Ball Bearing a 19T, Worth Doing?

**After_Shock** · Friday 16th June 2006, 21:58

Was speaking to a guy today about his modified evo and hes had countless cars all modified and was talking about the 19T turbo upgrade that can be done to the Volvo's. Mentioned that had it done on my last C70 and he asked who did the ball bearing conversion on the turbo, so I said didnt bother with that and he looked shocked.

I mentioned that the standard engine internals cant really take anymore than the standard 19T and anymore power would cause alot of problems so wouldnt be worth ball bearing one. He went on about the advantages of doing the ball bearing conversion saying the turbo would spool up much quicker and also respond much quicker but it wouldnt make the turbo any more powerfull.

Is this correct and has anyone done this type of mod?

**BlackBeast** · Friday 16th June 2006, 22:07

Cheaper to buy one of Garretts GT series BB turbos from the states.

**After_Shock** · Friday 16th June 2006, 22:13

Thats an option but then need a manifold for it to fit on and its getting one that will work well with the engine!

arbee · Friday 16th June 2006, 23:01

i'dve thought the precision machining required would be incredibly expensive for the gain achieved

**nobananas** · Friday 16th June 2006, 23:15

Surely a shaft floating on a cushion of oil produces less friction and drag then a set of bearings.

**After_Shock** · Saturday 17th June 2006, 08:04

No idea dont know anything about them!

Its not about the gain in bhp as their wouldnt be one its about the driveability. Ive been in the evo before and after having the ball bearing being done, on the rollers its about 2bhp more but on the road the powers just their, where as before it was like on top gear wait a year for the power to come in then the car decided to go.

**Wobbly Dave** · Saturday 17th June 2006, 15:52

IIRC the 19T is a ball-bearing turbo

**After_Shock** · Saturday 17th June 2006, 17:36

Are you sure on that dave?

**pzorb** · Saturday 17th June 2006, 18:02

Whenever I hear talk of BB turbos, talk of no spool-up or spool-down are mentioned too. IE wants to keep running once it gets up to speed

**elliot** · Saturday 17th June 2006, 18:05

I belive the 19t has a 360 thrust bearing not BB.
I would just order a garrett gt with t3 exhaust housing then machine the exhaust manifold flat and buy a t3 gasket or an adaptor from ATP then you dont have to machine the manifold,you can order it to whatever spec you want dependant on power etc.I think there will be a big gain over the 19t with its tiny exhaust housing limiting top end flow and causing heat.If you are unsure about fitment and what trims to order the turbo in etc then maybe just go with a 19t.

**andyr** · Saturday 17th June 2006, 22:54

Originally Posted by nobananas

Surely a shaft floating on a cushion of oil produces less friction and drag then a set of bearings.

Just think about this for a second.

Why would a set of ball bearings have more drag (in surface contact area) than a conventional thrust bearing ?
Think about how much surface area of a ball bearing actually has on a surface when rolling.............not much.
Hence, less rolling resistance, quicker spool, etc.

HTH

Andy

**aeroresh** · Sunday 18th June 2006, 10:41

But the whole point of doing the 19T conversion is not the fact that its the best turbo for the car but its straight forward with relatively low cost.

If you are going to start tinkering with its innards you may aswell go for better turbo in the first place and get one which ultimately produces better power.

**After_Shock** · Sunday 18th June 2006, 11:30

I dont want to fiddle with engine internals but think theirs better options out their than the 19t's or ways of improving them, ultimate power isnt the aim, driveability is.

As much as I liked the 19t it did have negative points, too much lag, not enough top end as the power tailed off too quick, it was lethal in 4th gear and 2nd but flat in 3rd and 5th so it was fun but not the ideal all round package.

Making a different turbo fit isnt a problem however which turbo to go with would be the problem.

**volvotuning** · Sunday 18th June 2006, 12:34

Originally Posted by After_Shock

As much as I liked the 19t it did have negative points, too much lag, not enough top end as the power tailed off too quick, it was lethal in 4th gear and 2nd but flat in 3rd and 5th so it was fun but not the ideal all round package.

That's something that we addressed with the custom mapping on the rolling road. Ask anyone who has had the 19T conversion since we had the new dyno installed. There are no issues at all with driveability, and the 19T is useable in all gears.

Adam.

**After_Shock** · Sunday 18th June 2006, 12:48

True however is their a turbo that can still do the same but with less lag and also keep the power going to the red line so to speak?

**volvotuning** · Sunday 18th June 2006, 12:59

The KKK is probably slightly better, but any advantage is wiped out by the complete ball ache of fitting it, and in this case such effort is far better being put into something like a Garrett GT series turbo.

The 19T is capable of delivering good power and flat torque from around 2700 rpm to 5500 rpm.

Adam.

**BlackBeast** · Sunday 18th June 2006, 14:34

Originally Posted by After_Shock

True however is their a turbo that can still do the same but with less lag and also keep the power going to the red line so to speak?

On your last car with the 19T you had a different intercooler correct? Depending on its design/flow capabilities that alone could have increased lag.

**After_Shock** · Sunday 18th June 2006, 15:16

That is true but it was marginally larger as it fit into the standard position so was just a drop in type which doesnt give any room to make them bigger!

Adam which size of the Garret GT series would be an ideal turbo for running standard internals but giving power to the end of the rev range?