N/A vs. Boost Reliability

[Me86Rob]

Ok. So my question is, with regular maintainance, a factory turbo car can reach just as many miles as any N/A factory car, right?
Example:

Lets say I bought a MkIII supra turbo brand new. I change the oil every 3k miles. change the timing belt/chain as per factory reconmendations. Just, maintain the car like I'm supposed to. I dont see why I couldnt get as many miles out of it as a MkIII N/A supra of the same year, with the same maintainance done to it.

Im talking leaving the car 100% stock. Never turn up the boost. Nothing that will add power.

[Black R]

sure, but where's the fun in that?

[Elbow]

No, turbo cars, even factory WILL wear faster, there is more parts, there is more wear and tear items.

[RACEMYCOPCAR]

There are too many variables..... Ive owned N/A, factory turbo and now an NA-T and i have to say there isnt much difference.

You can look at it two ways, a turbo car has more parts like a turbo etc... which will wear out but lets compare an N/A I6 like the supra to an N/A V8 like a cobra mustang, is the cobra less reliable because it has 2 more cylinders, an extra head with more valves and more cams etc...??? A rotary (rx7) has very few moving parts but they arent known for superior reliability.

It all depends on who owns it,how its driven, how well its maintained and possibly location (northern cars have rust issues)

[alpine_aw11]

With maintenance, yes. If it's a GOOD turbo car. For example, a 6bolt DSM can be extremely reliable, but the maitenance costs of tuning/owning them is higher. My motor itself can be made to last a long time on a stock boost level/tune with good treatment, but keeping everything else on track will cost you more.

[NAIZBST]

sure, but where's the fun in that?

of course Ken would chime in on this

[1badgvr4]

With maintenance, yes. If it's a GOOD turbo car. For example, a 6bolt DSM can be extremely reliable, but the maitenance costs of tuning/owning them is higher. My motor itself can be made to last a long time on a stock boost level/tune with good treatment, but keeping everything else on track will cost you more.

Who said owning a dsm is higher? Is this compared to a non turbo

[HillClimbGuy]

I dont know mazda rated the engine life of the turbo 2 rx7 75,000 less tan the NA rx7's of the same year and the na models have weaker parts

[Vteckidd]

no, an MKIII Supra isnt reliable

/thread

[87 Turbo II]

Depends on how it's driven. If you keep it out of boost yes, but boost raises compression which will apply more force on parts such as valves, pistons, connecting rods, bearings, piston rings etc. The parts may flex under load minimally and wear when the tolerances change, or just plain from cyclic deformation under higher pressures, and lets not forget with boost, comes HEAT, and since oil goes through the turbocharger we can't count out higher temperature oil that degrades faster ,and runs thinner either.

Answer is no, end of story, I don't know why so many people are posting "yes" like they know for sure. All of you who said "yes" meant to say "I think so for no real reason".

[David88vert]

Turbo cars have one big disadvantage - heat. Heat is the enemy of reliability in an engine. Vacuum lines, hoses, and electrcal wires get brittle with heating up, cooling down, etc. over and over again. If you take 2 comparable cars of the same model (ie - same car but one with factory turbo, and one without), the NA will me more reliable.

[CasadeWaffle]

Ok. So my question is, with regular maintainance, a factory turbo car can reach just as many miles as any N/A factory car, right?
Example:

Lets say I bought a MkIII supra turbo brand new. I change the oil every 3k miles. change the timing belt/chain as per factory reconmendations. Just, maintain the car like I'm supposed to. I dont see why I couldnt get as many miles out of it as a MkIII N/A supra of the same year, with the same maintainance done to it.

Im talking leaving the car 100% stock. Never turn up the boost. Nothing that will add power.

In a perfect world with perfect systems, yes, but in reality a n/a car would be more reliable than a t/ced one

[HypnoToad]

Turbo cars have one big disadvantage - heat. Heat is the enemy of reliability in an engine. Vacuum lines, hoses, and electrcal wires get brittle with heating up, cooling down, etc. over and over again. If you take 2 comparable cars of the same model (ie - same car but one with factory turbo, and one without), the NA will me more reliable.

the heat seems to be a big thing in what kills most FDs,people mod em and forget bout cooling.

[trini_gsr]

reliability is about the same for well-built and well-maintained turbo cars versus NA, in my experience. the main difference is in the cost/frequency of maintenance.

now i currently own and daily drive a boosted integra for the past 3+ years (and counting) and put around 60k miles on it of spirited driving on it. i had an NA teg before that and put 110k on it. i have yet to have any issues with the car besides the normal wear and tear stuff that happens with any NA car. i've driven this car to south FL (700 mile trip) probably a dozen times, in the summertime with the AC on the whole way. for me, this car is one of the most reliable vehicles I've owned and I would drive it anywhere.

but the maintenance costs are higher. i use synthetic oil and change every 3k miles, when I could get away with regular oil NA. I change my spark plugs every 10k or so (although I probably don't have to) where I could easily go a year NA. The car burns a little bit more oil than it did when I was NA. i had to heat wrap the wires on the a/c fan bc the manifold kept melting them...lol.

so yeah there's those little things...but this is speaking for a modded NA versus a modded turbo car. more moving parts (especially when they aren't stock) means you have to be more attentive to maintenance. but it doesn't take away from reliability. stock NA vs stock turbo might be a bit different.

[kain]

a non turbo car making 500 wheel HP thats been tweaked to the moon vs a 500 whp that comes factory with a turbo, will not last compared to the turbo car
more power, more things break.

[NovaScotia]

is it cool if my DD is a "factory turbo" and currently has 453k?