How to tell if your turbo is blown

A turbocharger, also known as a turbo, is a clever device designed to boost engine power. Some of the signs and symptoms of a broken turbo include loss of power, slower accelerating and difficulty maintaining speed.

Turbo failures are thankfully rare because your car turbo is designed to last as long as your car. In this guide, we’re going to describe some of the common causes of turbo failure, how you can spot a blown turbo and what you can do to fix it.

How does a turbo work?

Following the introduction of UK emissions laws, many car manufacturers now use turbos, so it’s important you can identify the signs of a blown or broken turbo.

Your engine combines fuel and air to produce power. One of the simplest ways to increase the power of your engine - while keeping running costs low - is to add more air.

Your car turbo adds more air to the combustion chamber this by using the exhaust to spin an air pump. This air pump pushes extra air into the cylinders of your engine, delivering significantly higher horsepower.

Turbos enable car manufacturers to deliver more power from a smaller engine. This enables motorists to spend less on a fuel and all of us to enjoy the environmental benefits of lower emissions. and environmental benefits that come with having a smaller engine.

Is my turbo blown?

So, how can you spot if your turbo is blown?

Some of the common symptoms of a damaged or failing turbo include:

• Loss of power
• Slower and louder acceleration
• Difficulty maintaining high speeds
• Blue/grey smoke coming from the exhaust
• Engine dashboard light is showing.

If you are experiencing some or all of these, there could be a problem with your turbo.

Diagnosing a turbo failure is a job for a specialist mechanic. They can look over your vehicle and test the turbo to identify the cause of your driving problems and provide a plan and price to fix it.

What causes car turbo damage?

There are a number of things that can cause a blown turbo:

• Engine oil: Your turbo needs oil to function properly. A lack of oil, the wrong grade of oil, or poor-quality oil in your car can cause a build-up of carbon deposits and contaminants in the engine. These deposits can cause abrasive damage to the turbo which can impact how it works. You can avoid this happening to you by only using high-quality, fully - synthetic oil in your car.
• The car's age and mileage: Although turbos are designed to last for the lifetime of the vehicle, they can wear out over time. A worn, damaged or faulty turbo may be the result of a poor-quality part or how hard you drive the car.
• Cracked or worn seals: Damaged seals between the compressor and the engine can cause oil to leak into the exhaust system. This can cause the turbo to work harder to increase air pressure which can lead it to become damaged or even fail.

What to do if you have a blown turbo

If you think you might have a blown turbo, get it checked as soon as possible by a qualified technician. The longer you leave it, the more damage it'll cause, and the more expensive it'll be to fix the problem.

At our garages, we offer a complete car turbo Diagnostic Check at an affordable price. Our ATA-trained technicians use state-of-the-art car diagnostic test equipment to identify and advise on any necessary repairs. If your turbo does need replacing, a full quote will be provided before additional work is carried out.

Book a Diagnostic Check

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