Anyone with an OEM blown turbo please post!

[LegacyWGTW05]

So 3 members so far.

Hammer down nice that yours has over 240k.

What did you do to keep it going?

Since it seems a lot of people on this thread lost their turbos or engine before the 100k mark.

[schwinn]

I suppose I should note that I, too, have been using synthetic oil only. Rotella T6 5w40 to be precise. Probably about 10k oci and lots of uoa as well

 

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[dellguy3700]

Name: Tim

 

Make: 2005 Legacy GT 5 auto

 

Mileage: 123,838

 

Problem And Likely Cause: Blown turbo. Most likely Clogged Banjo bolt

Modifications: None.

 

Submitted For Warranty Work (Yes/No): No

 

Reason Given For Denial (if applicable):

 

Your Story: I bought the car used with 62k. I don't know if the original turbo had been replaced. I change my oil every 5k with full synthetic. I rarely drive the car hard. I never checked the banjo bolt. but bet your stars I will check it regularly from now own.

[HAMMER DOWN]

So 3 members so far.

Hammer down nice that yours has over 240k.

What did you do to keep it going?

Since it seems a lot of people on this thread lost their turbos or engine before the 100k mark.

 

Answered that on post 1341 .

 

http://legacygt.com/forums/showpost.php?p=4317152&postcount=1341

 

Other reads;

 

http://legacygt.com/forums/showpost.php?p=3765146&postcount=54

 

http://legacygt.com/forums/showthread.php/get-your-oil-filtration-down-2-microns-81741.html

 

http://legacygt.com/forums/showthread.php/reliability-modifications-178342.html

 

Mike

[krzyss]

2005 Legacy GT - 171800 miles.

The recent hesitation problems were caused by failed coils. Easy to find after both right cilinders stopped firing and car still managed to limp home and to mechanic.

700 miles till next oil change (7500 OCI using Castrol 0W30 after ~60K, Mobil 1 5W30before with the same OCI).

We need the car for 3 more years as it is used as a college commuter for my middle daughter.

 

Krzys

[JohnnyT]

My '06 has a little over 110K on the original turbo. Still a stock tune. 3000 OCI with Castrol GTX 5W30 since new. I use NAPA Gold 1365 Filer.

[MiniStiGuy]

Knock on wood, my 2006 LGT has 115k on the stock turbo. Stage 2 since about 50k, IIRC.

 

Ministiguy, how did yours actually fail? Presumably it wasn't catastrophic? What were the symptoms? Just trying to prepare myself!

 

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I was driving home and there was a sudden power loss and if I tried to rev the engine up it was a sound like a fan blade getting stuck on something due to bad bearings or something blocking it. Every time I revved the car it would make the same noise so I knew it was the turbo's impeller blades so I idled the car all the way home without ever pressing the gas (15 miles or so). I had already bought my wagon so that car is just sitting in the parking lot collecting spiders until I figure out what to do with it.

[forcedinductiongt]

Blew a p0011 code the other day, brought it into the shop, turbo is on its way out. I'm at 135,000 and am going the vf52 route

 

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[jimithng23]

Threw P0011 and P0021 codes end of January, 73k miles.

 

Took the car in, dealer replaced turbo, oil pump, OCVs, and cat'd downpipe.

 

Dealer had the car for nearly 2 weeks--picked it up today, 5 miles down the road and CEL back on, threw P0011 again.

 

Car is back at the dealer.

[BarManBean]

Why did they replace the downpipe? Sounds like there might be debris floating around in the oil, might also be ruining your shortblock...

[jimithng23]

Why did they replace the downpipe? Sounds like there might be debris floating around in the oil, might also be ruining your shortblock...

 

 

Yep. They found debris in the cat.

 

I've expressed my serious concern with the oil supply being contaminated--oil pan, lines blocked, oil cooler...all leading to another turbo failure and or short block.

 

The tech didn't notice debris in the oil and as such, doesn't believe it's contaminated and doesn't share my concerns.

 

Now that the car is back, I'm gonna make sure my voice is heard.

[Arsenic]

Hey I was seriously considering buying an 06 Outback XT limited with 134k on it and was wondering what to watch out for.

 

I've read enough of this thread to understand what is causing the issues with the turbos. Apparently it's two things. 1 being the banjo bolt screen becoming clogged and starving the turbo of oil, resulting in failure. 2 the up-pipe is catted before the turbo and therefore (when the cat fails around this high mileage) it can shoot debris into the turbo and cause catastrophic damage, potentially resulting also in debris being sucked into the intake side as well?

 

Forgive me, my brother's the mechanic in the family. Please, correct me if I'm wrong though... according to the information in this thread, the turbo in this outback has likely already failed at least once. I was absolutely planning on getting a carfax and any such work would likely be on this.

 

Should I go check the car out, grab the VIN and decide after seeing the maintenance history? I really want a Subaru (many friends have owned them, I've driven them, they all seem wonderful) but I don't want to deal with beat-to-shit WRXs that will cost me more anyway.

