TTE420 vs TTE480

[csrigo]

Just had my new OEM wings, grills and badges fitted to the car with a full front end respray.
Time for the turbo.

Literally researching which turbo to buy now and would like some input and opinions on which option to go for. Either is an option and I'm basically ready to put an order in. My reason for debate is...

What is the best real world driving option? Does the 480 operate mainly at the higher RPM Range and make it pointless for a FWD car like the golf? Spool time etc is this a big factor between the two?

Any opinions on both wld be appreciated. Still on stock internal so will be going for roughly 400 as the magic number only for now.

Cheers

[colesey]

From all that I have read, the 420 tends to overdeliver whereas the 480 typically falls short, so the power difference between the two may be more like 30bhp. I would however prioritise response / area under curve over outright power for a road car and let’s face it, our FWD chassis are rather traction limited. If you want 400bhp, you should be fine with the 420 or similar hybrid options from BBT / Owen Developments / Turbo Technic etc.

[csrigo]

From all that I have read, the 420 tends to overdeliver whereas the 480 typically falls short, so the power difference between the two may be more like 30bhp. I would however prioritise response / area under curve over outright power for a road car and let’s face it, our FWD chassis are rather traction limited. If you want 400bhp, you should be fine with the 420 or similar hybrid options from BBT / Owen Developments / Turbo Technic etc.

Thanks mate. Yeah been doing as much research as i can but it does seem the 480 falls short in some areas...people have had oil consumption issues with them also i have read. Im not looking for crazy power as like you say traction is an issue even now with my quaife fitted tbh. You hit the nail in the head....response is what im looking for. Most folk with them fitted seem to be on mk6 Rs and S3s.

Anybody on here running a 420 and can give me their opinion on going from 2+ and if its worth it?

Cheers

[pudding]

Shoduchi has the 420 on his and he loves it.  Looking at dyno plots, the 420 isn't much slower to spool than the stock turbo, and you get a much fatter mid and top end.

The 480 is a pointless imo.  For starters the stock engine cannot handle that kind of pressure and it's too far the wrong way into the lag compromise for a road car.  And also, once you're past 400hp, an extra 50 or so won't be that amazing.  I've been there and done it.   To make a worthwhile difference to your butt dyno past 400hp, you need another 100-150hp.

Look a little deeper into your options than just a bolt-on turbo mate.  Consider a MK7 Golf R engine swap.  You'll get 380hp from a remap with the stock turbo and its a much stronger engine than the ED30 unit.  When all is said and done, you might find the price difference isn't that great.  The Siemens ECU can be made to work in a MK5 keeping all your clocks etc working as intended, so it's certainly worth consideration 

Traction will always be an issue which ever route you take though. Bear in mind the stock turbo has the TC light flickering constantly over winter as it is!!

[Shoduchi]

For my use, the TTE420 is enough. For people who want to take their car to a drag strip or reaching the top speed faster (7000 rpm at 6th gear), I guess the new version with 9 blades of the TTE480 can be a better option. It's always better to forge the internals to really use that turbo, though.

I can reach 7000 rpm at 6th gear and it seems it can go faster. Mine only boosts at 1.6 bar, there are more aggressive tunes.

[Alex Booth]

Go for the TTE420 if you don't have a built engine, they see up to 440bhp usually with the correct supporting hardware. The TTE480 will rarely see past 460bhp from experience.