GP Turbos
Turbos + Parts

Hybrid Turbos

A hybrid turbo keeps your car’s original turbo housings and mountings, with upgraded internals so it flows more air than standard. GP Turbos in Scunthorpe has offered hybrids for diesel and petrol engines from Volkswagen group, BMW, Vauxhall, Porsche, Mercedes-Benz and more.

Ask about a hybridCustom turbo builds

What is a hybrid turbo?

A hybrid turbo is an upgraded turbocharger that keeps the original compressor and turbine housings, and with them the original mountings, but carries larger or stronger parts inside. The usual changes are a bigger compressor wheel, often machined from billet, a compressor cover opened out to match it, a modified turbine wheel, and a stronger thrust bearing to carry the extra load. The name refers to that mix of turbo parts, not to hybrid cars.

A hybrid is not a power upgrade on its own. The extra air needs extra fuel and suitable boost control, so it goes with supporting modifications and a matching calibration of the engine control unit. What a given hybrid delivers depends on those, which is why this page gives no power figures. Where the original housings cannot flow enough for the build, a custom turbo build is the next step.

Hybrid turbos by car make

Audi

Past listings covered the 3.0 V6 TDI, the 1.8T, the 1.9 and 2.0 TDI engines shared with Volkswagen, Audi’s 2.2 20-valve five-cylinder turbo, and pairs for the RS6 4.2 V8.

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BMW

Past listings covered the M47 2.0 diesel in the 320d and 520d, the M57 3.0 diesel in the 330d and 530d, and both turbos of the twin-turbo M57 in the 335d, 535d and 635d.

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Porsche

Past listings included a K27 hybrid for the 964-generation 911 Turbo and pairs of K24 hybrids for the 993-generation GT2 and X50 engines.

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SEAT

SEAT applications share Volkswagen group engines: 1.9 and 2.0 TDI diesels in the Ibiza, Leon and Altea, the Leon Cupra 1.8T and the 1.4 TSI. By his account, Grant Parker has also run an Ibiza Cupra 1.9 TDI as a track car.

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Škoda

Past listings covered the Fabia 1.9 TDI, including vRS models, and the Octavia and Superb 2.0 TDI, all using Volkswagen group diesel turbos.

View Škoda

Vauxhall

Past listings covered the 1.9 CDTi diesels in the Astra and Zafira in 8-valve and 16-valve form, the K16 turbo on the C20LET 2.0 turbo engine, and the Corsa VXR.

View Vauxhall

Volkswagen

Past listings ranged from 1.9 and 2.0 TDI diesels in the Golf, Passat, Polo and Transporter to the Golf R 2.0 TFSI, the 1.4 TSI and the Touareg 3.0 V6 TDI.

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Mercedes-Benz

Past listings included an upgraded Garrett-based turbo for the 3.0 V6 diesel used in C-Class, E-Class, M-Class, CLS and CLK models.

View Mercedes-Benz

Other makes

Other past applications included the Land Rover Td5 and Range Rover 4.4 SDV8 diesels, the Subaru Impreza WRX STI, the Nissan Skyline GTS-t, and 2.0 CRD diesels in Dodge, Jeep, Chrysler and Mitsubishi models.

Ask about another make

How GP Turbos builds a hybrid

GP Turbos’ hybrid specifications are built up from a consistent set of changes, each chosen for the turbo in question:

  • a billet compressor wheel, larger than the original and usually with extended tips;
  • the compressor cover machined or re-profiled to match the new wheel;
  • the turbine wheel trimmed or cut back so it flows more exhaust gas;
  • uprated journal bearings and a 360° thrust bearing to take higher boost;
  • step-gap or staggered oil seals;
  • the rotating assembly balanced to a motorsport tolerance.

Past listings grouped these into stages. Broadly, a Stage 1 hybrid added a larger compressor wheel and a 360° thrust bearing; Stage 2 used a billet wheel and a trimmed turbine wheel; Stage 3 went further, with a larger wheel, a matched cover and a re-profiled turbine housing. The exact specification depends on the turbo and the car, so ask for the one that suits yours.

On diesel turbos with variable vanes, the boost control settings may need changing to suit the hybrid, and that belongs in the calibration.

Hybrid cores

A hybrid core is the centre housing rotating assembly (CHRA) of a hybrid on its own: the bearing housing with its shaft and turbine wheel, the compressor wheel, bearings and seals, built to hybrid specification. It fits into your turbo’s existing compressor and turbine housings, so a capable mechanic can build up the hybrid on the car’s own housings. Get in touch with the turbo part number to check which core suits it.

Applications from past listings

These are engines GP Turbos listed hybrids for between 2019 and 2023, with the original turbo each hybrid replaced. Ask about current availability for your car.

EngineOriginal turbo replaced
Volkswagen group 1.9 TDI PD, engine codes ASZ and ARLGarrett 720855, 721021
Volkswagen group 2.0 TDI PD140, engine code BKDGarrett 724930
Volkswagen group 1.9 TDI, engine codes BKC, BXE, BLS and BSUKKK KP39 and BV39 (5439 series)
Volkswagen Golf R 2.0 TFSI, engine code CDLFKKK K04-64
Volkswagen group 1.4 TSIKKK K03 (5303 series)
Audi and Volkswagen 3.0 V6 TDIGarrett 769909, 776469
Audi 2.2 20-valve five-cylinder, engine codes 3B, AAN, ABY and ADUKKK K24
BMW M47TU 2.0 diesel (320d, 520d)Garrett 717478
BMW M57 3.0 diesel (330d)Garrett 728989, 758352
BMW M57 twin-turbo 3.0 diesel (335d, 535d, 635d)KKK K26 and KP39 pair
Vauxhall 1.9 CDTi 16-valve, engine code Z19DTHGarrett 755046, 766340
Vauxhall 1.9 CDTi 8-valve, engine code Z19DTLGarrett 767835, 755042
Vauxhall C20LET 2.0 turboKKK K16
Porsche 911 Turbo, 964 generationKKK K27
Porsche 993 GT2 and X50 (pair)KKK K24
Land Rover Td5 2.5Garrett 452239 series

Car makers’ and turbo manufacturers’ names and part numbers are used only to identify the original parts. GP Turbos is independent of them.

From enquiry to boost

STEP 01

Identify the turbo

Tell us the car, the engine code and the part number on the turbo’s label, plus the modifications the engine already has.

STEP 02

Choose the specification

Agree the stage, or a custom specification, and the price, based on how the car is used and how it will be calibrated.

STEP 03

The build

The hybrid is built on the original housings with the agreed wheel, bearing and seal upgrades.

STEP 04

Fit and calibrate

Refit with clean oil lines and a primed oil feed, then calibrate the engine to suit the hybrid.

Hybrid turbo questions

Is a hybrid turbo anything to do with hybrid cars?

No. The word refers to combining parts from different turbo specifications in one unit. It has nothing to do with electric drive.

Do I need a remap with a hybrid turbo?

Yes, to get the benefit. A hybrid can flow more air, and the engine control unit has to supply the fuel and boost control to match, so a hybrid goes together with a calibration made for it. On diesels with variable-vane turbos, the boost control settings may need changing too. Plan the calibration with whoever will map the car.

Will a hybrid fit like my original turbo?

It keeps the original housings and mountings, so it is built to mount where the original did. Supporting parts such as the intercooler, exhaust and air filter may still need upgrading, depending on the car and how far it is being taken. Check your car with us before ordering.

Are hybrid turbos reliable?

Reliability depends on the build and on the car around it: the bearings and balancing, a clean oil supply, the supporting modifications, and a calibration that keeps the turbo inside its limits. Garrett points out that a compressor pushed past its range can overspeed very quickly, and MAHLE notes that overspeed damage can happen within seconds. Sizing the turbo for the engine is part of choosing the specification.

Does a billet compressor wheel add power?

Not on its own. Garrett compared machined and cast wheels of the same design and found no noticeable difference in performance. A billet wheel’s advantages are strength and fatigue life. The extra airflow in a hybrid comes from the larger wheel and the cover matched to it.

Can my own turbo be made into a hybrid?

Often, because a hybrid is built on the original housings. The housings need to be in good condition, and a cracked turbine housing changes the plan. Tell us the part number and the turbo’s history before it comes off.

Are hybrids only for diesels?

No. Many of GP Turbos’ past hybrid listings were for diesels, but petrol applications have included the Volkswagen Golf R and 1.4 TSI, the 1.8T, the Vauxhall C20LET and the Porsche 911.

Thinking about a hybrid? Send the car, the engine code and the turbo part number, and what else the engine has.

Contact GP TurbosTurbo rebuilds

Ask about a hybrid

07795 165355sales@gpturbos.com
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Welbeck House · Holme Lane · Scunthorpe · DN16 3RF