I hate it when someone posts that picture... there are so many parts other than what is displayed in the picture necessary to convert a n/a to a factory turbo. KLR/DME, intake pipes, throttle body, air box, wiring harness, injectors, instrument cluster, coolant crossover pipe, radiator, radiator hoses, fan shroud, all the stuff underneath the intake (cycling valve, pipes, hoses), brake master shield, turbo water pump (electric one on top of the "normal turbo" pump), fenders, header panel, headlight cover, aluminum bumper (front), bumper shocks, relays, and a whole lot of other stuff that other than this casual list off the top of my head...

 

I always get a kick out of that ad, most of the NAs on this board are upgraded with half of those parts (or better) already. Heck, my own car has better shocks/struts, swaybars, tires, brake pads, fluid and lines than a stock turbo. My Fuchs are a step up from what a lot of 'em are wearing, too. A caliper/rotor swap is next, along with springs that are well beyond a stock 951. My trans (not stock) is considered to be equal to a 951 trans in strenght (geared to my liking though). At this point, if I were to drop in a turbo motor (of course an exhaust system that fit and an IC would have to go with it), I'd have everything in that picture except the bodywork (and as I said some of it is beyond 951 spec), is the bodywork a requirement for the engine swap?

Even the little turbo badge?

Notice there are a few parts that I didn't mention, to my knowledge the control arms, torque tube, shifter etc. are either unchanged from the 944 to the 951 or are only minor changes to fit other parts that are not of consequential difference. Is that intake boot really a big deal?

 

There are a lot of parts in that photo that are not unique to the turbo:

90% of the suspension
the torque tube
the cam shaft

Also, that trans. has a cooler on it, which was not standard equipment on the turbo.

Finally, there are a lot of things in that photo that needn't be added to turbo charge an NA: Body work, tyres, pistons (depending on your setup).

Edit: Sorry, Dave already covered most of this.

 

are you the same guy that made the "noss" bottles in the back?

 

Tabor,

The cam is different in the turbo's vs. the late n/a's...

 

You know, i was really thinking about a "noss" kit and maybe one of them electric turbo's too. You think that would make my car seem a little to ricey?

 

Tabor, the trans cooler is standard for ALL 86 turbos when the ad was published. Unless you are going to use 110 octane gas for your car, you need to change the pistons or run 1 pound of boost. Front suspension - struts, hubs, rotors, calipers, sway bar, are all different on the turbo (more than 10 percent of the suspension).

 

You shouldn't be turbocharging a perfectly good NA. Turbo cars are unsafe, too fast and the spawn of the devil and create addictions that suck huge amounts of cash out of the wallet. I'm in recovery and converting my 951 to 83NA spec with a highly modified Geo Metro mill for added slowness. The picture of all the stuff used to make a turbo is now my guide to non-turboness. Everything I need to remove to achieve slowness and recovery from boost addiction.

 

"Also, that trans. has a cooler on it, which was not standard equipment on the turbo."

"Tabor, the trans cooler is standard for ALL 86 turbos when the ad was published. "

Also standard on the '88 TurboS and '89+ Turbos...

 

I won't argue that point, but the 951 cam is straight out of the NA parts bin.

 

Right, right. I didn't notice the early style brake rotors/hubs in the photo. That being said, it obviously doesn't take a transmission cooler to have a turbocharged 944 (see model years 1987, 1988). However, it is true that the 944 transmission will not stand up to the torque of the 951 engine.

There are lots of low boost turbo kits for cars with fairly high compression ratios (see: Subaru 2.5 RS, Honda Civic, Acura Integra...). 1982-1986 cars only have a 9.5:1 compression ratio. Also notice that you need only run 87 octane in a 1986 944. There are many states where 94 is easily attainable, and some where it is possible to find 100 at the pump.


Yea... I have never thought of brake components as suspension. I will give you the struts, hubs (only on the front), and sway bars. However, the fitment for struts in the 1987-1988 cars is identical in the NA and Turbo. If you buy koni's for your 1987 944 NA, they are the same struts you would recieve if you had ordered for your 1987 944 Turbo.

Finally, the banana arms, hubs (on the back), and torsion bar carrier are identical. The only difference in the rear suspension that I am aware of are the torsion bars, and the shocks. However, like the front, the koni applications are identical. The front control arms and shock mounts (depending on years) are idential. Maybe that isn't 90% of the parts count, but it is probably 90% of the volume and weight.

 

beyond all theory, the great thing to do would be to try out how conversions really work in practice.

 

Calaway did it before the 951 came out. Several people on rennlist have put 951 engines in 944s.

 

i've known something about it, but have found little info

i'd like to read more about the results in practice of those conversions.

 

What happens when you put a Turbo frontend on a N/a?

Oh for ***** and goiggles how much wieght do you think i shed off my car?
I replaced the N/a front end(yes rubber bumpers and all), with a Turbo setup...with NO lights and it is strictly just the Turbo bumper cover....25lbs?
More/less?

another question How much more rigid do you think I made the frame of my car by adding the Safeguard bolt in cage?

all the best-chris