Turbo conversion...Beware!

[dclose@tcadvertising.com]

For those considering a conversion of any kind, IMO, this type of project
is no simple task.
I know guys have said that they ?dropped in a turbo motor over the
weekend?, but they must
not be talking about an MC. It took me a weekend (in between watching F-1
and Champ Cars)
just to label all the wiring connections on the harness at the motor and
the fusebox and prep the
engine for removal. Then it requires hours of fabrication. There is the
re-plumbing of the turbo
and airbox, fuel system (required 2 junkyard trips on its own), coolant and
 exhaust system.

Then there is tons of bracket fabrication. Things like the after-run pump,
injector fan, oil cooler,
intercooler, accelerator cable, carbon canister, heat shields, etc. I also
found that every component
from the 5K was just slightly too big to fit in the 80. This requires more
creative methods to make
things fit. I found my experience with welding and composites (mainly epoxy
 and glass) came in
handy.
Of course then there is the wiring. It was my main concern and rightly so.
Be prepared to
spend hours comparing diagrams of both cars. You don't want to do trial and
 error here and risk
letting the smoke out of the computer.

My point is, don?t take the project lightly. I wouldn?t recommend it to
someone who just wants a
turbo and doesn?t enjoy fabrication. There were very frustrating moments.
But the first time the
motor started was a pretty cool feeling!

Dave