just curious, how quickly does compressor surge kill a turbo? like is it something thatll kill a turbo instantly, or will the turbo be alright for a while or what?

(discussion with a friend of mine)

What is compressor surge?

If you don't have a BOV and your throttle closes all the compressed air has to go somewhere, so it goes back through the turbo...compressor surge

Dave: Unplug the vaccuum line going to your BOV, then go out and boost it. Hear that sound when you let off? That's compressor surge. It's the air being pushed back through the spinning turbine vanes, slowing them down or in extreme cases, forcing them to spin the other way.

Ryan: No, it's not something that will kill a turbo immediately. It's not something that will kill a turbo after a few times.. Say your turbo is rated at 150,000 of life. If you run it every day at optimal boost levels, cool it down, always use synthetic oil, etc, but don't run a BOV and are causing compressor surge every time you shift, you may only get 100,00o miles out of your turbo before it's down for the count.

LOL...I'll take your word for it.

ok cool, thats what i thought :)

thanks for the backup

in addition to his explanation, you have to run really high boost to cause damage from compressor surge. 1-2 or even 4-5 psi will not hurt your turbine.