What is good for a turbocharger?
The turbocharger is designed such
that it will usually last as long as the engine. It does not require any special
maintenance; and inspection is limited to a few periodic checks.
To ensure that the turbocharger's
lifetime corresponds to that of the engine, the following engine manufacturer's
service instructions must be strictly observed:
- Oil change intervals
- Oil filter system maintenance
- Oil pressure control
- Air filter system maintenance
What is bad for a turbocharger?
90% of all turbocharger failures
are due to the following causes:
- Penetration of foreign bodies
into the turbine or the compressor
- Dirt in the oil
- Inadequate oil supply (oil pressure/filter system)
- High exhaust gas temperatures (ignition system/injection system)
- These failures can be avoided by regular maintenance. When maintaining the air
filter system, for example, care should be taken that no trash or foreign material gets
into the turbocharger.
Failure diagnosis
If the engine does not operate
properly, one should not assume that the turbocharger is the cause of failure.
It often happens that fully functioning turbochargers are replaced even though
the failure does not lie here, but with the engine.
Only after all these points have
been checked should one check the turbocharger for faults. Since the
turbocharger components are manufactured on high-precision machines to close
tolerances and the wheels rotate up to 300,000 rpm, turbochargers should be
inspected by qualified specialists only.
