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07 Sky Base

4K views 23 replies 4 participants last post by  buzzdalf 
#1 ·
Hey yall,

Just picked up a Sky. I plan on dropping a turbo in it with the LNF goodies. There is a shop locally that does a kit.

Just wanted to say howdy.:smile:
 
#3 ·
Nice looking car.

As for the LNF turbo on the 2.4, the only parts you need which are not readily available are the cold side charge pipe, oil return line, and a tune. Everything else is directly off the shelf. If you can can find parts second hand you can build the kit for fairly cheap It all depends on what you have on hand and what you have to find. I was lucky in that I had a lot of my stuff given to me by guys who were just going to throw the parts away or were willing to loan them to me until I got upgraded parts...which reminds me I need to get my Hahn intercooler on sometime soon and see when by buddy is going to be done painting my hot side charge pipe.

Here is a little post from my build to get you motivated :) :
http://www.skyroadster.com/forums/f25/lnf-turbo-le5-68089/index2.html
http://www.skyroadster.com/forums/f33/new-date-so-cal-mod-day-le5-turbo-build-70497/

 
#8 ·
Did you use LNF lines for Oil? Or did you use custom braided?

Got any pics of the lines?
For the oil feed line, it is straight LNF OEM. The block has the same pickup points for the oil feel as the LNF.

For the Oil Return, unless you want to pull the engine and drill the block for the LNF style line, you have to have something made. Dave at DDM built the line for me. Here is a picture of it with my new injectors (also from DDM).



Basically this bolts up to the stock location on the K04 Turbo and then routes to the cover on the front of the engine for the water pump. Installation is pretty straight forward just don't use the stock gasket that is behind the factory cover when installing DDM's modified cover. I put a slight bit of gasket maker on it to make sure it sealed up nice.

I don't know if you are curious about the water lines but those can be reused too. The line coming from the Thermostat housing is a direct bolt on so long as you have the LNF thermostat housing OR are drilling and taping the recess in the LE5's Thermostat housing. The other line bolts to the turbo fine but you do have to do something to attach the other end of it into your engine's coolant system. I tied into the radiator line on the front of the engine. This solution is hokey and I will be changing it someday but have other concerns at the moment. LOL
 
#11 · (Edited)
No, that won't work. The angle and shape of the outlets are different. Go with a stock Redline/GXP unit or one of the Hahn or DDM units. (I think there are other aftermarket ICs out there but can't think of them at the moment.)

For the LNF thermostat housing, do I need part 10 or 15?

You will need 8 and 10. The water pipe (8) is a different shape on the LNF to clear the exhaust manifold. !0 is the housing itself and has a drilled and tapped hole for the stock LNF/K04 water line. The other parts of that assembly are interchangeable between the two engine types.

Here is a complete parts list for my build:
http://www.skyroadster.com/forums/f25/lnf-turbo-le5-68089/index2.html#post949314

The parts for the thermostat housing and water pipe are under Water System Parts. Part numbers there are GM unless otherwise specified and MSRP prices are included for reference.

Also, on your oil and water lines, the lines have different size banjo bolts and crush washers so be sure you get the right ones for the right lines. They are very close in appearance so it is easy to mix them up or think they are the same size.
 
#12 · (Edited)
I also had a checklist for my build...here is a picture of it:



And here is the short version of it. Keep in mind, this is only an outline and I HIGHLY suggest you verify each step on this list and take into account if you're not running a boost controller, a 2-bar MAP sensor, or other differences in your build from mine.

