displacement na engine.

 

[Astro14]

Original miles. Original engine, original transmission, original turbo charger.

Yeah. They last. This subject gets brought up every couple of months, the same concern, and I have the same answer for you.

Seven cars with turbo chargers in my fleet. Nine total turbos.

I have yet to replace a single turbo.

 

[RooflessVW]

I saw a video on YouTube (hey, that alone means everything in it MUST be true, right?! ok, sarc off) in which a guy recommended that a car with a turbo engine be warmed up for a minute or so after startup before driving off and also be allowed to idle for a minute or more before being shut down. Apparently this is to prevent or at least reduce oil "coking" and leaving harmful deposits in the turbocharger.

80's mindset.

 

[thastinger]

BIL bought the first year F150 3.5EB. He put 220K issue free miles on that thing doing 3K jiffy lube oil changes. AFAIK it never towed anything behind it and the vast majority of those miles were highway miles. He traded it in on a 2500 GMC duramax and it probably has 200K on it by now, he hasn't had any issues with that one that I'm aware of.

 

[Pew]

I have had two turbo cars. I would have no qualms with buying another assuming there's no known problems with the engine. A poorly designed engine is a poorly designed engine regardless of the turbo.

Edit; I'd like to add that our Evo group have also never had a turbo failure.

 

[wpod]

With a 4 cyl engine compared to a V8 there is less parts to fail ,, no? With a turbo there will be turbo problems , with out a turbo there won't be turbo problems. Turbo engines are nice to drive.

 

[Marcozi]

80's mindset.

Actually, it's true. My bimmer (B58 engine) idles at ~1100rpm for about 15 seconds before reverting to ~800rpm at every start, including warm starts. This insures that the turbo is getting proper oil and coolant flows.

 

[supton]

To be fair, I've only owned one turbo, and it did fail. At 255,000 miles it let go.

So I put in a bigger one. Much bigger smile afterward.

But that was a VW, that's kinda like the check engine light, at some point it's just there to remind you that the car is running.

 

[Wrenchturner44]

I'd be more concerned about the transmissions on modern engines than the turbo. Even if they do fail, they are relatively cheap. I remember looking up the price for a Chevy Cruze turbo a few years back and it was like $400 right from GM.

Especially if it is a CVT.

 

[Danh]

Actually, it's true. My bimmer (B58 engine) idles at ~1100rpm for about 15 seconds before reverting to ~800rpm at every start, including warm starts. This insures that the turbo is getting proper oil and coolant flows.

Or it could just be heating the catalytic converter, which is common behavior.

 

[14.1 Grms]

I'm always amused that, given the overall complexity of modern engines, people are terrified of turbos.

The hamster wheel 1.2L engine with a micro turbo on it getting its guts wrung out 110% of the time just to get up to speed on a 25mph street isn't a whole lot different from the gerbil wheel 2.2L normally-aspirated engine getting its guts wrung out 110% of the time just to get up to speed on a 25mph street. One just has a wooshy bit and the other doesn't.

 

[wpod]

To be fair, I've only owned one turbo, and it did fail. At 255,000 miles it let go.

So I put in a bigger one. Much bigger smile afterward.

But that was a VW, that's kinda like the check engine light, at some point it's just there to remind you that the car is running.

Indeed The engine running light lets me know my engine is running as well .

 

[RooflessVW]

Actually, it's true. My bimmer (B58 engine) idles at ~1100rpm for about 15 seconds before reverting to ~800rpm at every start, including warm starts. This insures that the turbo is getting proper oil and coolant flows.

Ok, BMW decided that the B58 needs this feature.