Turbo pedestal oil leak after replacing O rings

[TexasJ]

Hi guys...I just spent the last 2 weeks replacing my turbo pedestal with an ebpv ******d pedestal. I replaced the O rings between the pedestal and turbo, and the o rings between the pedestal and engine. I just got everything put back together and checked for oil and exhaust leaks. Everything is good except the o rings between the pedestal and engine are leaking BAD. I used a rubber band to hold the rear pedestal bolts in place during install, and was VERY careful to make sure the O rings didn't slide out of place when put it back in the truck.

That said, the holes that the 4 pedestal bolts pass through to screw into the engine block were NOT aligned with the holes in the engine block on the new pedestal I bought. So I had to drill them out slightly larger in order to get all 4 bolts to screw in. I know I didn't crack the pedestal or drill into any area that oil passes through.

My concern is that the oil hole(s) in the pedestal may not be aligned with the oil hole(s) in the block, do you think that's possible?

Or is it normal for the o rings to leak for a while until they swell up to seal? I did soak them in oil for a bit before installing. And if this is more likely the problem, do you think a bottle of stop leak would help?

I REALLY do NOT want to have to tear that turbo out again. And I need my truck running for a week long trip over christmas... so if the turbo has to come out again I'm going to have to take it to a shop.

Thanks guys.

 

[Magnum PD]

The bolt holes didn’t line up that the bolts didn’t just drop in the threads? That’s a bad sign. Both the surfaces turbo and engine block HAVE to flat. If there is space more than what the o rings can seal then it will leak. It may not be flat if the mounts are not the right height. How much did you torque the bolts to?

 

[TexasJ]

Yup. They didn't line up where the bolts would just drop right into the threads. That's why I drilled the holes out to a larger diameter. The passenger rear bolt still caught a little but I was able to get it into the threads and get all 4 tightened down. I got the front 2 bolts to 18ft lbs, and the rear two I just tightened down as much as I could since I wasn't able to get the torque wrench onto them, but I'm sure they're close to 18ft lbs, maybe even a tad more.

 

[Magnum PD]

You did put the o rings in the holes in the block right?

 

[TexasJ]

Yes. And I was VERY careful to make sure they stayed in place during installation.

 

[TexasJ]

It is possible that I may have overtightened the 2 bolts and 2 nuts that go to the square up pipe flange. Could that be pulling the turbo and pedestal up and away from the engine block, creating a gap?

 

[Magnum PD]

I doubt it. You used a rubber band to hold the bolts in on the pedestal? Why did you need to do that?

 

[TexasJ]

With the pedestal attached to the turbo, when you go to put it back in the truck, you have to put the 2 rear pedestal bolts into the holes in the pedestal before putting the pedestal and turbo in the truck. If you don't there's not enough clearance to get one of the bolts into the pedestal because part of the up pipe is in the way. So you have to put those two rear bolts into the holes in the pedestal, then put a rubber band around them to keep the tip of the bolt from going through the hole in the pedestal all the way. If it drops down all the way the tip of the bolt will catch as you install the pedestal in the truck, and you risk knocking one of the Orings out of place in the process. Then once the pedestal is in the truck, you just take the rubber band off the bolts and they drop into place.

 

[TexasJ]

Like this, but they used electrical tape instead of a rubber band. I found the rubber band worked better and was easier to take off.

 

[Magnum PD]

Ok that makes sense.

Who’s pedestal is it from?

 

[79jasper]

We're you the one that had the thread about the bolt holes being off to one side? If yes, should have sent that sucker back for a replacement or refund.
And I do get the "Can't have my truck down," but do it once the right way. Buy once, cry once.

Sent from my SM-G988U using Tapatalk

 

[TexasJ]

I got it from Full Force Diesel. This is the 2nd pedestal I got from them. I had to send the first one back last week because it was defective... The holes that the pedestal to turbo bolts pass through were WAY too close to one side of the pedestal.

 

[TexasJ]

That's exactly what I did. I called them monday, they had the replacement pedestal to me wednesday. Everything looked good with it so I spent thursday and friday putting it in. I had it in friday night. Tested it first thing saturday morning. And now I have the oil leak.

 

[TexasJ]

Ok guys, I just said "**** it" and pulled the turbo today again. The O rings between the pedestal and engine were in perfect shape and still in place. I separated the pedestal from the turbo and sat it on a slab of granite to check for flatness. There is the SMALLEST bit of wobble, it's absolutely miniscule. But I don't know if that's enough to cause a problem. So at this point I'm going to try to get a refund for the pedestal and send it back. I already ordered a different pedestal (this is #3) from a different company today, so we'll see if that works out better.

My question, for anyone who is still listening is; when the new pedestal comes in, if it leaks too, can I put some RTV or another type of gasket maker between the engine block and pedestal to help the O rings make a better seal? Or will that create more of a problem/risk damaging my turbo?

Thanks.

 

[psduser1]

No rtv.
Why not just ****** the oe pedestal?

 

[TexasJ]

Because it's that much more of a pain in the ass to get the driver side rear pedestal bolt out with the actuator housing in the way, if I ever needed to do this job again.

What's your reasoning for not using rtv or some other gasket maker?

 

[psduser1]

Orings and rtv don't play nice together.
Hard to keep the orings where they belong..

 

[TexasJ]

Ok, thanks.

 

[JohnT24]

Looking forward to update

 

[TexasJ]

So I replaced it with a KC Turbo brand pedestal from Jelibuilt Performance. Upon pulling the ffd pedestal I inspected the brown O rings between the engine and pedestal very closely. There was no disfigurement or damage, and no indication as to why they were leaking. I received a set of black O rings with the KC pedestal, so when I installed it I used those.

When I put the black O rings in the relief cuts in the engine, I cleaned up the surface really good with a rag soaked in brake cleaner, then I put the O rings in. Upon doing so I noticed the small O ring fit nice and snug into the relief cut, whereas the small brown one I had in previously had a gap between the outside of the O ring and inside of the relief cut. It was small, but noticeable. The large brown O ring from before also had a slight gap, so I didn't think anything of it. As for the large black O ring, it did have a slight gap, but less of one than than the brown that was used previously. After installing with the black O rings and being VERY careful not to over or under torque the bolts, I tested in high idle, and eventually drove around the block.

I had a little seepage at the engine and pedestal O rings still, but NOTHING compared to how it was gushing previously. I went back and forth between cleaning it and driving it yesterday and the seeping slowed down some. I think most of it was stuff that spilled when I turned the turbo back over during install and slowly worked its way out. It is still seeping ever so slightly (and I mean very slightly, it hasn't even dripped down into the valley yet) so I torqued the rear passenger side bolt down about another quarter turn (that's as far as I could get it with a pipe over the end of a 10mm box end wrench) this morning and will continue to monitor it. But as it stands right now, as long as it doesn't worsen, it is driveable!

I still have no clue why it was gushing oil with the previous pedestal, I can only assume that the oil holes in the pedestal were slightly off center with the ones in the block, and between that and the brown O rings not having a good flush fit it created just enough of a gap to let oil through. That's my working theory at least!

Anyway, thanks for the input guys, let me know what y'all think!