Garage1217

iTrader: (5)

No issues with mine at all. Listen to what the guy said above. If the three allen screws were not loose when installed and left it can cause a leak. Also if the allen bolts were cranked down on mega hard it can cause a leak. Or if they simply are loose now it can cause a leak. What you show definitly looks install related.

Also that pic of the pulley, big suprise but your belt is slipping allot Going to slip allot more with the smaller one. Did ya noticed all the black powder around your belt from the slippage..?

HighlanderMac

Yeah I know.. lol, but I did get a new belt for the pulley, but it will be a lil while before I can put it on.. I may just take one run with the smaller pulley to see how my A/F is and see how it goes.. just get some numbers and monitor my A/F and EGTs.

Garage1217

iTrader: (5)

use belt dressing your gonna need it

Nu_ERA

Well my S/C has no leaks and looks in tip-top shape. I'm gonna take it tomorrow to make sure though. I have the 9lb pulley as well.

BTW, I don't mean to thread-jack but what size pulley is HighlanderMac? Custom made from NST I assume??

yellot00tr

iTrader: (1)

my tamper proof cap was never installed. it's kinda annoying, because if i bring it to any other dealership to have it serviced, they're gonna say that i pulled the thing off. i had my supercharger for about 5000 miles, and the smaller pulley for about a 1000 miles. realisitically, even with the smaller pulley, there's no way that a pulley alone should be able to blow the seals on the shaft-that's ridiculous. a little extra boost is gonna destroy the supercharger? that would be soooooo stupid. when i called trd and asked about the pulley before i put it on, i was told that they had tested the supercharger with about 14lbs of boost, and that it could handle around 18lbs. a little extra boost wouldn't blow the thing. the guy even went as far to tell me that what a great part the supercharger was, and what a great company trd was, and that the amount of time, money, effort they put into r&d on a part was second to none. obviously they're not gonna say their own part is a piece of crap, but after waiting almost 2 years for the thing to come out, they better have done the necessary testing to make sure that the sc would last with some modification. i was told by zpi that they had a sc'd tc there with blown seals as well, but the pulley wasn't installed. hopefully this won't be a widespread problem, but to be safe, i wouldn't recommend putting on a pulley if u haven't done so already. if u have, then maybe consider taking it off-at least before u go in for any work. the mechanic at scion saw that my pulley was smaller, without even having an original to compare it with, or so they said.

trdsparks

OK so far there hasn't been one single case where a person with the stock pulley has had a leak so they are just rumors. But the fact still remains that the people with leaks do have smaller pulleys. Again this may just be a coincidence.

Has anyone here considered the fact that MAYBE the compressor wheel trim is one made just for TRD. Vortech rated this STYLE of S/C for being good to 19lbs not this exact one. If you really wanted to rise the boost on the S/C you should try to get a different trim. That way you're not putting more pressure and/or stress on the S/C. Toyota/Scion/TRD are not stupid people by any means and they know what they are doing. Everyone keeps saying that TRD/Toyota knew that this since this was a tuner car people would be changing pulleys or other mods. Well you're probably right that's why they put the tamper proof cap on and said plainly that if you remove it your warranty would be toast. That wasn't just a scare tactic it was really the truth.

kytc

I'm still not convinced that these aren't cases of a bad installation or some bad gaskets. It seems there's just as many of us without problems than those with problems. Desertheat, Mtxgalant, Outcrnr, Nu-era, and myself aren't having problems yet (knock on wood) and we're running smaller pulleys as well.

trdsparks

You are right that's what I said it may just be a coincidence because we really don't know. Desertheat is on his 2nd S/C and engine right now. A lot of people know why but that's a whole other story.

kytc

Well I checked for leaks on my car tonight after I've been finding oil in my garage floor every morning. I jacked the car up and checked the oil pan and found that my oil was leaking from my seals around the oil pan. I just thought I'd post in case anyone else with a s/c was finding oil under their car but couldn't find where it was coming from. I'll be taking mine in tomorrow to see if they'll fix it for me.

HighlanderMac

I am having that same problem also, the oil leaking from around the pan..
One thing that you guys may want to think about is Headers causing the problem. Being the extra heat without having the heat shield may be causing the leaks.
I took my car to Toyota, and they said they would let me know in the next few days about what the problem is.

Who knows, may be time to trade her in.... Too bad, I wont be able to put my NST 12lb pulley to the test...

jwaggz82

iTrader: (1)

the oil pan leak I also had - when I brought the car in for an oil change they said they fixed it. I had about 14k miles on the car when that happened and I don't have a S/C. Also - could that leak be caused by upping the boost which is upping the stress on that piece? ..squeezing the fluid out?

garyc_01

i hope i wont have that problem, when i get my sc installed. im still debating should i install it or bring it to a dealer cause i dont have the ecu reflash for it.. not even in my dealer. i see 2 dealer that has the sc on display but i dunno if they have the tool... if they do im gonna install myself... with help another tech. already told him about this oil leak from the shaft.. ill let u know in a month and for the ppl who has the leak good luck

kytc

I wouldn't think headers because I had them on for months before the s/c and I had no problems, not until they replaced the oil pan for the s/c

kytc

I wouldn't trade the car highlander, but the shaft of my s/c isn't leaking either. I've been looking at some different cars and I'm going to be honest, there are some other cars out there that have things over the tc, but this car has way too much potential for me to back out now. I guess I just love this car way too much but short of a 350z, Supra, or some other high powered rear wheel drive car there's nothing I would trade this car for.

kytc

I think that the problems with the s/c shaft are installation but I could be wrong and so are the problems with the oil pan. I had my headers on for well over 6 months before the s/c so I think the cause for that leak is them not replacing it properly

HighlanderMac

Oh I am not talking about the headers causing the problem with the oil pan, I could see it however causing a problem with the shaft, due to the excessive heat from them. But again, I am not someone who would know what could cause this, and I havent seen exactly what is wrong, so who knows.
If I am going to trade the tC in it will be on either a 350Z or an S2000

14THBCH

out of round or out of balance shaft. or Bad seals> either way its a design manufacturing defect

14THBCH

By the way I have built 1000s or tens of thousands turbo housings and components. Balancing is thee most crucial thing for any turbo super charger app

BreakTheStatic

If the aftermarket pullies are causing the shaft to go out of balance, that wouldn't be a design defect on TRD's part. I'm not saying that the pullies are the cause, only time and more cases will tell what's really going on. I really hope that everyone with oil leaks gets their problems resolved without hassle. Good luck, and keep us informed guys.

14THBCH

Doesnt have to be the pulleys. Actually pulleys and impellers are the easiest to balance. If the shaft is out of round say tir > .0003 along the shaft. Then it will be like a bent drive shaft battering the seals. And think about this. That shaft is above the headers. If the coefficient of expansion on the metal being used is too high you will ahve warping of the shaft just by where it is installed. Maybe the seals are up to snuff for the shop they are required to do.
There you have it. Oh one more thing. Im not sure how they lube the TRD super chargers. But excessive heat could also cause seal failure. Maybe the S/C is getting too hot and causeing thermal break down of the seals.
What you can do is get an indicator and a mag base put it on the shaft and check the tir of the shaft. Do the same for the pulley. Anything more than say .0008 and is would contact your vendor.