Delete what? Are you out of your mind? No one would ever bypass their car’s turbocharger, that’s insane!
You probably have the same reaction when you first glanced at the title of this post. Well, this is not clickbait as I will explain to you if turbo delete is possible or not.
As insane as this sounds maybe, I had a viewer asked me the very same question about the possibility of deleting (or bypassing) his car’s turbocharger.
He suspects his turbo is creating multiple problems for his car that’s why he would like to have it bypassed or removed.
But the question is, can you really bypass a turbo-equipped engine successfully? Read on!
The Answer is a Big YES!
I am not kidding! You can actually bypass your turbocharger if you want to. But, it will be very complicated and may likely result to much higher expenses and engine trouble.
Let me explain to you why.
Turbo is Part of the Air Intake System
The first thing that you should know if this job is possible or not is that, the turbocharger is part of your engine’s air intake system. To learn more about air intake system, read my blog post here.
Turbos are installed in an engine to simply “charge” or increase its overall power and torque. Whether its petrol or diesel engine, a turbo can significantly improve the performance of an engine by forcing more air in the combustion chamber, thus resulting to increased power.
However, it will only spool when it reaches its required RPM.
So to better understand if bypassing a turbo is possible or not, then you need to know how air intake system with a turbo works.
Basically this is how a force induction air intake system work:
Air filter–>MAF–>Turbocharger–>Intercooler–>Throttle Body–>Intake Manifold–>Combustion Chamber
Air is drawn into the air filter box, the mass air flow sensor calculates the air mass that will enter the engine, then air goes into the turbocharger, then the charged air is cooled by the intercooler. Now the air will pass through the throttle body and into the intake manifold. Lastly, the air will enter the engine for combustion.
As you can see from the said process above, you can’t just pull the turbo off the engine bay and expect the engine to run smoothly. You will need to consider a lot before you even decide to bypass the turbo.
Considerations Before You Bypass the Turbo
There are various reasons why you should think twice before you decide to bypass your turbocharger. Let me list the issues that you will go through for a turbo delete job.
- Cooling fluid
- Motor oil
- Hoses and pipes
- Computer box
- Exhaust system
Okay, your engine’s turbo isn’t just all about air coming in and out, it also draws coolant, the same fluid that cools down your engine’s temperature. If you look closely at your turbo’s physical structure, there is an inlet pipe for coolant to enter the turbo and an outlet pipe for the coolant to go back to the engine block.
Another issue is the oil pipes that your turbo has. Turbochargers need lubrication for its bearing housing. The same engine oil is used to help lubricate these parts including the thrust system of your turbo. Like the coolant pipes, turbo has an inlet and outlet pipes for motor oil.
So not only that you need to worry about these things, you also need to delete the said hoses and pipes. Doing so will redivert the coolant and oil to the engine block and oil pan respectively.
But that’s not all, your turbo has a couple of sensors that are also needed to be solved. Deleting your turbo will send multiple error codes to your ECU as the sensors have no functions at all. So you need to have a deep knowledge about your car’s electrical system to be able to deal with the sensors of your turbocharger and most likely, you also have to modify your ECU.
Lastly, turbochargers are also connected to the exhaust manifold of your engine. The exhaust gas turbine of a turbo is a critical component as it can dictate the performance of your engine.
So bypassing the turbo means that you are blocking the exhaust gases released by the engine. To avoid any issues, you have to disconnect the turbo from the exhaust manifold and connect it directly to the catalytic converter. And that job requires a lot of work.
Conclusion
If you are having trouble with your engine, don’t blame it on your turbo and don’t even plan on bypassing this very important component.
But if you have no choice and you urgently need to delete your turbocharger, then you have to deal with the coolant and oil pipes, sensors, ECU and the exhaust manifold.
Otherwise, you are much better if you keep the stock set up of your engine. I’m sure that your engine is powerful enough to provide you your driving needs.
Below is my video explaining this topic in detail. The video is in Tagalog but has English subtitle.
