Joined
·
55 Posts
More than a year ago, I purchased a turbo kit from radium. Although it was the most expensive kit, I chose Radium due to the apparent quality of the kit. After the installation was complete I found that the turbo lagged and had minimum boost. A lot of time was spent diagnosing the problem. I wound up taking the car back apart and removing the turbo. What I found was that the flapper on the internal waste gate was missing. After further inspection I found that the bolts were loose and one even missing that bolts the turbo to the exhaust manifold.
Radium promptly repaired the turbo explaining that the bolts loosened up and the gasket was blown out. They explained that the flapper was riveted on the arm and the high heat may have melted the rivet but this time they claimed to have welded it.
After getting the reworked turbo back I noticed that the bolts were now tack welded to the manifold. I promptly installed it and put the car together. Again, lag. Boost did not build until late. I was not sure if there was a problem or was this the best it would do. I also had a lot of plumbing on the air/air intercooler I was using and wasn't sure if that may have been causing the problem.
After trying everything I could think of, I dismantled the car yet again, this time I found the bypass flapper again missing in the tail pipe. After everyone scratched their heads, it was realized that they never fixed the flapper and I didn't notice it because it was all assembled when I got it back. Radium promptly shipped me a new tail pipe and the car was put back together yet again.
Finally, I got good boost and was excited in getting the car back on the road. Shortly after I started loosing boost again. Not as bad and I didn't think it was the turbo now that it was all fixed but I did everything I could and could do no more.
I shipped the car to Mase engineering in Jacksonville Florida in hope that he could find the problem but Mase had a busy schedule and was going to be a few months before he could work on it. Eventually, it was found that the gasket between the turbo and manifold was gone again. Radium explained that the bolts were stretching and that they were working on a solution. A while later it was said to be fixed and shipped back to Mase. The car was reassembled and dyno tested and all looked good except the car was blowing some coolant on boost.
I got the car back several months later and after running some test found that I had a leak in the head gasket. After removing the head, I found a hole in the piston and had to replace a piston.
Now this has be ongoing for about 16 months! It had a little street time and one outing at the track. I don't know if this happened that one time on the track or on the dyno? Not sure if this boost leak contributed to it or just a bad tune. Now the car is all back together but I don't want to drive it until it is perfectly tuned and some safety features programmed it. The situation now is that I have the EFI from DRS and nobody here in south florida knows the software so I am considering changing it out to a ProEFI.
So that's my story and two years later and a lot of money this is where I'm at. I'm still not sure how it is going to hold up.
I wonder if anyone has had similar issues with the Radium turbo kit?
The other issue I would like members to comment on is with a recent request I made to Radium requesting the reimbursement of $1,200 it cost me to have Mase diagnose the car and replace the turbo. I explained to Radium that previously, I did all the work myself and never asked for any cost. I understood that they are a small company and they did make the repairs to the turbo at no cost but this last time, this was just too much and now I had to pay for the work. Radium points to their terms and conditions in regards to warranty. I explained that this is not warranty, it is a defect and although they may not have a legal obligation (this is unclear at this time, I believe that this is a defect and not covered in their terms and conditions) they have an obligation to satisfy their customers and do the right thing. It's really not the money, I just think that they should take a small part in what this has cost me, not to mention the two years of my life. So tell me what you think, am I wrong?
Now don't get me wrong, I am not bashing Radium. I still think they are a good company and make a good product. Aaron has been great. He has always taken my calls and promptly replied to my emails. They also took care of fixing the turbo a no cost to me. I also understand that these companies don't have the funds to to a lot of R&D so in a way, we, the customers play a part in their R&D but this is an extreme situation and I just think they should step up to the plate and do the right thing. With all that I been through, $1,200 is just a drop in the bucket but it would mean a lot to me.
Radium promptly repaired the turbo explaining that the bolts loosened up and the gasket was blown out. They explained that the flapper was riveted on the arm and the high heat may have melted the rivet but this time they claimed to have welded it.
After getting the reworked turbo back I noticed that the bolts were now tack welded to the manifold. I promptly installed it and put the car together. Again, lag. Boost did not build until late. I was not sure if there was a problem or was this the best it would do. I also had a lot of plumbing on the air/air intercooler I was using and wasn't sure if that may have been causing the problem.
After trying everything I could think of, I dismantled the car yet again, this time I found the bypass flapper again missing in the tail pipe. After everyone scratched their heads, it was realized that they never fixed the flapper and I didn't notice it because it was all assembled when I got it back. Radium promptly shipped me a new tail pipe and the car was put back together yet again.
Finally, I got good boost and was excited in getting the car back on the road. Shortly after I started loosing boost again. Not as bad and I didn't think it was the turbo now that it was all fixed but I did everything I could and could do no more.
I shipped the car to Mase engineering in Jacksonville Florida in hope that he could find the problem but Mase had a busy schedule and was going to be a few months before he could work on it. Eventually, it was found that the gasket between the turbo and manifold was gone again. Radium explained that the bolts were stretching and that they were working on a solution. A while later it was said to be fixed and shipped back to Mase. The car was reassembled and dyno tested and all looked good except the car was blowing some coolant on boost.
I got the car back several months later and after running some test found that I had a leak in the head gasket. After removing the head, I found a hole in the piston and had to replace a piston.
Now this has be ongoing for about 16 months! It had a little street time and one outing at the track. I don't know if this happened that one time on the track or on the dyno? Not sure if this boost leak contributed to it or just a bad tune. Now the car is all back together but I don't want to drive it until it is perfectly tuned and some safety features programmed it. The situation now is that I have the EFI from DRS and nobody here in south florida knows the software so I am considering changing it out to a ProEFI.
So that's my story and two years later and a lot of money this is where I'm at. I'm still not sure how it is going to hold up.
I wonder if anyone has had similar issues with the Radium turbo kit?
The other issue I would like members to comment on is with a recent request I made to Radium requesting the reimbursement of $1,200 it cost me to have Mase diagnose the car and replace the turbo. I explained to Radium that previously, I did all the work myself and never asked for any cost. I understood that they are a small company and they did make the repairs to the turbo at no cost but this last time, this was just too much and now I had to pay for the work. Radium points to their terms and conditions in regards to warranty. I explained that this is not warranty, it is a defect and although they may not have a legal obligation (this is unclear at this time, I believe that this is a defect and not covered in their terms and conditions) they have an obligation to satisfy their customers and do the right thing. It's really not the money, I just think that they should take a small part in what this has cost me, not to mention the two years of my life. So tell me what you think, am I wrong?
Now don't get me wrong, I am not bashing Radium. I still think they are a good company and make a good product. Aaron has been great. He has always taken my calls and promptly replied to my emails. They also took care of fixing the turbo a no cost to me. I also understand that these companies don't have the funds to to a lot of R&D so in a way, we, the customers play a part in their R&D but this is an extreme situation and I just think they should step up to the plate and do the right thing. With all that I been through, $1,200 is just a drop in the bucket but it would mean a lot to me.