6th Blown Turbo

[jongig]

Yes that's right, I've gone through 6 turbos in my 2005 Outback GT. The car is in great shape and I've toyed with getting rid of it but I just love it and it breaks my heart that Subaru could never fix this car right. The car has 122,000 miles on it and the last turbo failure at 83,000 miles they replaced the block also. I baby this car and I let the car idle at start up when turning it off for a minute. I run only synthetic oil and the car is garage kept.

I'm looking for advice on what to do with the car and if there is anything Subaru should do. The car is no longer under warranty. I can replace the turbo and then sell the car but I'd always know that someone else is going to have a problem. The problem in the first 5 turbos was considered to be that they couldn't get the metal filings out of the engine and so they replaced the block. I said to them at the time that since other parts are just being put back on couldn't I still have this issue come back. They didn't know because they were not that familiar with the turbo problem I was having. hey did tell me that the Subaru has a problem with a banjo bolt that has a screen in it but I would have guessed that was fixed.

Thanks for taking the time.

john

[subiesailor]

I'm thinking that maybe you bought the wrong car? Turbo's require a different attitude and thought process regarding use or you do break and blow stuff up. Do you remember the late 80's and early 90's every auto maker was selling turbo this and that. Shoot Chrysler even sold a turbo mini van and nearly every car had a turbo.

The reason you do not see turbos put on all cars is because they actually do require a different mindset and driving style to ensure that your not encouraging and doing things that cause them to fail. Subaru didn't stop offering the turbo in the outback just because. The WRX has a long history of being one of the most durable high strung turbo cheap cars built the XT is actually viewed as a very special specialty car with a very low volume sales which is why Subaru saw no reason to keep selling it. Not to mention that the people who buy a tall SUV like vehicle are generally not the type of person who are fully aware of the Turbo and what that entails regarding use.

It could be argued that the WRX is the same way but the WRX has not been pitched and sold as a family wagon it has always been sold as a performance car for the most part. So the audience and buyers of the WRX will have a higher rate of turbo knowledge than you normal OB owner and shopper.

The only Turbo I will ever own in a normal every day car will be diesel or a low pressure turbo engine like say the new Ford v6 direct injection engine. If I want a high output high pressure turbo Porsche comes to mind you get what you pay for and there is no illusions that flogging that car and beating on it will probably result at some point in a busted turbo but its also built with more of that in mind and you have paid for that higher level of engineering to deal with that type of driving. The XT not so much

[Seabass]

If they just replaced the block and not the oil cooler or other parts, then they did not fix the problem. The repeated failures show that the problem was not fixed properly the first several times. But if there were metal shavings still in the oil, it would have caused a failure in much less than 40k miles. You should check the banjo filter for debris. Any idea what failed on the current turbo? How often are you changing the oil? Any possibility that you ran low on oil?

[canubaru]

make subaru buy it back. the problem is well documented.

it's a lemon, there are laws protecting you against this sort of thing.

[jongig]

Originally Posted by subiesailor

I'm thinking that maybe you bought the wrong car? Turbo's require a different attitude and thought process regarding use or you do break and blow stuff up. Do you remember the late 80's and early 90's every auto maker was selling turbo this and that. Shoot Chrysler even sold a turbo mini van and nearly every car had a turbo.

The reason you do not see turbos put on all cars is because they actually do require a different mindset and driving style to ensure that your not encouraging and doing things that cause them to fail. Subaru didn't stop offering the turbo in the outback just because. The WRX has a long history of being one of the most durable high strung turbo cheap cars built the XT is actually viewed as a very special specialty car with a very low volume sales which is why Subaru saw no reason to keep selling it. Not to mention that the people who buy a tall SUV like vehicle are generally not the type of person who are fully aware of the Turbo and what that entails regarding use.

It could be argued that the WRX is the same way but the WRX has not been pitched and sold as a family wagon it has always been sold as a performance car for the most part. So the audience and buyers of the WRX will have a higher rate of turbo knowledge than you normal OB owner and shopper.

