Weighing out turbo options..sxe369/480 or 68/71vgt/480

dirtymax36

2nd place is last
Apr 11, 2013
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Looking into doing compounds of somesort here in the future, love the single 69 but I'm looking for some more lower end torque while towing. Anyone have any experience with towing a Danville 68/71vgt stg2r paired with a 480?

Along with a sxe 369/480 towing or street driving? I'd like to stay under 900 hp to preserve my engine as much as possible. Nothing against any set up just looking to try a compound setup after running a big single charger since 2013. Thanks in advance!
 

onebaddmaxxx

Active member
Feb 22, 2009
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A friend of mine has a 72stg2r/484 twins and tows a 35' cig boat with it. Toss it great. Last weekend he clicked off a 10.9 pass with first time out. I also run a 72stg2r as a single and by itself is a nasty unit. Marks tuning with the turbos really bring it to life. Would not hesitate to tow with it either

Another friend had a 3794/484 twin setup and was a solid setup as well. Very fast spooling.
 

clrussell

pro-procrastinator
Sep 23, 2013
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If you have the option I'd go vgt all day for towing. It'll make silly power too.. run a 68r and a 480
 

dirtymax36

2nd place is last
Apr 11, 2013
367
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I currently got away from vgts as I went through 3 of the 72s, one of them being a 72R. I couldn't really pull a trailer that good with it which is why I switched to a sxe69.

If you don't mind me asking, what kind of power and fuel are you throwing at your 68R/480?
 

clrussell

pro-procrastinator
Sep 23, 2013
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72 should tow better all day.. if I remember right you switched from vgt/ kory to fixed/ starlite?

I don't personally have a 68/480 combo but it should make 1000 easy and drive like a beast with the right tuning
 

dirtymax36

2nd place is last
Apr 11, 2013
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I figured it would also, not downing anyone's products at all that turbo was nuts when it lit. When I was towing it was a constant haze and egts were crazy high. It made the truck overheat big time in the summer. I switched to the sxe369 without any tune changes aka the same kory tuning for the vgt and it did much better. I have Starlite now and they will continue to tune my trans next. I liked the sound of the vgt better but it didn't fit my application well. I tow 14k+ every time. I've got a buddy with a 68/71R that does 725hp, I like it but drive pressure is ridiculous. I'm not looking to do a second engine build haha
 

dirtymax36

2nd place is last
Apr 11, 2013
367
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A turbo brake would also be a plus compared to the xe69. although it was non existent before on the 72. The end result is to have a 8-900hp truck that can be a weekend sled pull or drag race truck and tow a heavy trailer during the week without sacrificing hp or mileage
 

Dozerboy

Well-known member
Jun 23, 2009
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I would say your tuning was your issue with your VVT. Guys of had problems with Kory's turning on VVT's before, but that might just have to do with the way he has to tune LML's.
I just don't see a fixed vane turbo being better than a VVT with the same tuning. It might make more power but every day driving and towing should be way better.
I would do the VVT but you have the 69 already.


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dirtymax36

2nd place is last
Apr 11, 2013
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As far as tuning goes I agree, Starlite made adjustments as I requested and is on top of their game. My issue with the vgt was I was melting turbines. I melted a DTS 72 vgt then a 72R vgt within 3 months of each other so I tried this 69. Everyday driving is better with it all around in my opinion, it gets 18-19mpg driving pretty heavy. Towing egts are around 850-900 while towing 16k. Only bad part is under 1400rpm it's torqueless and the exhaust drone is ignorant. Only complaints of the single 69, actually the only reason I'm considering compounds to not have it as obnoxious
 

Chevy1925

don't know sh!t about IFS
Staff member
Oct 21, 2009
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the only way you are going to get torque that low is with a smaller turbo like a 63 or 64 or stocker. that is extremely low in the power band.

