[COTW 5/9/11:] STS Turbo Installed

[Z Madness]

Originally Posted by GretchenGotGrowl

I wouldn't try a greased turbo. They make some high temp greases, but that seems to be asking a lot.

Cant_c_me just replaced his mump and says it is real quiet. I will get him in here to give details.

Sent from my GT-N8013 using Tapatalk

Thanks, would love to know what he did for pump replacement. I was looking at Turbowerks.

For turbo, its manufactured by Comp Turbo Technology Inc. (not STS). Check out COMPTURBO.com

And I'll have to look into the HP Tuner option. Did Vince hit a wall?

Derrick, anything else I should check out for the LLT?

[GretchenGotGrowl]

Originally Posted by Z Madness

Thanks, would love to know what he did for pump replacement. I was looking at Turbowerks.

For turbo, its manufactured by Comp Turbo Technology Inc. (not STS). Check out COMPTURBO.com

And I'll have to look into the HP Tuner option. Did Vince hit a wall?

Derrick, anything else I should check out for the LLT?

Yeah he went with a turbowerks.

The HPTuners development is the biggest news. I am looking at the lf3 cams and hpfp to see what they can do for us. I am not sure about the llt, though.

Sent from my GT-N8013 using Tapatalk

[Can't_C_Me]

MHO I wouldn't also try a greased turbo. It sounds like a great option but think about it. If it was really all that great wouldn't the auto industry use them instead of using oil cooled ones that are messy?! Just my opinion.

On the turbo pump subject, get you the Turbowerx's xtra pump. Quiet and powerful pump, I love it and it's worth the money. I have a video in my build thread of it running compared to my old pump. Seems like everyone with the STS kit has the same pump problems.

Sent from my Samsung Galaxy Note 3

[KMPrenger]

Hey Z...welcome from the dead!

HPTuner has JUST release support for the LLT...in fact it might still be at the end of testing still so there could still be some wait time there, but it is looking positive. Gretchen is right, that the HPT option is the biggest news for the LLT right now. The lack of a tuning option (outside of IPF, which only tunes for their supercharger and N/A cars) was the reason FI for the LLT never really went too far. HPT could change all of that.

Trifecta doesn't seem to be throwing us much support anymore from what I can tell, and I'm not sure they will even touch an FI'd LLT anymore.

[Z Madness]

Thanks guys.

As far as the oil less turbo's, I agree, not conventional. Looks like the company just came out with the product. It's still water cooled. It's just a new ball bearing system. Maybe I will wait and try the new pump first.

Can't c me, where did you install the pump? Same location? I saw on other forums (non-Camaro) that you have to mount the pump near the turbo. If you did, have any pics or can share on the wiring?

[Z Madness]

And does HP Tuners provide the tune or just the software? Not familiar with their system.

[Can't_C_Me]

Originally Posted by Z Madness

Thanks guys.

As far as the oil less turbo's, I agree, not conventional. Looks like the company just came out with the product. It's still water cooled. It's just a new ball bearing system. Maybe I will wait and try the new pump first.

Can't c me, where did you install the pump? Same location? I saw on other forums (non-Camaro) that you have to mount the pump near the turbo. If you did, have any pics or can share on the wiring?

I don't have the STS kit, so location on that I wouldn't know. I just know how it is to have a bad pump that isn't worth crap. I'll have Matt come in and chime in on location as he was the one i got the pump from. He had a sts V6 before he got his ZL1.

Originally Posted by Z Madness

And does HP Tuners provide the tune or just the software? Not familiar with their system.

HPtuners is just a software. But many shop use them over others. The game for the LLT has changed with this tuning software. LLT's are lined up everywhere to get tuned now. I know people that are on this forum that heard of the good knows wanting a tune now.

Sent from my Samsung Galaxy Note 3

[elsololobo02]

Zmadness,

I have have been down the turbo/scavenger rabbit hole before. I may be able to help with my own candid experience. I do have two questions for you, if you feel like responding which is completely up to you.

1) What is the reason you are researching a new pump?

2) What is the reason you a researching a new turbo?

These may sound like loaded questions but it will be helpful to know what is going on. Feel free to look at my album by clicking on my username on how I had my STS system reconfigured. No matter what I did I always had oiling issues amongst other things.

[Z Madness]

Originally Posted by elsololobo02

Zmadness,

I have have been down the turbo/scavenger rabbit hole before. I may be able to help with my own candid experience. I do have two questions for you, if you feel like responding which is completely up to you.

1) What is the reason you are researching a new pump?

2) What is the reason you a researching a new turbo?

These may sound like loaded questions but it will be helpful to know what is going on. Feel free to look at my album by clicking on my username on how I had my STS system reconfigured. No matter what I did I always had oiling issues amongst other things.

