2012 F350 improvements

Gofastorgohome

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Hi all, I am new here but I was just looking around and was wondering if I could get a little assistance with some decisions I’ve been thinking over.

It is to my understanding that the stock turbo on these trucks is rather weak and I would like to upgrade it.

I was wondering what my options would be, well what the best option would be. I’d still like to retain drive ability and I don’t need an extreme amount of power. I’d like to have more power than what I currently have and more reliability. The thought that the turbo could explode and ruin my engine isn’t something I want to worry about forever. I’ve looked into getting a stock 15 turbo but I’m not entirely sure about all of the components or The process required to make this happen.

So I guess my questions are ...
Which turbo should I buy ?
Will I need anything else?

Would I be able to sell my stock turbo on Craigslist or something afterwards in order so save some cash?

Also, was considering a lift pump or fuel separator but I don’t really know much about these either ... any help is much appreciated.

The truck is a 2012 F350
H&S mini max tuner
Def ******
Straight pipe
Cp4 disaster prevention kit


I will be adding an external oil filtration kit from amsoil along with a coolant filter kit in the near future. The truck is only 65,000 miles so I’m really looking to get a long life out of this thing.

Any help is very much appreciated. Thank you all
 

erbear28

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Easiest would be the 15+ turbo. If you want to spend a little more Midwest and AP sell bigger vgt turbos that respond well with the 11-14 hpfp and even better with the 15+ hpfp. Also lift pumps aren’t necessary due to the factory low pressure system that can support ~700hp
 

Gofastorgohome

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Hmm ... would I need to buy just a 15 turbo or the turbo and some sort of kit or anything else? About how much should it cost me? And any guesses on how many hours it would take for them to do this at a shop?

I was thinking about the fuel separator because I’ve read that it would increase longevity of the injectors. Is this accurate?
 

Gofastorgohome

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Ok so custom tuning will probably be best then too? Can my mini max have custom tunes added onto it? Sorry for all the questions .. I’m not so experienced with this stuff just yet.

And is it a real concern that the stock turbo explodes and destroys my engine or is that just blown out of proportion?
 

erbear28

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My understanding is that the only way the turbo can wreck the engine is if the intake side comes apart and gets sucked into the engine. My buddy lost the entire exhaust wheel off his 12 and it was fine
 

Gofastorgohome

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Ok and if I were willing to spend a little more money on this project in order to gain some more power, what turbo kit would be best for that?
 

sootie

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no need for a lift pump. factory filtration is fine.

disaster prevention kit is snake oil-skip it. If your hpfp goes, you are replacing the fuel system regardless. They are not a common failure from general wear and tear, they fail when fuel is contaminated. Be careful what does in the tank and it will last a long time.

Get custom tunes for your mini maxx from Chris at Truck Source Diesel. He will also sell you the unlock code required to load them.

Get a No Limit stage 1 intake.

As far as turbos go, most of the failures you read about are from years ago. They were mostly caused by overspeeding due to poor tuning., or in chassis cabs from working heavy. Weak yes, disasterous-not so much. If you want a modest bump in power and great drivability and reliability, i would do a 2017+ turbo retrofit. Everything is drop in and proven to work. If you arent planning on going for over 600HP i dont see the need to get a modified charger.

A great upgrade at the same time as the turbo swap (because you will be right there anyway) is to swap your hpfp out for a 2015+ model. It is also direct drop in. With good custom tunes, and the 2017 turbo, you will sit right at 580hp with OEM reliability and it will drive like a stock truck just with more power. Very very nice.
 

Gofastorgohome

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Ok sounds pretty decent. Turbo being $2900 plus co4.2 at around 1100$ then custom tuning being $500 ( called today ).

Any thoughts on how many hours this would be for a good diesel shop?

The truck came with a s&b cold air intake ... would this work?
 

sootie

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Ok sounds pretty decent. Turbo being $2900 plus co4.2 at around 1100$ then custom tuning being $500 ( called today ).

Any thoughts on how many hours this would be for a good diesel shop?

The truck came with a s&b cold air intake ... would this work?
Yes the s&b will work.

While it's not entirely necessary, I prefer to pull the cab to do this work. Usually takes me less than two full days from pulling into the shop to the test drive.

Did you get my pm?
 

Gofastorgohome

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Yes, messaged. Thanks for the help all, if anyone has anything to add that I should keep in mind feel free to share.
 

doo dah

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I have a 2012 with 235k miles. I replaced the factory turbo at 175k because the shop was in there replacing a manifold and it had slop in the wheel so it was preventative. I have an Industrial Injection kit on mine and while it performs well it has shortcoming due to it really being a Cummins charger made to fit a PSD. I'd do what Sootie said to the tee. Factory parts that are an upgrade and good tuning will have you smiling and you'll be reliable. I have had several different tunes from several different tuners, probably spent more than a few grand @ 300 a pop, and TSD is the best of them. I did get dyno tuning from Chris because I am local to the shop but his trans tune is spot on for my Suncoast build. He also put 580+ hp down with very little smoke, very clean tunes.
 

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