1. Jack up car and secure on jack stands.
2. Unplug negative terminal from battery.
3. Unplug MAF sensor from harness.
4. Remove stock intake.
5. Unplug both O2 sensors from harness. Remove 2 bolts holding exhaust to catalytic converter.
6. Loosen oil cap and drain oil. Replace oil plug when done. Change oil filter.
7. Loosen coolant overflow cap. Drain coolant. Close drain when done.
8. Remove exhaust manifold heat shield.
9. Remove exhaust manifold bolts. Remove catalytic converter if necessary to access all bolts.
10. Remove exhaust manifold (and catalytic converter if not removed in previous step) from car.
11. Remove plug from thermostat housing for turbo water line.
12. Remove rear most oil plug from block for turbo oil line.
13. Remove front water pump drive chain cover from front of engine.
14. Install stud into block for turbo charger brace.
15. Hook up turbo water line to thermostat. Make sure black washers are in place.
16. Hook up turbo oil line to engine block. Make sure black washers are in place.
17. Install new manifold gasket.
18. Install new manifold. Tighten bolts in sequence. Torque to 10 ft/lbs
19. Install exhaust manifold heat shield. Tighten bolts to 18 ft/lbs.
20. Install turbo to manifold. Tighten bolts to 22 ft/lbs.
21. Install water line, water return line, and oil feed line to turbo. Torque to 15 ft/lbs.
22. Run small bead of RTV around edge of front plate where it mates to the block.
23. Install front plate with nipple for oil return line to front of engine. Torque to 89 in/lbs.
24. Install oil return line on turbo to front plate.
25. Cut upper radiator hose to install water T-fitting for water return on turbo.
26. Install T-fitting into radiator line.
27. Install hose and reducer then connect to turbo water return line.
28. Install cat to the turbo. Torque nuts to 43 ft/lbs
29. Remove O2 sensor from NA cat and install into new bung on turbo cat.
30. Install Wide Band O2 sensor into stock O2 bung on turbo cat.
31. Install exhaust to cat. Torque nuts to 13 ft/lbs
32. Torque catalytic converter brace bracket bolt to 16 ft/lbs. (not sure what this is or where it is)
33. Connect O2 sensors to harnesses.
34. Connect turbo charger brace and tighten bolts to 37 ft/lbs.
35. Unplug and remove stock MAP sensor and install new 2-bar MAP sensor.
36. Remove brake booster vacuum line from intake manifold below Throttle Body.
37. Splice brake booster line. Install 3/8” x 3/8” x ¼” Tee fitting.
38. Run 3/16” vacuum line from tee fitting to Bypass Valve on turbo.
39. Find mounting location for boost controller near turbo.
40. Set boost controller to lowest setting.
41. Bypass N75 waste gate solenoid on turbo with boost controller.
42. Cap off N75 ports with vacuum caps.
43. Depressurize fuel rail.
44. Remove connectors from stock injectors.
45. Remove fuel rail from injectors.
46. Replace injectors with 60# units.
47. Replace fuel rail and tighten bolts to 16 ft/lbs.
48. Attach connectors to new injectors.
49. Remove plugs from intercooler connectors (Intercooler already installed on car).
50. Assemble and install hot side charge pipe between turbo and intercooler. Tighten clamps.
51. Remove MAF sensor from stock intake and install into cold side charge pipe.
52. Install cold side charge pipe between intercooler and throttle body. Tighten clamps.
53. Plug in MAF.
54. Remove stock breather line from valve cover. Replace with longer ½” heater/oil/vacuum line.
55. Locate appropriate place for Oil Catch Can between breather line and turbo.
56. Mount oil catch can.
57. Run ½” line from valve cover to Oil Catch Can input. Cut for appropriate routing.
58. Run 3/8” line from output of Oil Catch Can to nipple on turbo inlet. Cut and route appropriately.
59. Install 45 degree boot onto intake of turbo.
60. Test fit with spare 2.5” pipe to figure out proper routing for turbo intake.
61. Acquire 3” aluminum pipe and a 3” cone air filter from auto parts store based on test fit.
62. Modify and install intake pipe as necessary for fitment. Install intake.
63. Double check all hose clamps for tightness.
64. Refill oil. Secure oil cap.
65. Refill coolant. Bleed system per DDM’s bleed instructions. Secure overflow cap.
66. Reconnect negative terminal on battery.
67. Download stock tune from ECM using HPtuners.
68. Install new tune to ECM using HPTuners.
69. Test start car.
70. Make adjustments to tune for idle as necessary.
71. Check turbo system for oil leaks, water leaks, and air leaks.
72. Triple check all fittings, clamps, and connections.
73. Lower car to the ground.
74. Drive and tune car until satisfactory.
http://www.skyroadster.com/forums/f25/lnf-turbo-le5-68089/index2.html#post949314

Having this list was a HUGE help as we had torque specs, torque sequences, and vacuum line routing information on the checklist and could easily see what had and had not been done on the build. The steps are easy but there are a lot of them and this really helps you make sure you didn't skip anything.
 
#14 · (Edited)
Yep, that's exactly what you need. No, not bad at all. I'll be interested in seeing what your total cost on this is.

I'm reading through my list up there and need to mention that I had my thermostat housing and water pipe installed by the dealer when they replaced my water pump so that part of the process is going to be very different for you since you need to install those pieces too. Insert those steps where you see "Remove plug from thermostat housing." I had put a plug in my water pickup port on the LNF thermostat housing so I could drive the car with the LNF housing on it until I was ready to install my turbo.
 
#15 ·
So far I am in it for,

$500 - New KO4/Manifold/Oil Lines/Coolant lines
$260 - ZZP Downpipe.
$50 - OEM Intercooler.

The custom charge pipes and intake will be $500. Need some injectors and the tune. I might take off all the NA parts and trailer to a shop and have them do the install. I'm not totally sure yet.
 
#17 ·
Sounds about right. I had local shop fabricate my charge pipes and it ran about $300 for materials and labor. The intake you could piece together IF you wanted to from eBay and save some money but probably not a ton...maybe $100 savings from what you're doing overall. Catless downpipe is nice but I'd HIGHLY suggest getting a second bung welded in and going with a Wide Band at some point. Always good to have on a NA to Turbo conversion. You can always just leave a plug in it for now but have it there when you want/need it. I run the stock O2 and a wide band on mine. (Damn RLs and their factory Wide Bands!!!!)
 
#19 ·
The coolant flows different in an LNF vs a LE5? That would be news to me. Considering DDM and others have used this same setup to do the same thing I'd think they'd know better than I about this. I can say, when talking to DDM, Hahn, and a few others, no one ever mentioned this as being the case or a problem. I've had mine on since November without problems...Other than overheating my Power Steering fluid this weekend at autocross but then that was on the fourth lap of the same session in 110 degree heat running at low speeds...I kind of expect that to happen under those circumstances.
 
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