A Monster Bolt-On Turbo Kit: Fast Friday #30!

[matthew1]

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A Monster Bolt-On Turbo Kit

Customer Turned Vendor
This week for Fast Friday I thought I’d let my friend and fellow Volvo enthusiast Rye Z. talk about what he’s been doing in the performance market place and highlight the upcoming turbo kits and S60R build we’ve got planned for the middle of February. -- Lucky

The Beginning: Turbo Volvos
At the age of 17, with a little help from my grandfather, I was able to save up enough money to buy my first car. I had just seen the movie Ronin for the first time, so I had it in my head that if I wanted a fast 4 door car I HAD to buy an Audi. At my parent's request, I also test drove a Volvo because it was a "safer" car. The Volvo I happened to test drive was an 850 turbo and to my amazement it blew the doors off all the Audi 90's and A4's I had driven. Thus began my fascination with Volvos and turbochargers.

Eight years and 4 turbocharged Volvos later, I decided to start my own company called RZ Design with the intent to provide the Volvo enthusiast market with innovative, original, and high quality performance and cosmetic upgrades. I realized that there were product concepts that I, and other enthusiasts, might want that did not currently exist, and I set out to turn these ideas into reality. My first product was a bi-xenon retrofit kit for 98-00 S/V/C70s, and my first performance product was a direct replacement intercooler upgrade for 850s and S/V/C70s. A few months after releasing the RZ Design intercooler I decided I wanted to offer the Volvo market a complete turbo kit for anyone who wanted to go beyond just larger stock Volvo turbos.



The Move to the Mitsubishi TD05H
At the time I had been driving a 98 C70 manual coupe that I felt needed some more power, so I decided to use this vehicle as the test bed for developing a turbo kit. I had previously run an 18T from a 99 V70R, and then a custom hybrid turbo based on the 19T from a 2000 V70R. Because both these turbos were still "small" turbos, they would never provide the power I wanted, and I knew that there were other enthusiasts who felt the same. After researching literally every existing turbo on the market, I decided to base the kit on the Mitsubishi TD05H turbo. The TD05H is a similar (but scaled up) design to the TD04HL that Volvo has been using since the early 90's, which has proven to be an incredibly robust, reliable, and long lasting turbo. The TD05H shares these same advantages, but is capable of much higher output because of its size.

I ordered a Mitsubishi TD05H-16G and proceeded to build the kit around it.



The first version of the prototype kit (above) featured just the basics. Oil and water lines made with the highest quality components I could find, and the necessary gaskets and flanges. Work began on the installation and the kit was tweaked and expanded. Now, as the kit nears completion, it features:

• A milled R manifold.
• Stainless CNC v-band turbine outlet.
• Bosch's newest and most advanced injectors in 550cc or 650cc depending on application.
• RZ Design 14 blade (7 primary + 7 secondary) billet compressor wheel for more flow and faster response than the stock Mitsubishi TD05H wheels.
• Ball raced wastegate actuator arm for smooth operation and ultimate longevity.
• Anodized aluminum and stainless fittings.
• Hard line for oil return.
• Genuine Volvo hardware and gaskets.

The kit will be completely bolt on with the exception of requiring modification of the existing downpipe. Versions of the kit will be available for all 850s and S/V/C70s as well as all 5 cylinder P2 applications (S60, V70, XC70, S80, XC90). For P2 models, an optional (required for S60R and V70R) over the engine aluminum intercooler pipe will also be available. And of course ARD will be offering tuning for cars equipped with the RZ Design turbo kit.

I Have Been Grinning For The Last Few Weeks
I have been running the prototype kit on my C70 for the last few weeks and am incredibly pleased with the feel of the engine.



Surprisingly, the TD05H-16G spools almost as fast as the smaller stock turbos I have run, and even at lower boost it feels much faster. The low end torque tease followed by gutless top end that is characteristic of even the best stock turbo setups is now replaced with seemingly bottomless power all the way to redline. I am very excited for the release of this kit so that fellow enthusiasts can have as much fun as I have been having with this turbo over the last few weeks!