The only Turbo I will ever own in a normal every day car will be diesel or a low pressure turbo engine like say the new Ford v6 direct injection engine. If I want a high output high pressure turbo Porsche comes to mind you get what you pay for and there is no illusions that flogging that car and beating on it will probably result at some point in a busted turbo but its also built with more of that in mind and you have paid for that higher level of engineering to deal with that type of driving. The XT not so much

I have no idea what you're talking about, "wrong car"? I like this car and I like the fact that it doesn't look fast but manages to outrun everything at a light. With a 5 speed manual this car is just perfect for me. I don't beat on it though. I never run the engine hard when it's cold or recently started. I let the car sit for a minute before shutting it down. I change the oil every 3,000 miles. I keep it clean and I don't run it on dirt roads or anything like that. This is what I meant by babying it but I make sure it gets good gas and I keep the carbon from building up.

John

[jongig]

Originally Posted by Seabass

If they just replaced the block and not the oil cooler or other parts, then they did not fix the problem. The repeated failures show that the problem was not fixed properly the first several times. But if there were metal shavings still in the oil, it would have caused a failure in much less than 40k miles. You should check the banjo filter for debris. Any idea what failed on the current turbo? How often are you changing the oil? Any possibility that you ran low on oil?

the turbo is making the whining noise but it has not failed yet and this morning I left it at the dealer. The oil is changed at 3,000 with synthetic.

The second turbo lasted nearly this long and then the next few didn't last a week or month. One of them didn't make it through the weekend.

I'm a bit fuzzy on the last turbo because it was back in 2009. I kind of recall that they fitted a new turbo then ran the car and then decided to replace the block. I'm not too certain and as I write this it doesn't make a lot of sense.

Is there anything I should do at this point and should I leave the car with Subaru? I know they are just going to report back that I need to hand them over $1,800 or so for a new turbo.

I called a lemon law attorney and due to the cars age I'm out of luck here in PA.

[subiesailor]

Originally Posted by jongig

I have no idea what you're talking about, "wrong car"? I like this car and I like the fact that it doesn't look fast but manages to outrun everything at a light. With a 5 speed manual this car is just perfect for me. I don't beat on it though. I never run the engine hard when it's cold or recently started. I let the car sit for a minute before shutting it down. I change the oil every 3,000 miles. I keep it clean and I don't run it on dirt roads or anything like that. This is what I meant by babying it but I make sure it gets good gas and I keep the carbon from building up.

John

Turbos fail from lack of oil - short trips around town and with this one various parts not being replaced correctly when the first one failed etc.

If your doing long highway trips with constant speeds the turbo is great - short around town errands lots of stop and go slow speed stuff the turbo is basically getting the worst possible use for its design.

[Seabass]

I'm sorry to hear about the lemon law not applying.

If the turbo hasn't catastrophically failed yet, then you might consider replacing it yourself. BNR supercars can rebuild the turbo with a new chra as well as inspect your current turbo and figure out what caused the failure. That would actually be by far the cheapest (and smartest) solution and considering that all of the moving parts would be replaced, you are basically getting a new turbo but recycling the housing. You would have to get an upgraded oil line to get BNR's warranty. I am partial to this option because they can tell you if the failure was caused by oil contamination. If there is oil contamination, then you know you can't just strap on another turbo.

Or you can just have the dealership replace another turbo and cross your fingers that it will not die quickly.

What oil are you using?

[jongig]

Originally Posted by subiesailor

Turbos fail from lack of oil - short trips around town and with this one various parts not being replaced correctly when the first one failed etc.

If your doing long highway trips with constant speeds the turbo is great - short around town errands lots of stop and go slow speed stuff the turbo is basically getting the worst possible use for its design.

I use a Nissan for the short trips and my commute is about 12 miles, highway or long windy roads. This car keeps me from road rage because I can pass so quickly most cars don't know what went past them. It's a mix of driving but I like the power and use it daily.

[jongig]

Originally Posted by Seabass

I'm sorry to hear about the lemon law not applying.

If the turbo hasn't catastrophically failed yet, then you might consider replacing it yourself. BNR supercars can rebuild the turbo with a new chra as well as inspect your current turbo and figure out what caused the failure. That would actually be by far the cheapest (and smartest) solution and considering that all of the moving parts would be replaced, you are basically getting a new turbo but recycling the housing. You would have to get an upgraded oil line to get BNR's warranty. I am partial to this option because they can tell you if the failure was caused by oil contamination. If there is oil contamination, then you know you can't just strap on another turbo.

Or you can just have the dealership replace another turbo and cross your fingers that it will not die quickly.

What oil are you using?

Castrol oil.

I went to the BNR site and they look like nice units.