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Looking for the right turbo

Posted: Sat May 23, 2020 12:59 am
by IllaKong
I have a 1993 legacy ss, complete with robtune and the 25d swap. Looking to upgrade my blown turbo at the moment, I'm looking between td05 or vf39 (currently have a vf23), but not sure on a reliable source to purchase the turbo. I'm skeptical of the Ebay ones, has anyone had luck with those? Also my area there aren't many used options but I am on the lookout. Any advice would be great!

Re: Looking for the right turbo

Posted: Sat May 23, 2020 5:24 am
by mike-tracy
The VF23 is a special turbo, it was the turbo offered on the 22b, as well as the version 3 (and maybe v4?) STI. It is ball bearing and spools very quickly. I loved my old one.

The VF39 is journal bearing, and spools slower than what you have. Top end is nearly identical, so unless your turbo is dying, don't even consider it.
The TD05 is also journal bearing, and spools significantly slower than the vf23. I went from a td05 to a vf23, what a gigantic difference in spool! The td05 has more top end pull, and that's the only benefit to that turbo.

IMO, from owning all of those turbos, if you want to upgrade, you need to go bigger. The '39 is nearly identical power but spools slower, and the td05 trades a lot of low end for a little top end. You need a td05-18g, a garrett GTX2871R or similar sized turbo. Anything bigger will be too big for the robtune.

Where to buy? On the forums or facebook marketplace. If you can afford brand new, Kinugawa probably makes the best of the knockoffs, those are Taiwan made instead of the chinese junk turbos that don't last at all.

Re: Looking for the right turbo

Posted: Mon Jun 01, 2020 4:29 am
by G4Disco
mike-tracy wrote: Sat May 23, 2020 5:24 am The VF23 is a special turbo, it was the turbo offered on the 22b, as well as the version 3 (and maybe v4?) STI. It is ball bearing and spools very quickly. I loved my old one.
This makes me happy. I found one last year to go with my 20K head swap.

Re: Looking for the right turbo

Posted: Tue Jun 16, 2020 12:22 am
by wtdash
Late to the thread, but wanted to confirm everything MT stated. I've run them all, too. ...well actually I had a VF24 vs. the VF23, so I lie, but the TD05 is a 'high-RPM' beast. I'd rebuild that VF23 before buying anything else. NASIOC may still be the best place to buy turbos, but I've not been on there for a couple of years. You can also find deals on Ebay's UK site. DM the Seller to ensure they'll ship to the US AND CONFIRM $hipping (aka 'post' in British terms) as it can be expensive and don't let the £ price getcha.