 

Also relevant, the car had one previous owner (but the car is at a dealer), so I can't really get a firsthand opinion from the actual owner at all. Should I ask the dealer for contact info to satisfy my curiosities?

 

Any help is greatly appreciated!

[BarManBean]

Turbo failures are typically the result of an oiling failure--banjo bolt, bad OCVs, not enough flow, etc. If the turbo went out on the car you need to be able to figure out WHY--they don't typically crap out for no good reason.

 

I think that in general the up pipe cat falling apart can be a bit of a myth--I really don't know of anyone in recent time that has actually had that happen. Also, the structure of the up pipe converter is different from that of the downpipe converters and really doesn't seem prone to small amounts of failure like the DP ones can experience.

[Arsenic]

Alright thanks. I'll try and check the maintenance history and see if the banjo bolt was ever replaced by a dealer. I'll most likely check it myself anyway.

 

As for the OCVs (oil control valves, I assume?), would those cause catastrophic failure or would I have some warning signs? It seems the banjo bolt issue can do some serious damage in an unexpected fashion.

[LegacyWGTW05]

Name: Terence Stawski

 

Make: 2005 Subaru Legacy GT Wagon

 

Mileage: 81,000

 

Time Out Of Use: 12 days

 

Problem And Likely Cause: Turbo starved of oil because of union bolts. Blew Turbo caused engine failure and destruction.

 

Modifications: Stage 2: AVO 3" down pipe, up pipe, 3" center pipe, & exhaust. COBB air intake + box. COBB V3, COBB crank pulley. TGV deletes. CUSCO front strut bar. HELLA horns. SPT head shield, battery, oil cap.

 

Submitted For Warranty Work (Yes/No): No

 

Reason Given For Denial (if applicable): Not rebuilding the engine ore replacing it. Selling it to the COBB dealer as is that it went to to get work done, possibly.

 

Your Story: Checked oil levels and added if need be and changed oil every 3,000 miles. OCV went on blank2 on @ about 75,000 replaced it and OCV went @ 81,000 replaced it and blew the turbo.

[44r0n]

Name: Aaron S.

 

Make: 05 LGT

 

Mileage: around 100k

 

Time Out Of Use: 1 day and counting

 

Problem And Likely Cause: when over 2k RPM, rushing and rattling sound

 

Modifications: none

 

Submitted For Warranty Work (Yes/No): No

 

Reason Given For Denial (if applicable): NA

 

Your Story: I bought this car at around 75k miles about 2 years ago, and when I found this thread, I was so worried about this happening to me (I was one of the people who blew my 98 LGT's head gasket at 100k miles), that I always changed the oil at 3k miles with Mobile 1, and constantly listened to the sound of the turbo when ever I drove it hard. A few months ago, I was too busy to change the oil myself so I took it to a shop I normally trust. 2 months later I took it in for something else, and they said there was no oil in it! (they, then 'topped i off' for me for free) I asked them how that could be and they didn't offer any ideas, even when I asked about signs of leaks. I even jacked it up myself and looked for leaks or oil drips in my driveway, and nothing. Anyway, a few months later, I notice this revving/whooshing sound when I rev it over 2k RPM. I immediately think of the turbo and take it in. They say it's a loose belt and tighten it for free. I go by the grocery store on my way home and once the car has warmed up, the revving sound is back and now there's a rattle too; then the check engine light comes on and the cruise control is flashing at me. I didn't drive it for a week (because of the flu and bad weather), and then took it back, and ask them to look at the turbo. They tell me the banjo bolt is clogged and the turbo has 'failed'. I know I should really blame my shop, but they've been really great for the past 6 years outside of this one thing, and they are within walking distance of my house, so I don't want to get into a fight with them over something that was clearly an accident, and could have just as easily been a problem in the making of my car's first 75k miles (the suspension was shot when I bought it).

 

Plus, I've been waiting for a good reason to upgrade the turbo. I'm thinking about a 16G BNR.

[Turbodad]

Name: Andrew

 

Make: 05 LGT

 

Mileage: 118K

 

Time Out Of Use: Over a week now

 

Problem And Likely Cause: I was getting a lot of oil deposited on the top of my engine block, plus a fair amount out the tailpipe. Oil consumption was way up. Driving behavior was occasionally flakey. I had been been getting a lot of 0021 codes, but changing the driver's side OCV seemed to take care of that.

 

Modifications: Just aftermarket sway bars to keep the door handles from scraping.

