turbo m52 advice

[jaywood]

Just research, research, research! There is TONS of information about every facet of turbo setup and fuel management. Make yourself a list of what parts you'll need as you do your research. Come up with a "game plan" before you begin buying things and it will save you time, money, and frustration in the long run. Make yourself a budget as you price out the parts, and then add some for mistakes/problems/fixes along the way. It also helps if you car is not your daily driver. I've had my car torn apart all winter just so I can "do it right" and finally had it running on Megasquirt last week.

This stuff takes time, money, and brain power. You don't necessarily have to be smart to build a good setup, but you need the ability to learn from other people's mistakes, and reason your way through tough problems.

(quote from e30tech)

[Tsm91]

Okay so I need some people to possibly talk some sense into me.

I recently got an nice swapped m52 its awesome, torque on it is great. I've been thinking about putting a turbo on it though, i wanna be able to contend with my friend, the bastard is getting an STI. Plus i just really want to.

I'm wondering if the vanos complicates things a lot or not.. Also i was told that i could do the whole thing for around a grand, maybe a little more. My friend said that as long as i find a turbo manifold, a NICE turbo (NOT ebay, but used is fine), and an intercooler piping kit (ebay would be fine he said) that i would be good to go. When you pay for a kit already put together you spend way more than if you find all the components yourself and get someone to do the welding, which i have, is that true...??

I guess i'm just wondering that if i do end up getting myself into this project is it going to be a total bitch, or cost much much more than about a grand or 1,500.

All feedback is welcome!