s14 t28 turbo swap, worth it?

[1988montecarloss]

thinking of putting an s14 t28 on my s13 sr20 in place of the stock turbo and running 550cc injectors and RS enthalpy tune and shooting for high 200's-low 300's RWHP, would the s14 t28 be necessary for those power goals or could that be done on the stock t25?

motor is all stock other than manley h beam rods and CP pistons, stock compression ratio and a FMIC

motor will be ran on 91 california catpiss lol, no 93 around here

[pacotaco345]

I make low 3's to the wheel with

Enthalpy tune
256 poncams
550cc injectors
z maf
s14 bb t28
fmic
greddy intake
full 3" straight pipe
arias 8.5:1 pistons
eagle rods

I'm sure there's other stuff I'm forgetting but those are the main power making parts. Also I'm running like 16 psi. Hope that helps

[Taylor008]

Would be around the high 200's, not low 300's. Maybe 300hp at 18psi ish with a good tune. T28's are sweet, if you can get one cheap then do it.

[1988montecarloss]

another question, when i purchase an enthalpy tune to i send my ECU in to them to have them modify it or do they just send me the "chip" that i install in it myself? or do they just send a complete ecu with the tune already in it

[bmaddock]

another question, when i purchase an enthalpy tune to i send my ECU in to them to have them modify it or do they just send me the "chip" that i install in it myself? or do they just send a complete ecu with the tune already in it

You send him your ECU, he installs a daughterboard and sends it back to you.

[Hashiriya415]

Built bottom end but you don't wanna use a bigger turbo because of budget or what?
You'll lose some power because of heavy H rods and maybe piston weight. So your output won't be great unless you run higher octane and boost which a used turbo that's about to go out won't make up for just by running it at higher PSI and hoping it will hold and Enthalpy rom isn't a tune to make most power. It's gonna give you safe power.

[1988montecarloss]

Would be around the high 200's, not low 300's. Maybe 300hp at 18psi ish with a good tune. T28's are sweet, if you can get one cheap then do it.


is $300 a good price on one? or keep looking?

[1988montecarloss]

You send him your ECU, he installs a daughterboard and sends it back to you.

any idea what the downtime on that is?

[1988montecarloss]

Built bottom end but you don't wanna use a bigger turbo because of budget or what?
You'll lose some power because of heavy H rods and maybe piston weight. So your output won't be great unless you run higher octane and boost which a used turbo that's about to go out won't make up for just by running it at higher PSI and hoping it will hold and Enthalpy rom isn't a tune to make most power. It's gonna give you safe power.

yes, car was purchased with the forged bottom end in it, if i could meet my goals on a stock turbo then there would be no point in purchasing a bigger one, its fine if power is left on the table with the enthalpy tune, this isnt a max effort/max hp build just a little more oomph for my daily driver

[Kingtal0n]

you will be lucky to have 260rwhp on a stock used t-28. Any more than that is asking for it to wear out quickly. Alot of the used ones have already been used up like that.

Just buy a brand new garret piece imo

we need more used $750 2871r garret 64 area/radius floating around, why pay $400 for a used 280rwhp when 320-350rwhp is only $400~ more
You had better setup that bypass properly though. A cold side ssqv is not going to do anything, you need a real push type bypass on the hot side to get the most reliable service life.

[bmaddock]

any idea what the downtime on that is?

He works pretty quick and can usually get it back within a week or so but you have to consider you're shipping it to florida, he adds the daughterboard and burns his tune, and then he ships it back to you. Not to mention I don't believe tuning is his full time job.

Sometimes on his site he sells whole ECU's so that might be an option if you can't afford the downtime. But as far as mail-order tuners go, you can't beat his customer service. He's more than willing to perfect the tune for you if it isn't up to your standards and will answer your questions.

[!Zar!]

Keep in mind he only does s13 ecu's. So if you have an s14 harness, you will need a harness to convert the ecu plug to an s13 ecu.

[1988montecarloss]

you will be lucky to have 260rwhp on a stock used t-28. Any more than that is asking for it to wear out quickly. Alot of the used ones have already been used up like that.

Just buy a brand new garret piece imo

we need more used $750 2871r garret 64 area/radius floating around, why pay $400 for a used 280rwhp when brand new 320-350rwhp is only $400~ more
You had better setup that bypass properly though. A cold side ssqv is not going to do anything, you need a real push type bypass on the hot side to get the most reliable service life.


as much as id love to go with a bigger/better turbo its simply out of the budget right now as ive just moved to California

ive honestly been thinking lately of just getting a good tune and running the t25 at a higher psi to hold me over for now until i have the money for a proper big turbo setup, what can the factory turbo and injectors be pushed to safely?

also any recommendations on a manual boost controller?

[Kingtal0n]

t-25 If its fairly new and you have a good bypass setup you can run 12psi on the oem engine with stock cams safely. If the t-25 is beat up I wouldn't push it beyond 10psi.

[1988montecarloss]

t-25 If its fairly new and you have a good bypass setup you can run 12psi on the oem engine with stock cams safely. If the t-25 is beat up I wouldn't push it beyond 10psi.

it seems to be in good shape there is no shaft play and the car doesnt burn oil at all, what do you mean when you say bypass? are you talking about a blow off valve? if so ive just never heard them referred to as bypass valves

[1988montecarloss]

Keep in mind he only does s13 ecu's. So if you have an s14 harness, you will need a harness to convert the ecu plug to an s13 ecu.

the motor is an S13 sr and the car is also an s13 so im assuming the harness is as well, but what ecu codes would i look for for it to be an s13 ecu?

[SilviaSR20DET]

I made 280 whp at 16psi on the t28 but its on a s14 sr20. Power goals wise its right up your alley. I think 300 hp is doable i guess but really pushing the limits though.

[Def]

300 rwhp is right on the ragged edge with a T28. It can do it, but it requires aggressive timing and running the compressor to the limits. Running these really high shaft RPMs tend to wear down the CHRA seals as well (not an instant failure, but they won't live as long when you push them that hard).

A 0.64 A/R GT2871R is probably more what you're looking for. About 300 RPM later boost threshold, a little slower transient response, but it's a driveable turbo. It'll do 350-380 rwhp without going too crazy with things. You need cams to use the potential of the turbo.

[S14DB]

Keep in mind he only does s13 ecu's. So if you have an s14 harness, you will need a harness to convert the ecu plug to an s13 ecu.

For KA's, He does S14SR.