IS38 Rebuild Question.

[mr wrong]

I have an opportunity to snag a pretty cheap (200~) IS38 turbo, mileage unknown for my Alltrack. I'm thinking of buying it then sending it off to G-Pop Shop for a rebuild and balance. I was thinking while they're at it having the turbine cartridge replaced, and having it ported and polished, and ceramic coated. I will be running on OTS Unitronic tune. I figure when all is said and done I'll still be slightly under the cost of purchasing a brand new stock unit.

My question is will I benefit at all with having it ported and polished and ceramic coated? Keep in mind I'm sticking with an OTS tune.

Any feedback would be appreciated.

Thanks!

 

[jimlloyd40]

I have an opportunity to snag a pretty cheap (200~) IS38 turbo, mileage unknown for my Alltrack. I'm thinking of buying it then sending it off to G-Pop Shop for a rebuild and balance. I was thinking while they're at it having the turbine cartridge replaced, and having it ported and polished, and ceramic coated. I will be running on OTS Unitronic tune. I figure when all is said and done I'll still be slightly under the cost of purchasing a brand new stock unit.

My question is will I benefit at all with having it ported and polished and ceramic coated? Keep in mind I'm sticking with an OTS tune.

Any feedback would be appreciated.

Thanks!

What is the total cost? Keep in mind that FCP Euro sells an IS38 for slightly over $1000 and that includes the installation kit and most importantly a lifetime warranty. I wouldn't mess around with a rebuilt IS38 with probably a 1 year warranty.

 

[Keehs360]

I have an opportunity to snag a pretty cheap (200~) IS38 turbo, mileage unknown for my Alltrack. I'm thinking of buying it then sending it off to G-Pop Shop for a rebuild and balance. I was thinking while they're at it having the turbine cartridge replaced, and having it ported and polished, and ceramic coated. I will be running on OTS Unitronic tune. I figure when all is said and done I'll still be slightly under the cost of purchasing a brand new stock unit.

My question is will I benefit at all with having it ported and polished and ceramic coated? Keep in mind I'm sticking with an OTS tune.

Any feedback would be appreciated.

Thanks!

I wouldn’t port it. Ceramic paint isn’t worth it either tbh

I’d consider what Jim said. Get it from fcp or get an oem+ one with the slightly stronger internals

 

[jimlloyd40]

I wouldn’t port it. Ceramic paint isn’t worth it either tbh

I’d consider what Jim said. Get it from fcp or get an oem+ one with the slightly stronger internals

I was looking at the FCP Euro website info on the IS38 and noticed something I haven't seen any other companies that sell turbos do. They include a tube, like toothpaste tube, with oil in it so you can easily prelube the bearings. They make a point of saying that 20 % of the wear on the bearings is because a new turbo is started dry.

 

[Keehs360]

I was looking at the FCP Euro website info on the IS38 and noticed something I haven't seen any other companies that sell turbos do. They include a tube, like toothpaste tube, with oil in it so you can easily prelube the bearings. They make a point of saying that 20 % of the wear on the bearings is because a new turbo is started dry.

I’d say that’s a solid inclusion. I dunno about 20% though. Maybe 10% unless the bearings are cheap as hell. Regardless, the starter oil inclusion is super thoughtful

 

[mr wrong]

Solid advice! Thanks everyone!. Might spring for the HPA OEM+ unit..

 

[GTI Jake]

Solid advice! Thanks everyone!. Might spring for the HPA OEM+ unit..

You can’t run a OTS tune with anything but a regular ol is38.

If you’re gonna spring for a pro tune it’s silly not to at least step up to the most popular and arguably most reliable hybrid in the industry, EQT Vortex

 

[mr wrong]

You can’t run a OTS tune with anything but a regular ol is38.

If you’re gonna spring for a pro tune it’s silly not to at least step up to the most popular and arguably most reliable hybrid in the industry, EQT Vortex

HPA claims their "OEM+" IS38 can be used with standard IS38 tunes. I'm not looking to go crazy here otherwise I would just sell the Alltrack and buy a GTI or R.

