[bcg]

I've got an '07 335i with about 117k miles on it. I've had some little odd and end problems for a while starting with oil consumption on the high end (1qt/1,000 miles), misc little gremlins with intake related codes (specifically the throttle body) and most recently felt turbo surging on hard acceleration to now not getting any boost or hearing the turbos spool up at all (I have BMS DCI and the cabin air filter so I could hear the whistle before) and it's throwing under boost codes. Adding all this up, I've either got a massive boost leak somewhere, and I'm still going to run a smoke test to rule this out 100%, or my turbo(s) have kicked it. I think it's more likely that the turbo(s) are gone when I take all the symptoms into account.

Anyway, stage 2 turbos were something I planned to do at some point but I'd intended to finish the M3 suspension bits upgrades (still have rear control arms, front and rear sway bars and subframe bushings to do) and put in an LSD before doing that so that I'm not just roasting tires. I'm not going to do labor twice if I can avoid it though so if the turbo(s) are gone, I'll do it now. Which stage 2 do you guys think is the best choice? Rob Beck, Vargas, Pure or someone else?

Since I've got to tear most of this stuff out to get to the turbos, I'll be replacing the charge pipe, installing new DP with high flow cats (I don't want to do catless pipes), putting in the M3 front sway bar and probably upgrading the FMIC. Is there anything else I'll have easier access to while doing the turbos that I should go ahead and take care of as well?

I appreciate the feedback.

[TheYuriPanda]

Hexon. Have mine and pulls like a monster. VTT if you want to wait 3 months for something that shouldn't take more than a couple of weeks.
Hexon machines all parts in house. Message them on Facebook and tell them Randy sent you, he will answer any questions you have. He's a great guy to talk to and will take good care of you!

[whosdady]

I think the general consensus is anyone but VTT based on multiple reasons. They include:
1) poor customer service
2) high failure rates
3) extreme wait times
4) high restocking fees

[C.Pop]

I have had good luck with VTT. I realize it's popular to bash Vargas, most of the regurgitated opinions are people who have not personally dealt with him -at all. I have 20k on my VTT stage 2+, drive the $^% out of my car every day and they're still going strong 26 psi tapered to 23 psi at 7300 rpm. Tony was helpful and responsive dealing with him 1 on 1 every step of the way.

[whosdady]

Originally Posted by C.Pop

I have had good luck with VTT. I realize it's popular to bash Vargas, most of the regurgitated opinions are people who have not personally dealt with him -at all. I have 20k on my VTT stage 2+, drive the $^% out of my car every day and they're still going strong 26 psi tapered to 23 psi at 7300 rpm. Tony was helpful and responsive dealing with him 1 on 1 every step of the way.

I'm not bashing VTT. I'm simply stating the general consensus based on recent threads, by previous and current VTT customers. If I was bashing my tone would be very different. I would be happy to post links to support my previous post. There are many who feel his bounty program is a last ditch effort...

[LQQKOUT]

I think it all depends on how long you are willing to wait and how much $$$ you have to spend on turbos.
At this time I think Hexon is the fastest and most affordable.

[bcg]

It's going to be at least 6 - 8 weeks before I can get the cash together so I'm not in a huge rush. I have another vehicle to drive, it isn't as fun but it's reliable. I'm budgeting $5,000 - $5,500 for the turbos, DP, sway bar, charge pipe and FMIC. All the Stage 2 that I've looked at seem to be in the $2,700 - $3,100 range so it should be doable.

[mikewills]

During the last holiday, hexon had a 10% off deal. Maybe you can score during Black Friday.

Someone please turn "Tell them Randy sent you" into a meme. So much potential for lulz right there.

[LQQKOUT]

I second waiting for Black Friday or Christmas sales.

[stanlalee]

Originally Posted by whosdady

I'm not bashing VTT. I'm simply stating the general consensus based on recent threads, by previous and current VTT customers...

