54 Plate 320d turbo failure (cause ????)

[pil2255]

Hi

My sisters car has just become a blue smoke machine !!!
Can anyone offer any suggestions as to the most common cause for turbo failure on a 54 plate 320d (80k miles) ??? Looks like a £1000 repair bill for her so she wants to avoid it happening again !!

Thanks

Mike

[Soovy]

Not letting the turbo cool down properly after a run?

[pil2255]

For the past 3 years its really only been used as a local run about and the school run etc. My sis is not a speed freak and dont think it would have been working on full boost 99% of time.
They have not done a great deal of miles either, maybe the damage was done before they got it. Also got a feeling that its had same oil in it for 3 years as only covered about 8k miles.
could the oil have caused it ???

Mike

[E30M3SE]

When it comes off, and comes apart, they should be able to tell the likely cause of failure.

[Soovy]

pil2255 said:

For the past 3 years its really only been used as a local run about and the school run etc. My sis is not a speed freak and dont think it would have been working on full boost 99% of time.
They have not done a great deal of miles either, maybe the damage was done before they got it. Also got a feeling that its had same oil in it for 3 years as only covered about 8k miles.
could the oil have caused it ???

Mike

Lots of cold running and old oil.

There's your problem!


Turbos like to be hot and have fresh good quality oil!

[pil2255]

I had a sneeky feeling that the short journeys and old oil could have been a major cause !!
Will make sure my sis learns her lesson on that issue !!

Cheers

Mike

[Soovy]

pil2255 said:

I had a sneeky feeling that the short journeys and old oil could have been a major cause !!
Will make sure my sis learns her lesson on that issue !!

Cheers

Mike

It's probably just worn out mate, to be honest. 80k miles of cold engine and not chaging the oil has knackered it.

If it has done 80k miles on the motorway five hours a day it'd be fine.

Turbochargers don't suit that sort of use.

[bababa]

Soovy said:

Turbochargers don't suit that sort of use.

Based on the experience of a friend of mine, diesels in general don't seem to suit that sort of use. His wife changed from a 318i to a 320d for the school/shopping run to improve economy - but has found the short stop/start distances actually seem to be costing her more in fuel. Additionally, she's just been told by the dealer that odd running problems she's experiencing are being caused by carbon deposits, which the dealer is attributing to low mileage usage.

[mike325112]

Soovy said:

It's probably just worn out mate, to be honest. 80k miles of cold engine and not chaging the oil has knackered it.

If it has done 80k miles on the motorway five hours a day it'd be fine.

Turbochargers don't suit that sort of use.

The old phrase of 'Turbos don't die, their murdered' does ring true.

Gently does it while they are cold and let em spool down for a few seconds before turning off.

[Gaygle]

bababa said:

His wife changed from a 318i to a 320d for the school/shopping run to improve economy - but has found the short stop/start distances actually seem to be costing her more in fuel. Additionally, she's just been told by the dealer that odd running problems she's experiencing are being caused by carbon deposits, which the dealer is attributing to low mileage usage.

lol fail. It just highlights what the public perception of diesel is - amazing MPG in every situation with no drawbacks whatsoever.

[mike325112]

Gaygle said:

lol fail. It just highlights what the public perception of diesel is - amazing MPG in every situation with no drawbacks whatsoever.

People are stupid! Over christmas period when I dont drive too far, my MPG dropped to early 30's in a 120d, the 330d drops to 20's in stop start traffic. Minimum of 10k a year probable nearer 15k now for diesel to be worth it, even then its not as clear cut as it once was taking into account servicing.