The 12 hour K24 Turbo Install..............
09-21-2003, 10:43 AM
#1
Burning Brakes
Thread Starter
The 12 hour K24 Turbo Install..............
4:00pm.
That was the time that I decided to take on this daunting task…….to complete the installation of my Stage IV upgrade from Imagine Auto. Little by little I whittled away at the bolts and nuts and clips and hangers to eventually release the K16 turbos from their prison in my 2002 996 Twin Turbo. After speaking with several people including Stephen at Imagine Auto and Colin at PES Tuning, I began to understand the nature of this endeavor. 12 hours to do this I was told. I said, who are they kidding? How could this possibly take 12 hours to do? I had the lift, all the parts, the tools, the wrenching experience…….I’ll show them!! Well, after removing the muffler, the exhaust manifolds, heat shields, and turbo air ducting, I finally was at a point where all I needed to do was remove two oil lines and a hanger bolt.
Finally, the turbos were free!! This was, of course, after several telephone conversations to Stephen for advice with certain aspects of the removal. Saturday night, 11:00pm, and Stephen in Kansas is taking telephone calls from this backyard mechanic in New Jersey. Kudos Stephen! Where else could one expect this type of service?
So, back to the story. K16’s are out and K24’s are now ready for installation. Attach the turbo oil drain tanks…..oh wait, the attachment bolt is INSIDE the tank, what’s up with that? Leave it to them Germans to figure out a way to save space. OK, K24’s are hung and oil lines connected. What time is it? 2:00am!!! Man I am tired. Focus Ken, focus.
Taking my time to insure that I don’t miss anything, I trudged along piece by piece reinstalling everything. One of the last things is the Europipe. Man this thing is heavy. The initial installation was much easier since I did it on my back on a creeper with the muffler on my chest. Can anyone say bench press?
Lifting this muffler up over my head for the install after 10 hours of overhead wrenching and not much sleep the night before was not easy. It is done though….phew!
OK, checklist, everything torqued, no extra parts, oh yeah, oil….can’t forget that.
8.5 quarts Mobil One 0W40. 0 weight. What is up with that? How can you have 0 weight? Does that mean it has the same viscosity as water? Anyway, filter and oil are in and time for bed. What time…….
4:00am.
I took a few pictures during the installation for your viewing pleasure. Don’t and I repeat, don’t, try this without a lift. To do this installation on your back under the car would be suicide.
This is a picture of the old exhaust manifold vs. new header. Stephen pointed out that the collector, where all the pipes come together is better designed. When you see it up close, it is clear that the exhaust flow will maintain its velocity and not undergo turbulence at that joint.
This is picture of the right side with the exhaust manifold removed.
This is a picture with both exhaust manifolds removed.
This is a picture of the K16(left) impeller vs. the K24(right) impeller. You can clearly see the steeper angle of the vanes.
This is a picture of the exhaust hanger bracket. Oui!
This is a picture of the K24 installed.
This is a picture of the right side header and turbo installation completed.
This is a picture of the left and right sides completed. All that is left is the Europipe.
This is a close up of the K24 vanes.
This is a close up of the left side header and turbo.
If you are planning to do this upgrade, I highly recommend you let the pros do the installation. I found myself calling upon little tricks I have learned from years of wrenching. A novice would come upon many roadblocks along the way. Having the right tools to complete the work is equally important. Fortunately, I have collected many over the years. I even bought a flare nut wrench set specifically for this installation with respect to the oil lines upon Colin’s advice. Thanks Colin.
I also want to thank Stephen for his patience and help with my several telephone calls throughout Saturday night.
Now I have to try this puppy. I will report back later……………Stay tuned!!
That was the time that I decided to take on this daunting task…….to complete the installation of my Stage IV upgrade from Imagine Auto. Little by little I whittled away at the bolts and nuts and clips and hangers to eventually release the K16 turbos from their prison in my 2002 996 Twin Turbo. After speaking with several people including Stephen at Imagine Auto and Colin at PES Tuning, I began to understand the nature of this endeavor. 12 hours to do this I was told. I said, who are they kidding? How could this possibly take 12 hours to do? I had the lift, all the parts, the tools, the wrenching experience…….I’ll show them!! Well, after removing the muffler, the exhaust manifolds, heat shields, and turbo air ducting, I finally was at a point where all I needed to do was remove two oil lines and a hanger bolt.
Finally, the turbos were free!! This was, of course, after several telephone conversations to Stephen for advice with certain aspects of the removal. Saturday night, 11:00pm, and Stephen in Kansas is taking telephone calls from this backyard mechanic in New Jersey. Kudos Stephen! Where else could one expect this type of service?
So, back to the story. K16’s are out and K24’s are now ready for installation. Attach the turbo oil drain tanks…..oh wait, the attachment bolt is INSIDE the tank, what’s up with that? Leave it to them Germans to figure out a way to save space. OK, K24’s are hung and oil lines connected. What time is it? 2:00am!!! Man I am tired. Focus Ken, focus.
