No power from turbo at all. Rear exhaust seal was loose but I still can't stop exhaust from leaking at this point. Turbo spins well without and signs of being loose. It does not seem to build pressure of apply pressure to engine. Old Banks Power Pack is installed so the gauges show high exhaust temp and no turbo boost at all. Any suggestions for a cash strapped owner?

The cause of damage There are several main causes of turbocharger damage:
Find your cause by checking what was your Turbo's condition.

Oil/lubrication

To work effectively, a turbo needs a constant flow of clean oil, and to keep your turbo in top condition, you need to ensure that you change the oil and oil filter regularly.
This helps to prevent the build up of carbon deposits and contaminants that can cause abrasive damage to the inside of your turbocharger, reducing its efficiency and causing irreparable damage over time. Fully synthetic oil produces the least amount of carbon.

Foreign objects

Sometimes, foreign objects like broken engine components, dust particles, small stones, dirt and leaves can enter your turbocharger, either via the compressor inlet or the turbine inlet.
These can then cause impact damage and abrasion to the compressor wheels and turbine blades, which will start to reduce the efficiency of the turbo. To prevent this happening, you need to ensure that your air filter is serviced regularly, and that you check your turbo for loose connections or debris.

Over-speeding

A turbocharger works by increasing the air pressure in an engine (check out our beginners FAQ for further info).
If there are any leaks, cracks or poor seals between the compressor and the engine, the turbo will have to work much harder than it should have to increase this pressure. This will reduce the efficiency and boost delivered by the turbo.

Other causes

In addition to the causes listed above, excessive exhaust gas temps (EGT's), moisture ingress, wear and tear, fuel intake systems, the wastegate and the exhaust system can also cause damage to your turbocharger.
The warning signs There are several ways that your vehicle will let you know that its turbo is in need of maintenance or repairs:
Check engine warning lights - On most modern cars, the computer diagnostics will pick up turbo faults and the check engine light will come on. Of course, the check engine light doesn't just cover turbo failure, and you will need to do some further checks to see what kind of engine problem you have.
The boost gauge - Some turbocharged vehicles are fitted with a boost gauge, which lets you know how much boost your turbo is producing (you can also fit one to your car if desired). If your boost gauge isn't going up as much as it used to, then there is a good chance your turbo is in need of repair.
Power loss - If you notice that your turbocharged vehicle is accelerating more slowly than usual, or isn't capable of reaching the speeds it once could, this may be a sign that your turbo is failing.
A smoking exhaust - If the turbo housing has cracked, or the internal seals have blown, oil will start to leak into your exhaust system. As this burns off, it produces a distinctive blue/grey smoke, which will probably become more apparent as the engine revs increase just following an idle situation.
A loud whining noise - Often, a failing turbocharger will make a loud, distinctive noise when under boost - a bit like a dentist's drill or police siren if compressor wheel damaged. If you start to hear this noise from your engine, it's definitely time to have it checked out!
The next steps - checking your turbo If you notice any of the warning signs, then get your turbo checked as soon as possible. Your turbocharger isn't going to repair itself, and the longer you leave it, the worse (and more expensive) the problem will get!
At AET, we're always happy to help with the cost-effective diagnosis and repairs on a full range of turbochargers. Alternatively, if you're mechanically minded and aren't afraid of looking under the bonnet, you can check for a range of faults yourself by inspecting the turbo.
Essentially, you are looking for signs of oil, excessive movement, impact damage and contact between the compressor wheel and housing.
Before you start the process, we recommend checking the air filter, exhaust system, breather system and fuel system on your vehicle are all working properly, as these can cause similar symptoms to turbo failure.
Once you've done that, you'll need to remove the air filter to gain access to the turbo. First, examine the exterior, checking for any signs of oil or loose connections.
Then, check the compressor wheel - it should be clean, without any dings, chips, or signs corrosive pitting. Look out for evidence of excessive movement, ensuring that the wheel can't touch the housing, and check to see whether the turbocharger is able to rotate freely.
I you are feeling particularly ambitious; you can also check the exhaust side of the turbo. First, remove the exhaust pipe all the way to the turbo, so you can see the turbine wheel. This should look clean, with no carbon build up, scale or oil along the surface, and the blades should be free from cracks, wear and damage.