Please, by consensus you mean you, a few resident VTT haters. Its okay to be one (hater for whatever reason: don't like Tony, like a different brand etc) but call a spade a spade. You have no idea what their reliability rate is nor are there many FACTUAL recent threads of failure. The policies and waiting times are what they are. There is room for improvement (as I mentioned and was told off by him on the other forum) but you can't knock the actual product.

[bryce-o]

You can point out a 20% restocking fee on turbos that aren't even built/ready to ship. That's just ridiculous.

A restocking fee is when you return something. Waiting for 4 months for turbos, only to cancel your order should be no fee, especially considering how back logged VTT is on shipping turbos to waiting customers.

Nothing wrong with VTT mechanically speaking. But from a business, customer service and delivery standpoint, they blow.

[C.Pop]

Originally Posted by bcg

It's going to be at least 6 - 8 weeks before I can get the cash together so I'm not in a huge rush. I have another vehicle to drive, it isn't as fun but it's reliable. I'm budgeting $5,000 - $5,500 for the turbos, DP, sway bar, charge pipe and FMIC. All the Stage 2 that I've looked at seem to be in the $2,700 - $3,100 range so it should be doable.

Unless you're using methanol, I'd really look into trying to get one of the huge AD engineering FMIC's, especially with Houston temps. I have a VRSF 7" and it's great but nothing like Andy's big intercoolers for controlling temps (which are also 2-2.5x the price but might be worth it to those of us in hot climates). Out here in AZ I'd love to swap FMICs and see if there is a difference on my car (my charge temps have always been high). Also don't forget inlets.

[C.Pop]

Originally Posted by bryce-o

You can point out a 20% restocking fee on turbos that aren't even built/ready to ship. That's just ridiculous.

A restocking fee is when you return something. Waiting for 4 months for turbos, only to cancel your order should be no fee, especially considering how back logged VTT is on shipping turbos to waiting customers.

Nothing wrong with VTT mechanically speaking. But from a business, customer service and delivery standpoint, they blow.

Again, just go read his policy. He's been super cool to me, and when he ran into delays last year on the stage 2+'s he offered me 100% refund no questions asked. If you have personal experience then post it, otherwise you're just re-posting what some other people drummed up that as far as I can tell mostly gets traced back to the same individual. So much drama lol.

[whosdady]

Originally Posted by stanlalee

Please, by consensus you mean you, a few resident VTT haters. Its okay to be one (hater for whatever reason: don't like Tony, like a different brand etc) but call a spade a spade. You have no idea what their reliability rate is nor are there many FACTUAL recent threads of failure. The policies and waiting times are what they are. There is room for improvement (as I mentioned and was told off by him on the other forum) but you can't knock the actual product.

Ok, let's talk about "Factual" information in the last 6 weeks. I can reference 5 sets that failed in that time. Can you reference five sets that didn't fail in the same time period... I'm not saying his failure rate is 50% (and I'm not saying it's lower than 50 %) but no matter how you look at, his failure rate is high. The worst part about it, is he try's to blame others. (I.E. Wedge) That customer went through two sets of turbos last month and Tony tried to blame Wedge. What he failed to mention is that the same customer had a jb4 when the first set blew a couple weeks prior.

Why do you think he's paying people to post positive reviews about his products? It's because positive experiences are very rare. Hence the reason he gets so much negative publicity.

[C.Pop]

What are your personal experiences with aftermarket turbos? Who did you go with, how was your install, did you get good customer support? Or are you just regurgitating experiences that you READ from someone else, interpreted as truth, and reposted here? This isn't even about VTT, it's about bringing real info into a thread instead of this dumb group-thinking mentality. I bought VTT, I have had good luck, Tony was cool with me via email/etc, very helpful with questions on the install and tuning issues, etc. 20k on mine, good stuff. No complaints yet or I'd post them.

[whosdady]

Originally Posted by C.Pop

What are your personal experiences with aftermarket turbos? Who did you go with, how was your install, did you get good customer support? Or are you just regurgitating experiences that you READ from someone else, interpreted as truth, and reposted here? This isn't even about VTT, it's about bringing real info into a thread instead of this dumb group-thinking mentality. I bought VTT, I have had good luck, Tony was cool with me via email/etc, very helpful with questions on the install and tuning issues, etc. 20k on mine, good stuff. No complaints yet or I'd post them.

