Note: Part 1 is intended to provide background information to your average performance laymen. This covers the absolute basics, and should be considered as part of a series rather than a complete guide. Future chapters in this series will go in depth into the more advanced factors involved in turbocharging.

The advent of improved international standardized manufacturing techniques and standards has led most folks to come to the realization that cars are made a lot better than they were ten years ago. Simply put, improved mechanical tolerances and increased reliability have greatly increased. If anything, that should encourage you to coax a little (or a lot) more power out of your car.

A lot of folks go down the path of traditional powertrain modification. They do your average "breather mods" (intakes, headers, exhaust), play with fuel maps, modify ignition timing. Those with more time, know-how, and money on their hands resort to headwork -- porting, polishing, cams, etc. However, it's the dream of many an automotive tuner to seek power through forced induction (turbocharging, for one) and creating more power from less displacement, which, essentially, is what turbocharging is. For most people, there are some VERY expensive aftermarket turbo kits out there. Those with money will trust experts to install such a setup. For those who don't have so much money but KNOW WHAT THEY ARE DOING, there are turbo setups that cost in the hundreds of dollars rather than in the thousands. This article is just to give you insight on some of the possibilities that exist. IF YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT YOU ARE DOING, don't proceed! Turbocharging your engine improperly is a VERY easy way to cause thousands of dollars in damages, not to mention serious risk of damage to one's self. If you do something dumb, we take NO RESPONSIBILITY

For the laymen who can't distinguish a camshaft from a halfshaft, here's turbocharger theory 101 in a nutshell. Engines are designed to work like a pump. Air and fuel are mixed together, and then ignited. The explosion provides power. Air and fuel must be combined in a specific ratio -- 14.5 of air to one part of fuel. If there is too much fuel in relation to air, the engine runs in a state of "richness". This leads to poor performance and lower fuel economy. An excess of air in relation to fuel will cause the engine to run in a state of "leanness". This leads to bad bad things -- detonation (explosions happening before they should, when the engine is in a poor position to receive the benefits of it), and high combustion temperatures (which, if hot enough, WILL melt parts of your engine). The point is to maintain that magical "stoichiometric" ratio of about 14.5 to 1. Ok. Pay attention -- this part is where power comes in. The more of this 14.5-to-1 air/fuel mixture you can force into your engine and ignite, the more power it will make. A turbo charger is essentially a double-sided pinwheel. The rapidly flowing exhaust gases spin the exhaust side (the hot side). This is connected via a turbine shaft to the compressor side (the cold side), which spins up in the range of tens of thousands of RPM. This action pressurizes the air intake charge -- thereby forcing more air into the engine. Now, if you've been following along this whole time, you should be asking yourself, "won't all this extra air cause the engine to run in a state of leaness?" That's correct! Specially designed fuel injection setups provide the extra fuel your engine needs.

At this point, you reach the two most important questions involved with turbocharging. 1) How do I get a turbo attached to my car and 2) how do I provide enough extra fuel in the right amounts at the right time to accommodate this influx of air?

The easy way.

If there is a turbocharged version of your engine on the market, you'll have an easier time finding parts and doing the installations. This makes things MUCH easier and cheaper, seeing as a) chances are, your car's manufacturer has designed proper clearances and tolerances into your car to accept turbocharging and b) these parts are quite plentiful and cheap at your local junkyard! This includes (but isn't necessarily limited to) 3rd and 4th generation Toyota Supra, all generations of the Nissan 300zx, 1st and 3rd generation of the Nissan 200sx, 2nd generation Toyota MR2, 91-99 Mitsubishi 3000GT. In part four of this series, we'll do our best to post a more complete list -- including the myriad of turbo Saabs, Volvo's, and Porsches out there. The parts you'll need from your car's turbo big brother will include the turbo, oil lines, turbo manifold, intercooler, compressor bypass valve (more commonly known as the blow-off-valve), downpipe, ECU, injectors, fuel pressure regulator, fuel pump, air flow meter, and as much as the intake/intercooler piping as possible. Here's a breakdown of what each part does.


The Turbo

It's the power adder, silly. When picking one up from the junkyard, make sure the turbine wheel spins freely. Also, make sure the wheel has no play. It should spin--period. It shouldn't wobble, it should wiggle, it shouldn't move in and out. The average price of a used turbo is in the $100-$200 range. Try to get the factory oil lines that go to and from the turbo. You will need to tap the sender line into the block someplace, and the return line into the oilpan to ensure a flow of oil through the turbo.



Turbo Exhaust Manifold

This replaces your stock exhaust manifold. Rather than guiding spent exhaust gases straight into your downpipe and out of your tailpipe, the turbo manifold directs the exhaust gases into your turbo to spin it. If one isn’t in existence for your vehicle, it can be manufactured for anywhere in the $400-$800 range.


Turbo Downpipe

Chances are, your factory non-turbo downpipe will not mate up properly with the turbo exhaust outlet. If the turbo downpipe is unavailable for your car, your local muffler shop can fabricate one for about $150. An aftermarket unit will cost upwards of $200.

Make sure you get the downpipe to mate with your catalytic converter and exhaust system.


Intercooler

Much like a radiator for the incoming air charge, the intercooler cools the intake air charge to temperatures closer to ambient, condensing it and allowing you to fit more into each combustion stroke. This also helps in reducing combustion temperatures (bad) and helping prevent against detonation (also bad). Stock units from the junkyard can usually be had for between $25-$75.


Compressor Bypass Valve (CBV) or Blow Off Valve (BOV).

This is what usually makes that cool pffffsssshtt sound on turbocharged cars. This valve does more than make that funny noise, however. Its main purpose is to relieve the pressure on the intake air charge between shifts. When you shift, you usually let off the gas pedal. That in turn slams the throttle plate shut. Your pressurized intake charge now has no where to go. What the CBV does is vent this pressurized air -- either back into the metered intake stream in the plumbing before the turbo, or out into the atmosphere. If this air is not vented, it will send a pressure wave back down to the turbo, trying to reverse the direction that the turbo is spinning. This is not good for turbine longevity. Decent OEM CBV’s will usually retail for about $30-$50. There are benefits of going with aftermarket units like the Greddy Type S, which is adjustable