No problem, that's why I love this forum. Discussions here moved things forward.

1) My original STS pump is not working. I rather find an alternative pump that is hopefully both more reliable and much more quite. My "research" revealed problems with the STS one that pushes me towards a different pump.

2) Not really searching for a new Turbo. It this oil less one that STS is now using (via Comp Turbo) that made me consider replacing the Turbo thus forgoing the oiling issues, which you eluded to, always has some sort of issue. I believe STS is using these in all their new products going forward. I'm sure they are aware of the challenges with oiling in their system,

It would seem that the oil-less turbo would fit my needs better as I had the car for 4 years and have put on a whopping 3,500 miles. I don't have access to 1/4 or Tracks so I'm limited to AutoXing and spirited driving. I still may one day ship the car to Maui to run a quarter but even then, it would be very limited. So, if I could avoid the entire oiling issue, which I always felt was a problem with the STS system, an oil-less turbo would be great. Also, FWIW, I'm on my second turbo from STS as the previous one had shaft play in a very short period.

With that said, I have even considered adding another turbo to make it a twin set-up (like the V-8 set up) now that we may have access to a new tuning alternative.

So please, any constructive discussions is welcomed!

[elsololobo02]

Zmadness,
I Hope the following helps you out in any way and hopefully some others too.

1) I had 3 x STS scavenger pumps fail within a 17 month timeframe for reasons I don't know. They just stopped working. There are many different pumps on the market and I decided to purchase the Turbowerx Exa pump. The pump is quiet as long as you mount it in a location that has little resonance effect from the pump noise and or use a lot of dampening O-rings on the mounting screws. Before I traded my car I bought the Turbowerxs standard pump and that one is even more quieter and pumps enough (1.75 GPM) to meet the demand. The Exa pump is rated to 3.1 GPM and is probably a little over kill but both a high quality pumps.

2) I am glad to hear there is an oil-less turbo on the market available for the kits. I am not educated enough about them to comment. I also went through 3 x STS turbo’s in the same 17 month period. 2 x Ball Bearing and 1 x Journal Bearing. The Ball bearing lasted a bit longer than the Journal by maybe a month or two max and all had major shaft play. I finally decided to have a Borg Warner turbo installed (7064 Efr). Well, I had two. The first shop sold me a way undersized turbo (6258 Efr) so I had that removed after speaking with BW and utilizing the match bot software to get the correct sized turbo for the LLT.

3) The oiling issues I had experience were the pressure side piping, intercooler, intake and TB had a fair amount of oil coating constantly with both the STS turbo’s and the BW turbo’s. So here is what I did to rectify and what I learned...
- Oil feed pressure is between 72-80 Psi.
- Changed the oil feed line from a -4 to a -6 line.
- Changed the oil return line from a -8 to a -10 line.
- Had a oil sump tank installed directly under the turbo.
- Installed a catch can (two different types).
- Also tried to vent the PCV to atmosphere both clean/dirty sides.

So did any of the above help? A little, maybe cut the oiling issue down by half.

The one thing that cured the issue in conjunction with all of the above was getting rid of the U- shaped bent Al tubing and air filter by STS. I went on the K&N website and found a filter that would fit from measurements, which fits directly onto the turbo inlet that was the same size as the turbo inlet itself. Also has a dry sock cover to help keep water out. I will try and find my e-receipt with the part number and post it. The K&N filter is much larger than the STS filter and there is no need for the silicone reducer (exp 3" to 2.5 inch).

Well I know this was long but maybe the info can help. With all the issues I had with STS (they were helpful to try and resolve) and having another shop work on my car that created insurmountable issues, I decided to trade my LLT for a 2014 ZL1.

[Z Madness]

Elsololobo02. Thank you very much for your comments. I don't blame you for going with a ZL1, you get all the power you need in stock form. I myself have been waiting for the Z-28 but now that it's here, I can't justify the price. Don't get me wrong, It's a freakin beast.

Sorry to hear of your troubles though. I know when I was going through the installation/tuning process, Rick was very helpful and accessible. I was also the first to try the meth kit and we had to work together to figure out the wiring. With STS, it seems like a hit and miss with their system. I know a Vette owner that has had one for years locally and have not had any issues. I need to drive my Camaro more and put it through the paces.

So, for me, I have some decisions as I do not plan to get rid of this Camaro. My son can't wait to run it at AutoX for the upcoming season (July-April). For turbo, I'm deciding on the Exa Pump option or the Oil-less turbo. For the next year, I expect to put on a few thousand miles of weekend driving. I'm still leaning towards trying the oil less and the if it doesn't work, go with the Exa pump. I am willing to drop the $'s and see if this works. At a minimum, it should help other STS owners out. And you know me, no issues with trying something new....

Oh boy, another round of upgrades during the summer. Should be fun.