To answer your questions...I've had 5 cars with 5 different after market forced induction kits since 1994. My favorite of which was my 94 TT Supra converted to a single turbo sp63, compliments of Sound Performance. I had zero problems with any of those kits. Regarding this platform, I have either installed, driven or owned every turbo option minus Pure and Fftec.

Unfortunately I had the misfortune of placing two orders with VTT in the past. I can attest the horror stories are true. But my personal negative experience was mild compared to the daily experiences we read about on the forums and watch on YouTube.

It wasn't until Tony crossed the line with Wedge that I decided to make his substantial number of problems public.

Question for you... Did Tony pay you for your positive comments on this thread...

[C.Pop]

Originally Posted by whosdady

To answer your questions...I've had 5 cars with 5 different after market forced induction kits since 1994. My favorite of which was my 94 TT Supra converted to a single turbo sp63, compliments of Sound Performance. I had zero problems with any of those kits. Regarding this platform, I have either installed, driven or owned every turbo option minus Pure and Fftec.

Unfortunately I had the misfortune of placing two orders with VTT in the past. I can attest the horror stories are true. But my personal negative experience was mild compared to the daily experiences we read about on the forums and watch on YouTube.

It wasn't until Tony crossed the line with Wedge that I decided to make his substantial number of problems public.

Question for you... Did Tony pay you for your positive comments on this thread...

You placed two orders... details about when and where please. That's actually helpful. Did it get resolved? How did it go down? No, Tony didn't pay me for positive comments, lol. Enough with the drama about "daily negative experiences" and all that -it's just unsubstantiated bullshit. I'm not re-hashing the VTT/Wedge debacle again, that's just another forum pissing contest with the majority of commenters being nut huggers of their tuner or turbo manufacturer... not super helpful. There is a truth in all of these things and I find it very rare that it's the one posted about loudest or most commonly. That's why I'm trying to discourage the "group mentality" where people get in the habit of accepting as fact, and regurgitating, emotional responses. Keep it simple and clear, what were YOUR experiences. Good or bad, let your words have weight. I'm honestly not trying to attack you, just keep stuff real. I'm sure you understand.

BTW I'm not really a fan of any of the BMW vendor (with the exception of Brentuning, who largely stay off of forums for a reason) attitudes when it comes to the current crop of tuners and turbo guys. There is no reason why we can't all have good solid tunes and good performing turbos. Remember, we all got into this because it was "fun". Let's keep it like that!

[Turbo_power4ever]

Originally Posted by LQQKOUT

I second waiting for Black Friday or Christmas sales.

+1

[mike@x-ph.com]

Rb are the most popular ... Hexon is new but have seen some good feedback
Pure turbo are coming up with their new kit as well

[Torgus]

I would get Hexons, Pure would be my second choice. I can't trust RBs not to have issues, and dislike VTT for a multitude of reasons.

Hexon also has something new and fun coming out in the next couple of months if you want max power out of stock frames

[bryce-o]

Originally Posted by C.Pop

Again, just go read his policy. He's been super cool to me, and when he ran into delays last year on the stage 2+'s he offered me 100% refund no questions asked. If you have personal experience then post it, otherwise you're just re-posting what some other people drummed up that as far as I can tell mostly gets traced back to the same individual. So much drama lol.

Here's my experience. A buddy of mine who I'll refrain from naming ordered stage 2+ turbos. After a few months, he checked the status. Got some weird excuse. Different excuse a few weeks later. Shady excuses, actually.

My friend decides to cancel his order. He's hit with a 20% restocking fee. Turbos weren't even ready to ship yet. He ended up selling his car and filed a dispute through his credit card. Tony was the epitome of unprofessional throughout the process. Emailing at 1am when he was clearly drunk. Bringing up personal attacks etc.

I'm probably going with PURE or a JP single setup on my iS.