im betting you also dont really get on top of that 69 till about 1800rpm. (think we talked about this before but i cant remember)

the 68stg2r will come on at about 1600rpm with someone who can really dial that turbo in but it will take some time and work to do. i also wouldnt put a 80 over it, id go a box stock 83 at min but a bullseye 83 or stainless diesel 85 would really make it run. there is no difference between the bullseye 83 and a box stock 80 in spool up time (ive ran both in my twin setup).

you're wanting a setup like i have but with more air and it can get very touchy/easy to go the wrong direction. im going to push my setup to the 1000hp mark but it will take lots of fuel to get there. i wanted a clean 600hp to tow on which i have. your goals sound to be higher for a DD tune so a 68 or 72vgt would be much better suited in that case. You also have to remember that as soon as you twin either VGT, drive pressure drops majorly and shaft speeds of the turbos slow yet you gain much more CFM. So hurting turbines shouldnt be an issue again as long as vanes are adjusted accordingly. adding a twin does not increase spool up time though.
 

TROJAN366

Gold Rush
Jan 13, 2012
2,474
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MASS
I have a 72R/TCT483 and the only time I have ever considered doing anything different would be triples over the 72. Spools fast and makes 1100+ on the dyno. In my opinion it is the best setup available for twins.
 

JoshH

Daggum farm truck
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Feb 14, 2007
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I have driven a lot of different turbo setups in these trucks, and I would have to say that for overall performance and response, I don't think the setup I have in my LMM can be beat. It lights crazy fast and makes a lot of useable power. It probably isn't the best for going crazy high horsepower or running up a lot of RPM because of the smaller exhaust housings I'm using on the turbos, but the truck is stupid responsive and very fun to drive. I have an old (pre SX-E) 64.5mm billet wheel S300 with a 70mm turbine in a .90 A/R T4 housing paired with an S480 (again, pre SXE) with a BatMo wheel in a race cover and a 96mm turbine inside a 1.10 A/R T6 housing. I'm running this setup on a completely stock engine with dual fuelers and 40% injectors.

I also installed a compound kit on an LBZ a few months back that was very similar to mine in response and performance. It was a stock turbo with an SXE478 with an 87mm turbine and a 1.15 A/R T6 turbine housing. It had a 10mm Exergy CP3 and 60% Exergy injectors on an otherwise stock engine.

Compounds are very fun and tow very well, but if the turbo doesn't spool quickly on its own, compounding with it will not make it better.
 

dirtymax36

2nd place is last
Apr 11, 2013
367
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This 69xe on its own now spools up very quicky, faster than my friends 63 fleece cheetah and previous vgts. My ultimate goal is to stay under 1000hp so ideally 900 so I don't worry about another engine failure. I enjoy the hell out of this turbo so far, maybe I'm just too picky. If at all possible I would love to find a 68R/480 truck to drive and see how it does
 

WolfLMM

Making Chips
Nov 21, 2006
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Fwiw, I like the 68r, it spools way faster than the HTT 366 I have in lb7. I also have a s485 to go with the 68r. I've seen multiple dyno sheets of that setup doing 1100hp.
 

coker6365

Coker6303's ***** Daddy
Dec 4, 2011
486
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My personal experience with the 369 in a compound setup is decent but not the best for towing. JoshH drove it when it was first put together but we did not have the wastegate setup very well so it was immediately bypassing the 369 and trying to spool the 488 as a more of a single than a compound. Once the wastegate was dialed in, spool up and drivability was night and day different but I would still hesitate to do much towing with it unless you are prepared to keep the rpms over 2200 or to be efficient. You will get a little better response by not having the 88mm but ultimately the 69mm will have to spool first regardless.

I did a little towing with mine, no more than 10klbs, and I would not want to do it regularly. It works, just not very well. I would suggest something that will spool faster in the valley as JoshH mentioned. Embarrassing as it is, I was a solid 100-150hp more than the LMM he is talking about and I couldn't touch it from a roll. That thing spools instantly and is a blast on the street. That was also with the wrong wastegate setup so it wasn't exactly apples to apples. I still wouldn't have beat it though. Even reeling it in on the top side the gap was already brutal. :roflmao: