I am just spreading the work on BuyAutoParts/TurboChargerPros "turbos" that are sold via Ebay, or through their websites. These companies are the same, just with different websites/Ebay usernames. My experience was with their K04-15.

What they don't tell you upfront, or on their websites, is that their "name-brand" turbos are indeed Chinese replicas. They also claim their the highest quality, direct fitment, bla bla bla.

Well, I purchased mine through BuyAutoParts for $365 w/ shipping, yet it WG & Plunger went to **** within one month. First, the WG was sticking closed until we pushed some air into it, then after another couple weeks (enduring massive boost creep) the WG then began sticking open resulting in zero power). When we took the turbo out, the WG was sticking open because it was rubbing on the housing, and even the plunger was loose to the point of almost falling off lol. This turbo was complete crap! When I called for a replacement (BW) they said it was unusual because of their minimal return rate on that particular turbo (K04-15). Apparently they have difference "batches" and the batch mine came from only 10 were returned out of 150 or something like that sold. They also said another batch had about a 30% return rate, meaning their quality control is non-existent, they never know what they're getting from their Chinese supplier.

Luckily for me my uncle works on my car with no labor costs, but for someone that doesn't work on their own car, or does, purchasing this piece of **** turbo would put a huge damper in your money pocket, time/effort, etc. They're in the process of refunding the difference in costs of the BW turbo, and they said there's nothing they can do about anything. The shipping covered on the replacement is UPS Ground, however I needed the replacement ASAP seeing as I didn't have a car to get me around, thus paid the extra $40 for overnight shipping instead. I thought they would at least cover that, but the best they were willing to do was a $30 store credit, however I'm not interested.

Ultimately, if you're going to take a chance on a Chinese turbo like I did, you may want to look elsewhere, but of course I could've been the lucky one to get a **** turbo period. I knew their warranty/contract going into it, but if I had to pay for labor costs, I'd be out A LOT of money, and yet weren't even willing to cover the $40 shipping charge to make things right. I wasn't asking for labor costs, rental car costs, etc. Just the shipping and they said "no."

Please learn from my experience, or if you decide to go Chinese, I hope your experience turns out better than mine. I'm just grateful I don't have to pay labor costs, otherwise I'd be in a tight spot well over $1000 in labor costs. I know there's various Chinese turbo threads that give warning to stay away, but this one pertains to BuyAutoParts/TurboChargerPros and the fact they claim their aftermarket turbos are of highest quality you can find that aren't OEM. As I found out the hard way, it's a bunch of BS.

Thanks for your time and good luck!

 

Moral of the story, you get what you pay for. I have yet to hear of anyone having a positive experience from buying one of these turbos. Used turbo with only a little shaft play with always be the better choice and a little cheaper.

 

The reason I decided to go this route is because not only do I have family that works on my car for free, but also because I've read positive results with Chinese turbos if the WG is adjusted. My mechanic has even installed numerous K03 chinese turbos on customers cars without any issues. Actually, there was 2 other members on Audizine that had positive results with this company, but like I said, they don't know what they're getting from their supplier apparently.

In my case, it was a bust. But yes, I wouldn't take that kind of chance again. Oh well...

 

Next time, just have your factory turbo rebuilt. Its cheaper and better.

 

Are you referring to keeping the K03? I can tell a huge difference with the K04 and current tune I have vs the K03 on Stage 1, and still a pretty significant change from the same tune I have now with the K03. The one big difference from ST's Stage 1 to Stage 3 (k04 tune) on the K03 was all torque seemingly.

I could've squeaked out more miles on my OEM k03 with 250K on it, but at this point think the upgrade to the K04 (total cost of $1125 or so) was worth it. That cost includes tune + overnight shipping of ECU both ways, 5BAR, and BW turbo. FT would have been that + tuning, probably another $600+ or more I'm going to guess. If my A4 had lower miles, I would've probably gone for the FT though, and that $600 or whatever did play a role in my decision. However, I'm very happy with the performance with my vehicle right now.

EDIT-FT would've been far more than what I paid actually, injectors, tune from reputable dealer, MAF, etc. Probably another $1000 or so than what I paid the more I think about it. Actually, the cost of injectors, MAF, and more expensive tune since I'm a return customer with ST is why I decided not to go the K04/Injector tune route even. The difference going that way would've been another $800 I'm going to say, all of that for 10HP/15TQ if that, according to GIAC anyway.