Should turbos be avoided for longevity?

[JTK]

With good overall vehicle maintenance, they should last the 150-200K the typical rust belt vehicle lasts.

Problem is, your typical domestic is having problems with them on your run of the mill eco-minded GDI, turbo 4-banger before that.

 

[brianl703]

240k on my 2006 Volvo S40 T5, no turbo issues yet. I don't use a turbo timer or any special cooldown routine.

Modern turbos are water-cooled, and from what I understand, no special cooldown routine is needed for that reason.

 

[SwampSurvivor]

People fall all over themselves over turbodiesels and perceived longevity, but if it's a turbo gasoline engine, the turbo apparently is supposed to fail a lot?

 

[SwampSurvivor]

Modern turbos are water-cooled, and from what I understand, no special cooldown routine is needed for that reason.

And on top of that, most will cycle coolant after shutdown. Either by thermosiphoning or auxiliary electric water pump.

 

[TiGeo]

I have been car shopping and it seems most all cars have turbos on them now days should any car be avoided with one if you want longevity? I keep my cars until i hit 300,000 to 400,000 miles as i drive a lot.

For most people the turbos probably don't affect as most people don't keep there cars long enough to have it die but i do. My buddy says that little 1.5L gas engines with a turbo will never last 300k-400k as it's a small motor with added stress from the turbo and naturally aspirated engine is the way to go for longevity and no repair bills.

Is he right or full of it?

So you have to replace a turbo....this isn't a gianormous expensive repair here if it even happens. So what? No vehicle is going 400K without some stuff being replaced.

All the cool down talk? This is 2023....the engineers have worked that into it. My VW had an aux coolant pump that runs after shutdown. Don't let hte internet boogie man stuff get to you.

 

[Fla]

given a choice, I'd stay away from a turbocharged gasoline engine, but judging by the state of things and what is offered nowadays, it is going to be harder and harder to stay away from in the future.

that said there is no reason a a turbo wont last a long time, provided the owner of the vehicle keeps the oil clean and allows the engine a short cooldown period before they shut the engine off.

In general, I agree with this. Good quality turbos have been used in trucks and in all sorts military vehicles for a long time and have been generally reliable. BUT (there's always a but!) it's all going to depend on how good the original build quality is and how good the engine design is, and that's where most automobile manufacturers have repeatedly failed. Ford's EcoBoost engines run good but Ford had a huge problem with the intercoolers condensing and trapping water and then the EB engines ingesting the water upon sudden acceleration and the water destroyed (catastropicly! ) the engines. One guy that I know went thru 3 complete engine replacements under warranty before he gave up and sold his F-150. Ford had to redesign the intercoolers at least three times to fix the problem. That problem should have been found in testing and should never have reached the market. But as always, the car companies are in rush to deliver new designs and they content to let their customers discover the problems on their own, much to their bitter regret!

Personally I would avoid vehicles that use turbochargers if I could. But as others have pointed out they're becoming more and more common. If you do buy something with a turbo, only buy a model that has been out for a few years so that there is a track record of what kind of problems you can expect (and the costs to fix them) and what reliability to expect. I recommend the same thing for any new model car, new model engine or new model transmission. Let it PROVE itself before you buy.

 

[Passport1]

In my experience I've never cuddled with any of my turbos after a hard ride. Just turn 'em off and move on. None of them ever failed to be ready for the next high speed romp.

 

[IndyIan]

So you have to replace a turbo....this isn't a gianormous expensive repair here if it even happens. So what? No vehicle is going 400K without some stuff being replaced.

All the cool down talk? This is 2023....the engineers have worked that into it. My VW had an aux coolant pump that runs after shutdown. Don't let hte internet boogie man stuff get to you.

On your car, there's good reason to have a turbo(makes power, is fun), but on a commuter car/SUV? It seems to add nothing but complexity to the vehicle? Not better mileage, and with a CVT or million speed auto, having some low end torque to hold a gear isn't really a benefit? The gas pedal is just an indicator you want more acceleration now, the drivetrain just makes is happen in the most efficient manner, be it actually opening the throttle, or downshifting a little bit, or both. What gear or rpm or isn't important.

 

[BMWTurboDzl]

I have been car shopping and it seems most all cars have turbos on them now days should any car be avoided with one if you want longevity? I keep my cars until i hit 300,000 to 400,000 miles as i drive a lot.