We’ll be installing the 20G into an S60R in the next few weeks so keep an eye peeled for plenty of pictures and videos as we share our install and tuning experiences!

~ ~ ~
[list][*]Questions, comments, arguments and freakouts accepted and encouraged. Really. Lucky WANTS to answer your questions.
[*]If you want to remain anonymous, email me your question or comment and I will post it as "Anonymous User".
[*]It takes Lucky and me several hours combined to bring you Fast Fridays. Your questions and comments validate FF's value.
[*]I write paragraph headlines, and sometimes article headlines. Yell at me if you find these not to your taste.
[*]Same thing with italics and bolds , they're all mine.
[*]Cams and turbos and MBCs and chips and... whoo![/list]
Matt

[matthew1]

[For all you readers following along at home: This FF is news to me. I read this as I posted it, just now. I didn't know anything about RZ Design, haven't been to the site before today, and I don't know Rye Z.]

Rye, can you create an account here at MVS Forums if you don't have one already? I have some questions, and I'm betting there will be some from others as well.

First, Audi 90? I've had housecats that can outrun the Audi 90. My brother-in-law has had a succession of A4s starting in 2000, and those I respect for the tight handling and very nice interiors if nothing else.

Second, you have to know you can't post something like this without getting price questions, so I'll be the first. Price for this kit? Ballpark?

Third, thanks for making this kit for 850s, when much of the performance aftermarket is abandoning 850s, and sometimes P80 altogether. We're still here.

Last, and thanks in advance for fielding these questions, won't this kit be too much hp for FWD?

[ARD-Lucky]

I've already let Rye know there'd be some questions around this and he'll be here to answer questions shortly!

[RyeZ]

Hi everyone! Just made an account this morning.

When I was 17 the only car's I had ever driven were my parent's NA 740 wagon and NA S70 which I thought was fast, so I thought the Audis I test drove were decently fast too

I've had a thread about this turbo kit running for a while over on volvospeed and have been hounded with questions about pricing since the beginning. Until now I haven't posted anything because I didn't know exactly what parts I would be including in the kit, but now that the kit is close to completion I feel I can give you guys a pretty close estimate. The P80 and P2 kits with TD05H-R28 turbos (basically a TD05H-16G with RZ Design R28 billet compressor wheel) and 550cc injectors will retail for about $3450. TD05H-R32 (TD05H-20G with R32 billet compressor wheel) kits for P2 R and 05+ P2 T5 with 650cc injectors will retail for about $3750. At the customers request we can put together a P80 or early P2 kit with the TD05H-R32 as well.

As for whether this much power will be too much for FWD, it depends what gear you are in There is no way you will ever get traction in first gear at full throttle. In second gear traction is dependant on the car's setup and road conditions, but in 3rd gear and up (assuming dry conditions and good tires) you'll be hooking up and flying

I'm glad to cater to the P80 market! I drive a P80 myself and I think it's still a good platform with the same amazing motor that Volvo used all the way up until 2009.

[matthew1]

Hi everyone! Just made an account this morning.

Welcome to MVS, Rye. Good to have you. Thanks for the product cost estimates. In '84 or so my friend/neighbor's dad bought a 740 Turbo, and it was by far the coolest car in the neighborhood. A couple years later at age 15 he drove it when his parents were away, and backed into a car at a 7-11 and drove away. He got in trouble for that.

As for whether this much power will be too much for FWD, it depends what gear you are in There is no way you will ever get traction in first gear at full throttle. In second gear traction is dependant on the car's setup and road conditions, but in 3rd gear and up (assuming dry conditions and good tires) you'll be hooking up and flying

It'll be interesting to see what customers do with them, track, streetrod, drag?