 

Submitted For Warranty Work (Yes/No): No

 

Reason Given For Denial (if applicable): n/a

 

Your Story: My daily driver car. Other than spirited drives in the North Georgia mountains, no really hard driving, autocrossing, etc; mostly putt-putting back and forth to work in Atl traffic. Drivability was suffering as noted above. Broke the car in on mineral oil, gave it regular oil and filter changes with synthetic every 3.5-4K miles. Yanked the banjo bolt filter last summer and it was clean. Read many of the forum topics and was getting very paranoid about turbo failure. Finally had some money and took it to the dealer for diagnosis. Their diagnosis lined up with all the symptoms described in the forums of a failing turbo. Oil in the intercooler, the turbo seals were failing and the inlet hose was very soft where it connected to the turbo. The service guys let me stop by and poke around at all of it. Plenty of play in the turbo bearing, but no evidence of making metal yet. I had just changed the oil and didn't find anything, so it looks like it was caught in time. I'll let the dealer bolt on another turbo and a new inlet hose and drive it another 100K miles. If there is a second failure, I'll let them pay for it. Their new loaner Outback with a CVT is OK and probaby the best CVT I've ever driven, but just doesn't have the handling or acceleration that my LGT has spoiled me with. It's probably fine for all the dorks who like blocking traffic and driving below the speed limit, but just not acceptable for those of us who prefer the rally car side of Subaru, not the tree-hugging or "love" side shown in the TV commercials. IMHO, those commercials should be "Turbo boost. It's what makes a Subaru a Subaru"

[MiniStiGuy]

I'm driving a Cross Trek CVT right for a loaner while my car is in the shop. I got 40mpg with this thing coming back from Dallas to Houston. That beats subaru's est which is like 36mpg freeway.

[Turbodad]

With the turbo replaced and everything buttonup, I started driving home and turned around. I was hearing a lot of turbo whooshing that I wasn't used to hearing and was told, "Yeah, it's breathing now". Cool.

Two days later, I get the CEL for lean mixture. I took it back and they said that it needs a new front O2 sensor, which Subaru insists on calling the air/fuel sensor. Yeah, a/f sensor is correct, but why call it something different from what the rest of the world calls it?

In the meantime, I've been enjoying driving around in the nice, new Outback loaner. Nice mostly because it means the ex thinks I've gone and bought a new car. Otherwise, not too much fun waiting for the CVT to do its thing. Ick.

[Max Capacity]

They call it that, because the ECU uses that one to meter fuel flow, etc. to the engine.

 

They don't last forever.

[chaz517]

Name: Chaz

 

Make: 2007 LGT

 

Mileage: 110000

 

Time Out Of Use: 2 weeks

 

Problem And Likely Cause: turbo shaft snapped in half. Likely due to over heating, maybe low on oil

 

Modifications: stage 2 catless

 

Submitted For Warranty Work (Yes/No): 3rd party warranty exp 3k miles ago

 

Reason Given For Denial (if applicable):

 

Your Story:

 

Been stage 2 for around 30,000 miles, oci 4000 miles rotella t-5. 1 quart low.

Let friend borrow car for 1 damn day so that I could use his truck to trail my jetski. He was racing his buddy in a 2012 wrx and a few minutes after a few hard pulls, he claims he was in traffic and the turbo started making a loud rattling noise followed by white smoke out of the exhaust. He said he drove it off the exit and called me. I had him tow it to Subaru where a buddy of mine works and they dropped the pan today to find large chunks of metal in there.... so new short block and labor comes to $5500. I already have a vf52 ready to roll. Poor subie

[onlylegacys]

Name: Chris

 

Make: 05 lgt limited

 

Mileage: 105k

 

Time Out Of Use: about a month

 

Problem And Likely Cause: waste gate door not closing properly, seems it was missing a spacer from factory, which seems to be fairly common

 

Modifications: none at the time of failure

 

Submitted For Warranty Work (Yes/No): that ship sailed away looong ago

 

Reason Given For Denial (if applicable):

 

Your Story: not much of a story, and not so much a blown turbo, but turbo failure for sure. not sure how previous owner treated car, but based on his intelligence level and attitude i would say it was not ideal. i changed/checked oil pretty dang religiously from 80-105 and used full synthetic.

wasn't holding boost, could hear slight spool but was not pulling like it should have. problem was first brought to light when i did a 4th gear pull on the highway with another bone stock legacy gt, got raped lol and logically it didn't make any sense why his should be faster.

no boost leaks could be found so i took the turbo out and found the problem with the waste gate door closing. it was missing a spacer between the housing and the flapper, and this prevented the door from lining up properly with the wg hole. not sure why my turbo was like this.. seems like more than a few other members have experienced the same issue. zero shaft play turbo was fine, except the door.

[hadvw]

Name: Chris

 

Make: 05 lgt limited

 

Mileage: 105k

 

Time Out Of Use: about a month

 

Just curious - if you just need to fix the turbo (but no engine damage or anything), why out of use for a month? Trouble finding another vf40?

[onlylegacys]

lol i knew someone would say something. i was not working on the car the entire time. spent an evening looking for a boost leak and getting the turbo out, then about a week of research to figure out which turbo to get, then waited on the turbo to arrive, then took almost an entire day to get it back in. i had a beautiful ~96 saturn that i was whippin around so i wasnt really concerned with how long it was out of comish. it was also cold as sh** in the middle of winter, so motivation was low.

[onlylegacys]

They do, in fact the subaru techs go to school, sometimes a couple times a year to chicago or texas.

 

They are

 

quoting this from years back because it is spot on