For most people the turbos probably don't affect as most people don't keep there cars long enough to have it die but i do. My buddy says that little 1.5L gas engines with a turbo will never last 300k-400k as it's a small motor with added stress from the turbo and naturally aspirated engine is the way to go for longevity and no repair bills.

Is he right or full of it?

Turbo failures are rare.
Turbo related repairs are probable. Turbos have oil, coolant lines which like any other line can develop a leak. Wastegate actuators can fail at some point but it's usually plug-n-play swap. Charge pipes can crack. Intercoolers (many are liquid cooled today) can leak. Basically it just boils down to the set up you're looking at.


Turbos are less tolerant of haphazard maintenance.

 

[PimTac]

Drive it without worries.

To the OP, how many miles will you put on this vehicle in a year?

 

[BMWTurboDzl]

People fall all over themselves over turbodiesels and perceived longevity, but if it's a turbo gasoline engine, the turbo apparently is supposed to fail a lot?

Compared to petrol, diesel turbos operate at somewhat lower temps. IIRC the temp difference is around 200C.

 

[Revving2Redline]

I understand your concerns, if it's that serious you may just have to modify your maintenance schedule and for some depending on if you're going to start putting parts on it or driving it like you stole it you might have to use just a better quality of oil that is not found at Walmart. I also want to encourage you to think on the glass is half empty half full mentality. 27won sales aftermarket turbos for Honda and Acura that are a replacement to the factory but you get more power and the turbo seem to be very well priced. you could also look at it like hey if your turbo fails two or $300,000 miles now is an opportunity for next to nothing to throw on a bigger turbo and turn it into your hobby car. yeah there's a lot of worry and concern but as time goes forward you can't go back. I would just look at changing the oil a little bit more often and I surely wouldn't probably use any zero w20 oils unless they just had magnificent specs and even then I would let the oil change go over about 4 or 5000 miles. I would look at getting after the warranty is out a turbo timer from GReddy or Apex'i. probably adding a high flow exhaust wouldn't hurt either, as long as you keep your foot out of it you get better fuel economy and a better sound and it would get some of that heat out of the engine a little bit faster.

 

[jeepman3071]

Might be FUD but I question the notion of anything going 400k. A car is a collection of systems, any of which can fail.

A turbo should cost less than a trans rebuild, and an automatic is something of a wear item, so… Plus, just where is the limit? when repair cost outweighs vehicle value? few cars are going 200k without some level of repair.

+1

Too many variables to make an accurate judgement. It would be a toss up between a car that has a turbo but manual transmission, and one that is a N/A but with a CVT. Life is too short to make decisions like this based on what 'might' be reliable. Make the judgement call based on research you have done, and what you enjoy driving. Don't buy a car you hate driving because it 'might' be more reliable.

 

[stormgol]

my 2021 mazda 3 awd has mitsubishi turbo as original equipment. i do the severe service oil change interval of 8000km. and i feed it a steady diet of pennzoil ultra 5w30. i fear this turbo might even outlast me.

 

[Revving2Redline]

I get really excited thinking about turbos! especially if I can get a really loud blow off valve, or performance induction kit and an exhaust. hitting 3000 RPM is just the beginning of where smiles start and hoping that the miles never end. it will make you grin.

 

[hrv]

Modern turbos are water-cooled, and from what I understand, no special cooldown routine is needed for that reason.

Even in the 80s the Chrysler turbos were water cooled...

 

[ChrisLX]

Drive it without worries.

To the OP, how many miles will you put on this vehicle in a year?

Around 27,000 to 30,000 a year.

 

[chris719]

It depends on the turbo. Mitsubishi single stage turbos are incredibly reliable and that's what Honda uses on their engines and you don't hear about issues with them and for good reason. But those junk American or German non single stage turbos will have a much higher chance of failing you during the long term ownership.

Lol, one of the most failure prone parts of the BMW N54 engine are the two Mitsubishi turbos. The N55’s twin scroll BorgWarner turbo is far more reliable. You can’t make sweeping generalizations.

 

[dishdude]

The way cars hold their value these days it doesn't make sense to keep long term, swap it every 2-3 years and enjoy a new car that's under warranty.

 

[ChrisLX]

So you have to replace a turbo....this isn't a gianormous expensive repair here if it even happens. So what? No vehicle is going 400K without some stuff being replaced.

You sure about that? What about the tundra twin turbos waste gate fail. There are complaints about fords eco boost all over and Hondas 1.5L CRV oil dilution.