I’m happy to assist further over the phone at https://www.6ya.com/expert/uttamjeet_2f3adc18600f8ede

Im not fully conversant with Turbos , but I would hazard a guess from memory that there is an oil feed from the engine to the turbo to lubricate it. I would think that the oil sump in the turbo has a seal at one or both ends. When the car is level, the oil doesn't reach the level of the oil seal, and therefore doesn't leak. When the car is on a slope, the oil will level itself out and probably be above the oil seal and then it leaks. Check if the leak occurs only when the car is pointing uphill or downhill. It may give you an idea as to which end seal is leaking.

• it sounds like you might have bad gaskets or seals even if you have replaced them if they are bot installed just right you can have leaks such as you have described

Hi Geoff, The symptoms you describe certainly point to the turbo. The turbo is basically an air compressor. It is operated by spinning a turbine with the hot exhaust gas which is joined to an impeller via a shaft. The shaft runs on a special floating bearing which is lubricated with pressurised engine oil. There are two special oil seals sealing that central shaft section from the impeller and turbine chambers. If either is leaking, oil will leak into the combustion chambers and result in excessive smoke. I do not know if repair kits are available where you reside, they are not available here and special seals are required. You may need to replace the unit with a reconditioned or a new replacement. Regards John

if the turbo is leaking oil into the engine then you have an internal engine problem. the turbo works off of the engines exhaust , therefore if oil is getting back into the intake from the turbo then it is coming from the exhaust. posible worn piston rings or bad valve seals. it also could be a bad turbo bearing and seals letting engine oil leak into the turbo from the turbo oil lines from the engine and blowing back into the intake.

White smoke is usually coolant, oil is usually a blue color, most turbos r cooled by coolant so U may have a coolant leak in the turbo, may B a seal or crack in the turbo. Check your coolant level occasionally to C if it drops.

if you have exhaust fumes escaping from the back near the intercooler and beside the egr, you should seal this leak asap.

If you don't want to go to the expense of replacing the metal parts and you find that there is a small leak there, then you might be able to apply a high heat epoxy puddy to seal the leak temporarily.

I used this trick before on an exhaust manifold that was leaking at a seam, and it worked.

good luck on this repair

if you have oil coming out your exhaust it will eventually smoke! sounds like you got a bad turbo and the seal is leaking

if it drives, then it is driveable. if the turbo is leaking exhaust, it is not necessarily dead, but it is likely not functioning up to it's potential, but it depends how severe the leak is. The bigger the leak, the less drive the turbo has to spin itself up. The vehicle can function just fine indefinitely w/ a completely non-functioning turbo. The turbo is a really cool device, but it's about as essential as your floormats. As far as the price goes, does that $2000 include a new turbo? If so, is that really necessary? if it's just the turbo's gasket leaking you should be able to get away w/ just a gasket to fix the leak. A turbo can be a messy replacement if it is needed as it is the single hottest component in the whole car (it actually glows red when it's working hard since the turbine can spin up to 140,000 rpm). Anything that gets that hot tends to degrade the bolts and nuts that hold it in place over time. If you do decide to do this, keep in mind that there is a matching turbo on the front bank of that motor that is the same age and could potentially be near having the same problem. As far as the O2 sensor goes, it increases your gas mileage by making your engine run more efficiently. O2 sensors go bad over time, and if you're not seeing blue oil smoke coming out of the tailpipe, i wouldn't worry too much about the oil-contamination issue.

blue smoke out of 1.8 turbo its allways bad oil seal inside turbo.need new turbo or rebuild OEM. with 24 years experience working with vw never seen single headhasket go bad on 1.8 turbo engines.blue smoke its 100% turbo every time