TMIC misters?

[Jolbaru_LGT]

22 hours ago, m sprank said:

You can use a turbo blanket and a heat shield.  PTP always worked for me.  Use the WRX/STi model:

https://www.ptpturboblankets.com/collections/subaru-turbo-blankets

I liked to ceramic coat/swain tech downpipes as it is far cleaner, but to each his own.  Actuator blanket?  Do you mean for the wastegate?  Running an EWG?  Even then , dont waste your time/money.  Same for the oil filter blanket.  You want to regulate oil temp, not just keep it in.  Run an oil cooler and then put a heat retention device on the filter???  Reject heat from the filter, dont add it. 

Which one in particular? The WRX/STI Lava? Or WRX/STI SR-Glass?

[m sprank]

The glass will work just fine.  The lava is more hard core.  Even with the glass model, I can place my hand on the blanket (installed on the turbo) with the engine running.  Dont recommend trying to burn the ever loving crap out of yourself, but the darn things really work.

[Jolbaru_LGT]

13 hours ago, m sprank said:

The glass will work just fine.  The lava is more hard core.  Even with the glass model, I can place my hand on the blanket (installed on the turbo) with the engine running.  Dont recommend trying to burn the ever loving crap out of yourself, but the darn things really work.

That’s good!  With the lava, you know, I’d like to avoid Pele’s Curse. but seriously tho, the glass model is cheaper and my turbo is stock, so I probably don’t need the heavy duty version. Thanks! I just ordered it.

Edited May 6, 2023 by Jolbaru_LGT

[m sprank]

Make sure your turbo is cold when installing, lol.  Wrap the wires around on end so you can use them to "pull" the blanket together and only have to wrap one side "blind".  Does not have to be uber tight.  It just has to cover the turbo and stay in place.  Its a blanket, not plastic stretch wrap. 

They dont last forever, especially if you take them on and off often.  But you should get several years (or more) out of one if you dont have to keep taking it off. 

[Jolbaru_LGT]

2 minutes ago, m sprank said:

Make sure your turbo is cold when installing, lol.  Wrap the wires around on end so you can use them to "pull" the blanket together and only have to wrap one side "blind".  Does not have to be uber tight.  It just has to cover the turbo and stay in place.  Its a blanket, not plastic stretch wrap. 

They dont last forever, especially if you take them on and off often.  But you should get several years (or more) out of one if you dont have to keep taking it off. 

I got the SS springs, not the wire. Unless it comes w/that anyways?

[m sprank]

Even easier.  We had rolls of ss "safety wire"  in different gauges at the shop, so we always went the cheaper route and used wire.  Came in handy with all the wrapping we did.  The springs will make it less painless and you wont "give blood" by getting poked in the finger tip with wire. 

[Jolbaru_LGT]

22 hours ago, m sprank said:

Make sure your turbo is cold when installing, lol.  Wrap the wires around on end so you can use them to "pull" the blanket together and only have to wrap one side "blind".  Does not have to be uber tight.  It just has to cover the turbo and stay in place.  Its a blanket, not plastic stretch wrap. 

They dont last forever, especially if you take them on and off often.  But you should get several years (or more) out of one if you dont have to keep taking it off. 

Is it worth wrapping the downpipe?

[m sprank]

If it is stock, no. Heatshields work fine. If it is aftermarket thats your call.  Technically there is an advantage to using some sort of heat retention. 

[Jolbaru_LGT]

Just installed it. PTP SR Glass for the WRX/STI. Fits snug, and I could get it on without removing the TMiC but maybe I should have? Can’t see using those springs I paid a big whole 2 bucks extra for. Maybe unless you get the TMIC off they slip on easier?
Idk, the wire was the only easy way I could get it on and pull it together. Too cramped, and the angles were weird to pull them around and through everything, remove ALL the heatshield? Unless maybe you use the wire to pull the springs into place? Idk, guess I can save the springs and try that later. 
But It runs a bit different, maybe a little more spirited? Which brings me to my other question, do I need a tune now?

Oh yeah, and the temps were down for sure. Especially by the heat shield, which I put back on. That fits really snug, and there’s no space or airflow between the turbo and the heatshield. Not sure if I should just take off the heatshield, or what?

[KZJonny]

Stock heat shield?

If so, I bet it’s tight!! I don’t see how jt can hurt, since the blanket doesn’t require an air gap to perform it's function.

Most of the aftermarket heat shields are a little larger and have room for a blanket + some space in the gap between them and the turbo.

I also couldn’t find any way to use the spring that came with my PTP blanket. I was even able to feed them through and around, but they just stretched and didn’t work. I think they must be more appropriate for some other design of blanket/turbo.

[BoozeRS05]

I used the wire to secure my PTP blanket, and it’s nice and snug. I haven’t ever used a heat shield in addition to it, but idk if I think it’s necessary. Just more to remove when working on things.

Mines also at least 8yrs old and it looks fine, no signs of serious deterioration or damage to integrity. It’s been on/off 4-5x over the years. Also my OE turbo had 192k miles before removed preventatively, but worked fine with the blanket for almost a decade. Amazing product.

[m sprank]

Never used the springs. Wire only. No issue with a heatshield on top of blanket.  Did it all the time.  No tune required.  Enjoy the cooler engine bay.  Keep the temps in the exhaust gas where they belong. 

[Jolbaru_LGT]

So anyways, I feel like that blanket was the missing piece of the puzzle. I’m shocked at how much cooler the engine bay is. There’s actually more heat now coming from the middle of the engine where the stock cover is right above the alternator than the turbo or TMIC itself. Dare I say the TMIC is cool? 
The acceleration is more spirited and comes on quicker after every shift and the car seems to warm up faster. Must be how the heat is trapped in the turbo before the rest of the engine gets going. I can tell the computer is already adjusting to the blanket and I’m excited to see how it gets once it learns the new system. 
Have yet to take it on a good long road trip but I’m going to do that soon, and see how oil consumption is all that.
It also used to get a bit bogged down and lethargic the hotter it got and I had to step off the gas so it wouldn’t overheat. I don’t feel that urgency so much anymore and it’ll be fun to actually drive it again, then to “grandpa drive” it just to keep temps down. 

[m sprank]

Hotter exhaust gas equals faster spool.  Thermal dynamics. 

Generally pre-turbo is most important.  But I have found that a good turbo blanket makes a small positive difference. 

Funny how this all started with TMIC misters and a turbo blanket was the cure.

[Jolbaru_LGT]

Guess I knew it was overheating, and just not sure how to fix it. The temp gauge was always somewhat normal but it was just blistering hot in the engine bay, even on normal, short drives. I feel less heat even in the cabin. I was always weary of pushing it too hard just because of the heat coming off the turbo. Now, I feel a bit more confident that the blanket is on. I’ll step on it, and the engine bay feels like a normal overworked engine and not like a blistering jet engine. Screw the TMIC mister with this being on. Problem solved. I hope.