Ok just a hypothetical question here.
If you absolutely had no choice but to buy a new $200.00 or less turbocharger from ebay to put on a 3.4 stock pushrod to run no more than 10psi what would that turbocharger be?
T3/T4?
T04E?
What A/R's?
What Trims?
Remember you have to buy a turbo, it has to be new, it has to from ebay and it has to cost less than $200.00.
Thanks.

If I were working under those constraints, I think I'd be f***ed.

I don't know much about turbos, but I hope the following will help a bit:

A ) Ebay turbos are a gamble at best. There is knock off, original, and generic <-- The problem is it's hard to tell between originals and fakes. At least users on the Probe forum had mixed reviews at best of kockoff turbos.
B ) Most of them decided to spend more on the turbo, as breaking turbo fins can cause quite a bit consequential damage. Rebuilding a knockoff might not be possible. And they aren't built to anywhere near the tolerances as brand name turbos.
C ) I don't know much about Fiero engines under boost, but 10psi seems a bit high for a 20 year old stock engine with stock internals. Check the forum if you're not pushing the envelope there.
D ) Trim levels and such: There are several books on the subject of turbo chargers. Even if you plan on a professional designing the turbo system (the charger is just a very small piece in a bigger puzzle, and should be treated as such.) it's always good to arm yourself with some knowledge of the subject.
E ) Things like lag, boost, RPM where the turbo is most effective, depend on so many factors I have a hard time wrapping my head around it. Most people on my probe forum tried out 2-3 different turbos and configurations until they found one they were happy with. It's all a trade off. Depends on your driving style and what you want from the engine too. Stock Fieros have low redlines, so keep that in consideration when sizing the turbo too.
F ) I don't know if the stock Fiero ECM can handle the processing of boosted air/fuel, so that would be another expense.
G ) From the Probe forum I remember that $2000 is a very typical total for a turbo installation. (it's the little stuff that ads up..)

Hope that helps. There are a lot of people on this forum who turbocharged their cars, I'm sure they would be a great resource.

[This message has been edited by Austrian Import (edited 11-22-2007).]

the ebay no name turbos, are sorta random. some people like them, some dont
http://www.homemadeturbo.com/

[This message has been edited by darkhorizon (edited 11-22-2007).]

Cool.
Thanks so far.
Even for just 7psi (I agree about the 20 year old pushrod)
Another question I have is about wastegates. What does the 8psi in a wastegates description mean. Does that mean it won't dump any lower than 8 psi?
And since I'm not wanting to push loads of boost and super spool a turbo, I wonder if an ebay turbo would be a worthy gamble. I mean $129.00 plus shipping to play around verses $800 to $1500 for a quality turbo.

quote Originally posted by Bubbajuju: And since I'm not wanting to push loads of boost and super spool a turbo, I wonder if an ebay turbo would be a worthy gamble.

No.

"These things really are junk. I have had the pleasure of seeing a couple of these in person. The quality of the castings is terrible; the machining of the housing and cartridge is downright horrible. Bolt holes milled/tapped crooked. Bolt holes too close to the edge of the casting. Crooked mating surfaces. Sloppy edges….etc….

One can only assume the quality and tolerances held by the oil rings, thrust bearings ….etc… would not meet very high standards. These things fall apart, leak, and don’t spool properly….etc..."

Save your money.

[This message has been edited by AutoTech (edited 11-22-2007).]