I'm glad to cater to the P80 market! I drive a P80 myself and I think it's still a good platform with the same amazing motor that Volvo used all the way up until 2009.

Almost a 20-year run for the old inline-5. What an engine... durability, tunability, aluminum, easy access to everyday stuff.

[c70_lindsay]

Awesome right up. I love fast fridays! How much boost is your prototype kit producing? Do you have any hp numbers or estimates?

[RyeZ]

I'm also really excited to see what people do with them! The prototype R32 kit that we'll be installing in about two weeks on a 2007 S60R will be used for daily street driving as well as some serious track duty. I'm especially excited to see how it does on the track!

The prototype kit is currently running about 15 psi, but thats only because the car is still on stock intercooler. As soon as I have a chance to swap in the RZ Design intercooler I have sitting aside for it, boost will be turned up to 18. I estimate it will put about about 350 hp at the crank, so a little over 300 at the wheels

[matthew1]

Rye, would you say that reducing turbo lag to its absolute minimum is "Job #1" for track use?

[RyeZ]

Actually, reducing turbo lag is quite far down the list for track use. On a full size race track where speeds are relatively high compared to street driving or autocross, it is quite easy to keep the engine at high RPM where lag is for the most part non-existent.

I would say that keeping engine temps down during prolonged track sessions is the #1 priority. Although the thermodynamics of an engine are quite complicated and I could probably write a few pages on the topic it all basically boils down to less heat = more power and less wear on the engine.

The main factor that will allow the TD05H to outperform a stock turbo on the track is the larger turbine housing and turbine wheel. The physically larger size of these two components creates less flow restriction for hot exhaust gasses escaping the engine than the stock turbo components, which results in less heat build up. Of course the welcome side effect of this extra exhaust gas flow and lower exhaust gas temperature is more power, especially at higher RPM!

Since you asked about turbo lag, and I know this is a common concern for most people, I'd like to comment on it as well. There are turbos even bigger than the TD05H that I considered for the kit, but like you would expect, those would have had more lag. I chose the TD05H because I felt it was a good compromise between fast response (minimum lag) and high flow potential. Despite its size, the TD05H still has the capacity to make full boost by 3000 RPM. Although I love the new turbo most when my car's engine is singing at 6000 RPM, I also couldn't have hoped for a more responsive midrange.

[matthew1]

Rye, ... makes sense, yes. I'm so used to thinking in automatic transmission frame of reference (grumble grrrr curse). Of course in a track car you're going to be in the middle of the rev range on average, and see little or no lag.

And about keeping engine temperature low being Job #1, that too makes sense. I think the MVS audience is unusually versed in the temperature/power curve simply because the inline-5 cylinder (turbo) many of us have is very sensitive to ambient air temperature. Moreso than any engine I've had in any of the 15 or so cars I've owned. For us HPT Volvo owners who care to get into the throttle, summers are dog days of power, and winter is when the racing stripes appear on hoods and trunks. (My brother in law sees this dense air = power phenomenon too on his 2011 or 2012 Audi A4 wagon, a 2.0T.

My 850 makes a shocking amount of additional power when the mercury goes below freezing. I have a MBC that allows boost well past 15psi. When it's 25F or lower outside, take for instance mornings, even 1/2 throttle will send me happily rocketing through first gear, and if I let it, the ECU will cut fuel. This is much more likely to happen when the engine is icy cold. And of course that's dangerous from a maintenance standpoint.

I know ambient != engine temps, but there is a correlation, or at the very least a temperature lesson to be learned: keep temps down.

The physically larger size of these two components creates less flow restriction for hot exhaust gasses escaping the engine than the stock turbo components, which results in less heat build up.

You're talking about the internal passage volume/pathing, not the mass of the unit, right?

Full boost by 3k sounds great. I wouldn't have guessed that low. Sounds like you did your homework in selecting the TD05H.

I know you've got a business to run, so please don't feel like you have to respond quickly. Thanks Rye! This is fun!