Insane Boost Hobbyist
tl;dr - Is the low side A/C line the only reason you have to use a bottom mount turbo on an e36?
I'm in the "planning" phase of my semi-budget turbo build. I've been trolling the forums but the info I'm coming up with is kind of vague and I wonder how much is outdated. It all basically says "top mount means no A/C" without specifics. I'm not sure if it's just that A/C line that's the problem or there's something else I'm not seeing.
I'd rather do a top mount mainly because I like the reaction I get from people when I open the hood and there's a big honking turbo sitting there. Silly, but I'm being honest. It's also a little easier to work on and the oil drain is more reliable in my experience with a turbo mounted higher up. I'm also having a hard time finding a bottom mount header (plenty of cast manifolds) in my price range. I'm looking to keep the header under $600.
My specific question is this: Is the A/C line that runs up next to the strut tower the only concern with a top mount turbo setup? I have a company local to me that makes custom lines (they were going to make one for my e30) and I might be able to have one made that ducks to the left and loops up and around the opposite side of the strut. I just want to make sure that's the only reason that you can't use a top mount turbo with A/C before I start engineering a solution that will be negated by another issue.
Man With The Plan
Last edited by DEFKON99; 08-25-2022 at 10:14 PM.
...When you get a blackeye from trying to change the shift knob.
Insane Boost Hobbyist
I appreciate the input, but those are *W A Y* outside my price range. By, like triple. The pictures help, though. A bit, anyway.
Member
https://www.rapidspoolindustries.com...bo-manifold-2/
I believe you'll have to modify the ac lines running to the drier near the passenger side headlight.
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