Are the VF40 fins on my wife's LGT toasted?

That spinning thing that makes all of the cool noises. OE and Aftermarket.

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Fkyx
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Are the VF40 fins on my wife's LGT toasted?

Post by Fkyx »

Hey, folks!

So today while we were on the highway, my wife's 2005 LGT threw a CEL and the turbo started making a "wizzing" sound. I immediately got out of boost, and limped it home, despite knowing this is not a good idea.

The scanner showed P0011 and P0021 codes - which are often related, despite the wording of the code itself, to the VF40 being starved of oil due to a banjo bolt with a clogged filter inside of it. And we all know this isn't good.

So first I dropped the downpipe to look for chunks of metal. I found absolutely nothing in the mouth of the downpipe. Then I checked for shaft play on the exhaust side of the turbo, and it felt like *not a normal amount* both in the axial and radial directions. I put some upward pressure on it while trying to spin it, but it didn't feel as though there was any rubbing between the fins and the housing. So I took pictures.

Here's what I found (I'm showing the full size images for detail):
https://i.imgur.com/reRBqAy.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/gBpvzDt.jpg

My question is... do you guys see any real issue here? Could the whizzing sound have been from the turbo being starved, but not enough to have caused noticeable damage?

I haven't taken a look at the intake side yet, but after separating the TMIC from the compressor outlet, I didn't see any chunks stuck to the walls of the housing.

If you guys see any issues with the fins or the amount of radial play from the second picture, let me know. Would you recommend rebuilding the VF40 myself? Or just purchasing a refurb/reman VF40 to replace it?

Thanks,
Matthew
Matthew aka F[b][color=red]k[/color][/b]yx
1991 Legacy Sport Sedan "Jillian" - [url=http://bbs.legacycentral.org/viewtopic.php?t=39548]EJ20G swap[/url]
cj91legss
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Re: Are the VF40 fins on my wife's LGT toasted?

Post by cj91legss »

To be honest, that's a lot of play. I think you should send it for a rebuild or rebuild it yourself (it's actually not that hard at all.) Considering the amount of slop you have you may also have to send it out for balancing.
91 L-TW Wagon with a full Swap -RIP
92 SS Prefaced, GD dash swapped, 22T/205 Hybrid 20 psi - BEAST!
93 SS Bone Stock Gone!
94 TW Bone Stock Gone!
91 SS 4EAT Sold!
98 LGT 4EAT
98 LGT Wagon 4EAT
mike-tracy
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Re: Are the VF40 fins on my wife's LGT toasted?

Post by mike-tracy »

I don't think you can buy a rebuild kit for ihi turbos. The vf40 is a known weak point of the LGTs, which is why they switched to a updated one of the same size. I think it's the vf42, could be mistaken.
1992 Legacy SS 5mt, build in progress
Josh Colombo wrote: Mon Jan 14, 2002 10:23 am Wait....I'm confused now.
cj91legss
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Re: Are the VF40 fins on my wife's LGT toasted?

Post by cj91legss »

kinugawa makes a rebuild kit for ihi turbos.
91 L-TW Wagon with a full Swap -RIP
92 SS Prefaced, GD dash swapped, 22T/205 Hybrid 20 psi - BEAST!
93 SS Bone Stock Gone!
94 TW Bone Stock Gone!
91 SS 4EAT Sold!
98 LGT 4EAT
98 LGT Wagon 4EAT
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