Taking my time to insure that I don’t miss anything, I trudged along piece by piece reinstalling everything. One of the last things is the Europipe. Man this thing is heavy. The initial installation was much easier since I did it on my back on a creeper with the muffler on my chest. Can anyone say bench press?
Lifting this muffler up over my head for the install after 10 hours of overhead wrenching and not much sleep the night before was not easy. It is done though….phew!
OK, checklist, everything torqued, no extra parts, oh yeah, oil….can’t forget that.
8.5 quarts Mobil One 0W40. 0 weight. What is up with that? How can you have 0 weight? Does that mean it has the same viscosity as water? Anyway, filter and oil are in and time for bed. What time…….
4:00am.
I took a few pictures during the installation for your viewing pleasure. Don’t and I repeat, don’t, try this without a lift. To do this installation on your back under the car would be suicide.
This is a picture of the old exhaust manifold vs. new header. Stephen pointed out that the collector, where all the pipes come together is better designed. When you see it up close, it is clear that the exhaust flow will maintain its velocity and not undergo turbulence at that joint.
This is picture of the right side with the exhaust manifold removed.
This is a picture with both exhaust manifolds removed.
This is a picture of the K16(left) impeller vs. the K24(right) impeller. You can clearly see the steeper angle of the vanes.
This is a picture of the exhaust hanger bracket. Oui!
This is a picture of the K24 installed.
This is a picture of the right side header and turbo installation completed.
This is a picture of the left and right sides completed. All that is left is the Europipe.
This is a close up of the K24 vanes.
This is a close up of the left side header and turbo.
If you are planning to do this upgrade, I highly recommend you let the pros do the installation. I found myself calling upon little tricks I have learned from years of wrenching. A novice would come upon many roadblocks along the way. Having the right tools to complete the work is equally important. Fortunately, I have collected many over the years. I even bought a flare nut wrench set specifically for this installation with respect to the oil lines upon Colin’s advice. Thanks Colin.
I also want to thank Stephen for his patience and help with my several telephone calls throughout Saturday night.
Now I have to try this puppy. I will report back later……………Stay tuned!!
Last edited by KPV; 09-21-2003 at 11:02 AM.
09-21-2003, 11:03 AM
#3
Burning Brakes
Thread Starter
Chad,
"Appears" is the operative word. It is acutally cosmoline in a semicircular shape that makes it appear as a flattened line. Very good eyes though!!!
"Appears" is the operative word. It is acutally cosmoline in a semicircular shape that makes it appear as a flattened line. Very good eyes though!!!
09-21-2003, 11:49 AM
#4
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Re: The 12 hour K24 Turbo Install..............
Originally posted by KPV
This was, of course, after several telephone conversations to Stephen for advice with certain aspects of the removal. K16’s are out and K24’s are now ready for installation. Attach the turbo oil drain tanks…..oh wait, the attachment bolt is INSIDE the tank, what’s up with that?
If you are planning to do this upgrade, I highly recommend you let the pros do the installation. I found myself calling upon little tricks I have learned from years of wrenching. A novice would come upon many roadblocks along the way.
This was, of course, after several telephone conversations to Stephen for advice with certain aspects of the removal. K16’s are out and K24’s are now ready for installation. Attach the turbo oil drain tanks…..oh wait, the attachment bolt is INSIDE the tank, what’s up with that?
If you are planning to do this upgrade, I highly recommend you let the pros do the installation. I found myself calling upon little tricks I have learned from years of wrenching. A novice would come upon many roadblocks along the way.
Wow...that's quite a long time. Are you sure you werent just taking breaks after removing each bolt?!?!? LOL!
In all seriousness, what were some of the issues with the removal and how did you deal with the attachment bolt that was inside the tank?
I seriously thought this entire process would take at most, 1/2 the time that it actually did???!?!?
09-21-2003, 01:03 PM
#5
Burning Brakes
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Very nice Ken, glad to see you gain the experience, now you can come down and do mine in a few years Just Kiddin man, looks great congrats on the new kit, enjoy it, and be safe!!!!
Regards,
Evan
PS-Its amazing watching what u do to this car, its just wierd because I drove that car(no I didn't joyride in it, just to move it
) when it was stock, and now look at it...., its lookin good man, keep up the good work!!
Just Kiddin man, looks great congrats on the new kit, enjoy it, and be safe!!!!Regards,
Evan
PS-Its amazing watching what u do to this car, its just wierd because I drove that car(no I didn't joyride in it, just to move it
) when it was stock, and now look at it...., its lookin good man, keep up the good work!!
09-21-2003, 03:49 PM
#7
Burning Brakes
Thread Starter
BCS996TT,
I know, I know. That is exactly what I thought. When I heard from Stephen and Colin though, I had to place confidence in their estimates. I would say the biggest time aspect relates to the inaccessibility of many of the connections, particularly the oil lines and the hanger bracket. Regarding the turbo oil drain tank, the bolt is easily removed through the drain plug hole. Odd is all I can say about that one.
