This is my first turbo car so Im not familiar with some of the mods yall talk about -First of all is the charge pipe the one that runs from the turbo to the intercooler
Is this done mainly for looks , or is there a performance gain at all .

Also does a larger intercooler help performance or does it just help with the heat build up .

Or would you just want a larger intercooler if you got a larger turbo .

Also I boost 23 psi now with the tune I got - Was told this was like a safe threshold(probably shouldnt go much higher) with stock internals --opinions ?

One more - think I read somewhere our engines have forged crank & rods but aluminum pistons --correct?

Thanks guys for every ones help in the past 1.5 years --mine is running strong at 130k .

 

The charge pipes connect the intercooler to the turbo, and to the throttle body. Replacement is more for reliability with tuned engines. The factory charge piping is plastic, and could potentially burst under higher boost pressures.

The intercooler has plastic end tanks, and gets replaced when the end tanks get damaged, or proactively.

A bigger intercooler cools better, which leads to realizing the increased performance that comes with a tune.

You are correct about the crankshaft, rods, and pistons.

 

Thank you , good to know this stuff

Also , Ive been told I think , that a larger turbo will make more power but not necessarily increase boost because a larger one is more efficient .
That jjust didnt make sense to me as I thought the way to get more hp is to increase the boost psi ??

 

There are pictures on this site where I made a hot side charge pipe.
I myself can't find them in my picture files.
The only reason I did this is because of the aftermarket tune. It can make 25psi.
I don't drive the car like I stole it. Would a plastic pipe hold up? I believe it would.
The turbo is an air pump. A larger one makes more volume of air, it doesn't mean it makes more boost unless it's designed to do so. That's why a wastegate is on it for a street car.
If the volume of air is increased along with boost, everything downstream has to go along with it.
Also when you increase the performance of the turbo, engine management controls have to be adjusted for it. A.K.A. fuel and timing.

 

thanks for this info !!