Turbo 2.3?


mbub16

15+ Year Member

Joined
Sep 24, 2008
Messages
24
Points
3,101
City
St. Louis
Vehicle Year
1997
Transmission
Manual
I'm looking into a turbocharger for my 97 ranger 2.3, and having trouble finding one. Does anyone have a website or certain brand that they have in theirs that they like?. Also how hard is the installation with a turbo?
 
yea I wasnt expecting to go over 5 p.s.i.
 
my stock pistons can hold 10 psi without a problem. well i havnt had any problems yet. its only been done for maybe a few days. not even done with tuning or anything. i got all my shit off of different web sites but my turbo is garrett .50trim and its amazing. if i were you id look around before u go into buying anything.
 
Just be very careful. I cannot find the picture I used to have of a 2.3 piston next to a 2.3T piston. The ringlands are ridiculously different and for good reason.
Make sure your trucks is really good running condition, fuel system and ignition are spot on. If you lean out, or have detonation, it could be all over.
 
yea for sure. i beleive im going to lower my boost down to 7-8 psi just to be safe.
 
If you lean out, or have detonation, it could be all over.

With the stock non-turbo cast pistons, it will be all over. They can do alright if the tune is really conservative, but remain very sensitive to knock. The more power they have to hold, the less knock they will withstand before breaking.

Expect 7psi to get you around 130bhp. You might look into an OBDII ECU for the easier tuning. I will also add that a 50 trim hybrid at low boost on a stock 2.3 is probably going to be laggy. That may help with detonation slightly, but not so much on the street. It will, however, be a good choice for 20psi+ and ~450bhp if it has at least a stage 3 turbine.
 
Last edited:
n/a pistons =
Turbo 2.3?
if you detonate
 
I'm considering on Turbo charging my 2.3

I'm wanting to Turbo charging my 1993 2.3. 98hp is not alot it needs more. It suck making it look good and everyone wants to run them and I never stand a chance against anything. lol. How bad will my gas mileage change? If I get a turbo and run 8psi how much more needs to change?
 
With a turbocharged engine, you can maintain good MPG IF you stay out of the throttle. During normal cruising you won't be under boost and the truck will run just like it did when NA. My wife's Subabru gets far better MPG if I don't drive it, I love the power the turbo gives it LOL.

To run 8psi, forged pistons. Start reading through old posts here. Alot of people have built their trucks with the info on this site.

James
 
yea ur turbo will not make ur engine use any more gas than before if it never spools. heh.
 
The mileage will depend heavily on how the truck is set up, what driveline is in it, and how it is driven. The tune is also a big factor. A barebones injector/FMU setup won't be nearly as efficient as a 2.3T ECU(assuming stock 2.3T specs) or a well-tuned standalone.
 
yea lol and if ur truck has been ripped on its whole life im sure its not going to be in as good as condition at 100,000 miles compared to a well driven truck.
 

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