AMG ETR,
You are on your own with yours Evan!!! I don't plan to do this again.
Cobra,
I am impressed. How helpful was your friend? If you each did a side I could see the time cut in half. I didn't crank the engine before starting but I did let it sit with the new oil for about 6 hours. Once I did start it, I let it warm up gradually and did not load the engine at all.
I know, I know. That is exactly what I thought. When I heard from Stephen and Colin though, I had to place confidence in their estimates. I would say the biggest time aspect relates to the inaccessibility of many of the connections, particularly the oil lines and the hanger bracket. Regarding the turbo oil drain tank, the bolt is easily removed through the drain plug hole. Odd is all I can say about that one.
AMG ETR,
You are on your own with yours Evan!!! I don't plan to do this again.
Cobra,
I am impressed. How helpful was your friend? If you each did a side I could see the time cut in half. I didn't crank the engine before starting but I did let it sit with the new oil for about 6 hours. Once I did start it, I let it warm up gradually and did not load the engine at all.
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09-21-2003, 04:00 PM
#9
Burning Brakes
Thread Starter
Evan,
I took it for a ride and everything is A OK! I went out to the highway and kept an eye on the oil pressure gauge, temp gauge and kept my ears open for anything that looked or sounded weird. No problems.
So, I pull onto Route 78 (it is a major west/east highway that crosses NJ, which also happens to have the highest average traffic speed in the state in my opinion) and decided to let it rip.
Well, just before I did, this sparkling red Ferrari 355 cabrio flys by. Now what kind of car crazed nut would I be if I didn't give chase. I caught up to him and he moved from the left lane to the middle lane to allow me to pass. I did. He jumped in right behind me. I picked up the pace a little and he still followed very closely. Now, keep in mind, I haven't given it the right foot treatment yet because I wanted to make sure everyhting was right before doing so. Well, what happened next was nothing short of storybook folklore. With the urging of my right foot, the red mass that filled my rear view mirror became nothing more than a speck the size of a water droplet on my rear window.
I cannot believe how brutally fast this car is. I say brutally because the power is delivered in such a burst it defies description. You have to experience it to understand what I am talking about. Those in the know, know exactly what I mean.
All in all, I am extremely pleased with the product and its performance. However, I think I need better brakes.
I took it for a ride and everything is A OK! I went out to the highway and kept an eye on the oil pressure gauge, temp gauge and kept my ears open for anything that looked or sounded weird. No problems.
So, I pull onto Route 78 (it is a major west/east highway that crosses NJ, which also happens to have the highest average traffic speed in the state in my opinion) and decided to let it rip.
Well, just before I did, this sparkling red Ferrari 355 cabrio flys by. Now what kind of car crazed nut would I be if I didn't give chase. I caught up to him and he moved from the left lane to the middle lane to allow me to pass. I did. He jumped in right behind me. I picked up the pace a little and he still followed very closely. Now, keep in mind, I haven't given it the right foot treatment yet because I wanted to make sure everyhting was right before doing so. Well, what happened next was nothing short of storybook folklore. With the urging of my right foot, the red mass that filled my rear view mirror became nothing more than a speck the size of a water droplet on my rear window.
I cannot believe how brutally fast this car is. I say brutally because the power is delivered in such a burst it defies description. You have to experience it to understand what I am talking about. Those in the know, know exactly what I mean.
All in all, I am extremely pleased with the product and its performance. However, I think I need better brakes.
09-21-2003, 04:32 PM
#10
Burning Brakes
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Very cool Ken, glad it runs well, can't imagine what the guy's face in the 355 looked like "
" . Sounds like fun, like I said be safe, but of course TEAR IT UP!!!
Regards,
Evan
" . Sounds like fun, like I said be safe, but of course TEAR IT UP!!!Regards,
Evan
09-21-2003, 07:06 PM
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I am impressed. How helpful was your friend? If you each did a side I could see the time cut in half. I didn't crank the engine before starting but I did let it sit with the new oil for about 6 hours. Once I did start it, I let it warm up gradually and did not load the engine at all
It's a good idea when draining the turbos or installing new to pull the fuel pump solenoid and crank the engine to get oil into the system. Probably not a big deal if you took it slow.
09-21-2003, 11:02 PM
#14
Burning Brakes
Thread Starter
I have not noticed any more lag. In fact, as ridiculous as it sounds, it feels like a couple of pit bulls pulling on a leash. The car just wants to go. It breathes much better as evidenced by the Europipe when I first installed it months ago. The K&N filter helped that as well. The throttle response is nothing short of amazing which I attribute to the GIAC ECU tuning. I actually ran the car with the ECU upgrade and the K16's for a short while so a back to back comparison was exactly what I did. The engine's reaction to the accelerator input is almost telepathic. So, to answer your question, no, I don't notice any difference.
