NEW MEMBER HERE.. owner of a Turbo T/A, in pieces - need engine advice

[Duane]

hello,

This is my first post here at this Forum.

I recently purchased a 89 turbo t/a... I know it's not a buick GN.. or T-type or GNX... but it's the best Pontiac Buick ever made I hear!

The car and engine is in pieces. The block has been prepped it's at the machine shop as we speak. I need help on a lot of stuff.
-the turbo is bad. (guy gave me like 4 turbos... all in some sort of state of disrepair) they don't all look the same... close but not the same, a couple of them have part numbers and a couple don't. one of the ones that does I have traced back to a turbo buick. I think they all need rebuilt.
Should I rebuild one? or try to make a good one out of the 4... or sell them all for parts and just buy a new one?
AND... are the tubro buick turbos the same as the T/A turbos?

I guess I'm unclear about what all the differences in the motor are between the turbo T/A and the buicks (besides the heads, pistons, cross drilled crank, and valve covers..) which I have heard are all different slightly.

For example.. I need to buy a gasket set.. all the ones I see on eBay , summit... Jegs... etc all say "grand national" or Turbo buick... or some such. are there any differences?

what about cam selection? should I use the stock one if it's good?

I have boxes of parts... half of them I can't even identify. This is my first Forced induction project. I just wish it had not already been in pieces.

The pieces seem fairly stock... stock DP.. stock exhaust... stock turbo (although I guess i wouldn't technically know) He said it ran an 11.3 years ago, it's got what looks like different than stock injectors (green stripe) and also some kind of aeromotive AFPR on it.

The heads are fresh and the guy had them sent somewhere for porting and they look great... no valve hardware though. so I need to look into rockers, pushrods, valves, springs, etc.

also need a timing set, suggestions?



Also need an oil pump kit... suggestions? (I hear these motors had somewhat of a bad oiling system, so maybe the high volume one is a good choice)

I'm trying to get the car back on the road at least before I look into making it hugely fast.

I really need someone to take me under their wing and educate me on the whole background of things. any help would be greatly appreciated.

I live in WI btw

 

[Jay J]

You can get a pretty good education reading what is on this site. But, it can be like trying to get a drink from a firehose; there is a lot to take in... I would recommend that you get a builder who has done a lot of V-6 Buick builds to get the engine put together correctly. You did not mention what your skill levels are, but if you can do some wrenching, you will save big $$.

 

[Duane]

skill level...
I part F-bodies for a living, also restore cars, and do my own paint and body work. have worked in several dealerships, doing detailing, and paint prep work before going out on my own. I am a graphic designer by trade, have a BFA in graphic design, I also can design cut and apply decals.
I am good at doing mostly all of my own wrenching, but my weak point is usually diagnostics. If someone else identifies a problem, I can mostly always fix it.
My strong points are LT1s SBC 350s. I own a 12 second LT1 6 speed Trans Am which I built from the ground up aside from the short block machine and assembly work, and also this platform tends to be my strong point. I have owned a few 3rd gen TPI cars, but like stated,.... this is my first v6 turbo firebird car. actually never even saw one in person until I got this car.

 

[Jay J]

Sounds like you are up for the challenge, but please keep in mind (sure you've heard it before) that these are NOT small block Chevys!! There are a number of TTA guys on here, and I do remember reading a thread that listed the 50 things to watch for with the F-Body Turbo car. Interesting reading...

 

[1fastcobra]

Just sell it to me.
Andb u won't have to deal with it lol ;-)
if u need help just pm me your #
Will get her back to her former glory.


Posted from the TurboBuick.Com mobile app

 

[Duane]

Just sell it to me.
Andb u won't have to deal with it lol ;-)
if u need help just pm me your #
Will get her back to her former glory.


Posted from the TurboBuick.Com mobile app

actually.... it probably is going to be for sale when it's done. I might have to take it to the track once or twice... just cuz I've never been down the road in a turbo T/A before

 

[suluman78]

Hey! Welcome! Where I'm Wisconsin are you?

Posted from the TurboBuick.Com mobile app

 

[earlbrown]

You might want to keep it after it mops the floor with your LT1. That being said, without first hand experience you've happened on to the trickiest repair you could possible do on a turbo Buick.

Honestly if you're just going to get it running to sell it, I'd just find a used shortblock in good shape, move your heads over and dump it. Do to the VERY high rate of new engines dieing quickly, this is one car where 'fresh rebuild' is NOT a selling point.

On the upside internal engine parts for a stock rebuild aren't really that expensive. I'm guessing all the parts you have aren't 100% junk? If you're going to build the shortblock yourself it's not as bad as everybody makes it out to be.... IF you have a set of mics, a bore gauge, good torque wrench, mag base, dial indicator, and check EVERYTHING as it's going together.
If everything is built right you've got a tough rotating assembly that you can beat on for years..... EXCEPT for the cam train. Breaking in a flat tappet cam with these engines requires a LOT of voodoo, STRICT procedure, and you're still not 100% guaranteed to not go flat and take out the engine, turbo, and oil cooler. If you're just wanting to put the car together to sell, I'm guessing you don't want to spend an extra $800 to go roller.
It is good you realize the importance of a good oil system. The HV thing is the wrong way to go. All they do is put extra load on the timing set and front cam bearing. (adding wear there deprives the entire engine of oil when that bearing gets loose). Plus all the HV timing covers are chinese imports with questionable quality (the question isn't if they're bad, it's how bad they are).


There's also a TTA specif forum here if you have any questions that don't cross over to the GN's.

 

[Jay J]

^X2 Good advice here. I would really heed the warning about not using a flat tappet cam. Ditto on HV oil pump.