1995 3000GT VR-4: Turbo Timer Installation

Related Links

• Turbo Timer and OEM Keyless Entry Page
• Turbo Timer and OEM Light Auto-Shutoff Page

• Why Do I Want To Do This?

  • Most turbochargers generate lots of heat when they operate at the speeds necessary to produce boost pressure. The OEM turbos on the 3000GT/Stealth are cooled by water (coolant) and by the oil, which is also used for lubrication. Oil and water are pumped through the turbocharger via the mechanical oil and water pumps in the engine. Thus when the engine is turned off, the flow of oil and water through the turbochargers stops as well. If the turbocharger is extremely hot when the engine is shut off, the oil in the turbocharger may break down (coke) and create deposits in the turbocharger and/or the oil supply and return lines. This buildup of oil restricts the flow of oil through the turbocharger and can eventually cause turbocharger failure.
  • The purpose of a turbo-timer is to allow the engine to idle for an amount of time sufficient to allow the turbochargers to cool down to temperatures that will not cause the oil to coke and clog the oil lines and passages.




• How Long Will It Take Me To Do This?

  • For the basic wiring of the turbo-timer, plan on 20-40 minutes, depending on how familiar you are with the location of the required components in your car.
  • For the mounting of the Turbo Timer itself, plan on 10 minutes to several hours, depending on the complexity of your installation. You can stick it on top of your steering column with double-sided foam tape in a matter of minutes. The installation I chose in the dash took a couple hours.




• Anything I Should Do Prior To Attempting This Procedure?

  • Remove the driver's side trim panel for the center console.




• What Mitsubishi Parts Will I Need?

  • None.




• What Other Parts Will I Need?

  • Turbo Timer
  • Turbo Timer Harness
  • (1) 14-18ga (blue) T-tap
  • (1) 18-22ga (red) Fully Insulated Male Quick Disconnect Fitting
  • Electrical Tape
  • Zip Ties




• Where Can I Get the Stuff To Do This?

  	Part	Company/Contact	Part Number
  	Turbo Timer	3SX Performance	N/A
  	Turbo Timer Harness	3SX Performance	HKS MT-1
  	14-18ga T-tap	McMaster-Carr	69515K24
  	18-22ga Fully Insulated Male Quick Disconnect Fitting	McMaster-Carr	7243K12





• What Tools May/Will I Need?

  • #2 Phillips Screwdriver
  • 10mm Wrench or 10mm Socket and Ratchet
  • Crimping Tool

The Procedure

	Examine Turbo Timer Harness
	Shown is the HKS MT-1 Turbo Timer Harness. It has 3 connectors on it: one male/female pair of connectors for the OEM ignition switch harness and one 3-pin connector for the Turbo Timer. The harness is essentially a pass-through connector for the ignition switch wiring, with taps (tees) into the battery(B+), ignition (IG1) and accessory (ACC) circuit wires.
	Locate and Disconnect Ignition Switch Wiring
	Under the steering column is where the ignition switch wiring harness resides. It's a 6-pin connector that will match the two large connectors on the turbo timer harness. You may want to remove the lower dash panel to access the wiring harness if you don't see it immediately or don't have long/small fingers. The white harness with the blue top hanging out of the dash in the picture is the disconnected OEM harness.
	Plug in Turbo Timer Wiring Harness
	After disconnecting the ignition switch harness, you'll have a male and female end of the OEM wiring harness hanging there - those get connected to the two connectors on the Turbo Timer harness. Snap them together and move the wires out of the way. Zip ties may help here.
	Locate E-brake Wire
	To ensure that the Turbo Timer will not allow the car to operate if the emergency brake is not engaged, you'll need to splice into that wire and connect the Turbo Timer's wire to that. The OEM wire is shown here - it's near the base of the emergency brake handle assembly and is a single (yellow, green stripe) wire. Attach your T-tap to this wire wherever it's convenient.
	Connect Turbo Timer E-Brake Wire
	Attach the Male Quick-Disconnect fitting onto the end of the Turbo Timer wire (purple in my case) and connect it to the T-Tap you installed in the previous step. Zip tie the wire appropriately to keep it out of harm's way.
	Mount Turbo Timer
	This part is totally up to you - you can just tape it somewhere convenient, or your can go through the trouble to mount it like I did. This location works great for me, although from this camera angle, the polarized lenses on the boost controller (blue) and Turbo Timer (amber) make the display unreadable. Their readability from a normal driving position is just fine. And if you're wondering, the LEDs above the boost controller are indicators for my water injection system.

Related Links

• Turbo Timer and OEM Keyless Entry Page
• Turbo Timer and OEM Light Auto-Shutoff Page