This is a story of how I was almost a happy customer of Diamond Star Tuning. The turbocharger in my '91 Eclipse GSX was leaking oil into the intake manifold, so I started investigating the alternatives for replacing it. My car is still mostly stock, so another Mitsubishi turbo seemed the best choice.
Things started off well. DST got me a good price on the turbo, and their labor estimate was lower than my regular repair shop. The job took longer than expected because some of the exhaust manifold studs broke and had to be drilled out, but when it was done the car seemed fine.
The next day I noticed a rhythmic surging of the idle when the engine was cold. I called DST, and T.J. said to check the hoses connected to the air cleaner hose, as they might have forgotten to reconnect them. I found the purge hose & breather hose disconnected & reconnected them, but it didn't help the idle. I called again the following day and they said to bring it up on Saturday and T.J. would check the car out. Saturday when I arrived there was no one there. I called later in the day but got no answer.
The following week my wife noticed that the car was now dripping oil.
I spoke to DST during the week & they recommended bringing the car up the following Saturday. This time T.J. was there. He tightened a screw on the intake manifold to help the idle, and gave me a new o-ring for it. The oil leak he identified as coming from the oil return line from the turbocharger. He tightened the bolts & said it might need a new gasket. He said the job would take about half an hour, but they didn't have time that day. (The factory service manual specifies that this gasket must be replaced when the turbocharger is replaced, not reused.)
The next day the oil was still leaking, so I brought the car back. T.J. did not have time to work on it.
During the week I installed the new o-ring & adjusted the screw, which made the idle acceptable. I called DST on Friday to see if I could bring the car in Saturday, left a message & got no reply. Saturday I called & they said Sunday would be good. Sunday I left 3 messages but got no replies.
The following Wednesday I left a message that I planned to bring the car up Friday. I got no reply, but drove up anyway. Again T.J. did not have time to work on the car.
This is where I finally threw in the towel. I have now made 3 trips specifically to get the oil leak fixed and it's still not fixed. This car never leaked oil before T.J. worked on it. I thought a turbocharger replacement would be a simple job for a specialist, but apparently it's too much for them.
I will be needing a new clutch soon. I'm leaning towards an ACT 2100, but I won't be buying it from Diamond Star Tuning.
Copyright 2000 by Steve Corwin