If the general consensus is that going the OEM+ route is a waste, I'll just pick up a stock unit from FCP.

 

[jimlloyd40]

HPA claims their "OEM+" IS38 can be used with standard IS38 tunes. I'm not looking to go crazy here otherwise I would just sell the Alltrack and buy a GTI or R.

If the general consensus is that going the OEM+ route is a waste, I'll just pick up a stock unit from FCP.

Because of the warranty I would buy from FCP. I've had 2 IS38's fail and dearly wish I would have got them from FCP.

 

[Keehs360]

HPA claims their "OEM+" IS38 can be used with standard IS38 tunes. I'm not looking to go crazy here otherwise I would just sell the Alltrack and buy a GTI or R.

If the general consensus is that going the OEM+ route is a waste, I'll just pick up a stock unit from FCP.

honestly i would rather get the stronger oem plus unit vs the one with a life time warranty from fcp. fcp is great and awesome but i dont want to rely on that warranty, i want confidence in my turbo. thats just me.

 

[mr wrong]

honestly i would rather get the stronger oem plus unit vs the one with a life time warranty from fcp. fcp is great and awesome but i dont want to rely on that warranty, i want confidence in my turbo. thats just me.

Which is exactly why I'm leaning toward the HPA OEM+ turbo.

 

[Keehs360]

Which is exactly why I'm leaning toward the HPA OEM+ turbo.

theyre both good choices, just me personally i would rather never have to swap out the turbo because i would go with a stronger one

 

[ShagginGSW]

You can’t run a OTS tune with anything but a regular ol is38.

If you’re gonna spring for a pro tune it’s silly not to at least step up to the most popular and arguably most reliable hybrid in the industry, EQT Vortex

On a 1.8t without VVT on the exhaust cam what's the spool going to be like with an EQT Vortex though? The compressor and turbine alone are huge compared to an IS38 which already spools a few hundred more than the stock IS12.

Which is exactly why I'm leaning toward the HPA OEM+ turbo.

I was looking at going this route also, just for the piece of mind that the bearings are upgraded. It won't make more power but would hopefully last a lot longer than a stock or rebuilt one.

 

[J Peterman]

There are a few people running EQT Vortex standard turbos on 1.8T wagens, all of them UM flex tuned with MPI and LPFP upgrades. Sure, it spools a bit later than an IS38 (can’t cheat physics with larger turbine/compressor wheels and a slightly larger A/R turbine housing) but from messaging with the owners of those cars there is plenty of torque down low, with boost building in the 2k rpm range and peaking in the mid 3k range. Less violent low end torque spike. Ethanol helps and all of them are perfectly happy with the powerband and daily drive their cars. There’s a reason the Vortex series turbos are so popular, they’re fairly reliable turbos and they just work on this platform better than most.

You’re already looking at upgraded fueling and custom tuning to run anything other than an OEM turbo on an OTS tune…

 

[ShagginGSW]

There are a few people running EQT Vortex standard turbos on 1.8T wagens, all of them UM flex tuned with MPI and LPFP upgrades. Sure, it spools a bit later than an IS38 (can’t cheat physics with larger turbine/compressor wheels and a slightly larger A/R turbine housing) but from messaging with the owners of those cars there is plenty of torque down low, with boost building in the 2k rpm range and peaking in the mid 3k range. Less violent low end torque spike. Ethanol helps and all of them are perfectly happy with the powerband and daily drive their cars. There’s a reason the Vortex series turbos are so popular, they’re fairly reliable turbos and they just work on this platform better than most.

You’re already looking at upgraded fueling and custom tuning to run anything other than an OEM turbo on an OTS tune…

I was shying away from the Vortex simply because it was such a huge difference in size from the IS38 but if its doable then I might start looking into it. I don't think though like OP stated that HPA or any other OEM+ turbo would require anything custom and should be able to use an OTS tune for an IS38 since the turbine and compressor aren't different in any way, it's the bearing cartridge that is upgraded.