Hello all. Had a check engine light on my 08' JCW coupe, and brought it in to get fixed. The shop is saying 2500$ for the turbo alone, which is way above what I'd expected. I could purchase the oem turbo for ~600$, and pay for the shop labor, or I could purchase an upgrade and pay for the shop labor. What turbo would be a good upgrade, and if I get an upgraded turbo, do I need a tune, exhaust, intake, downpipe etc.? Additionally, who should I turn to for the tune?
The car is very new to me and I'm not sure the process I need to go through to get all of this done.

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Why does the shop think the turbo is shot? Many horror stories of shops saying the turbo is bad when it is something simple like a diverter control valve, vacuum waste gate or even simpler vacuum lines. Are there trouble codes you can share? Turbos are much less expensive than that even if you had to replace it. Just beware.

 

Im pretty confident it's the turbo that has gone bad. It had been giving me the cut power light on the dash, and had some white smoke coming out the back, both symptoms of turbo failure. It's been smoke tested twice recently so I know there's no leaks. The turbo diverter valve was also replaced, but that did not fix the problem. The oem turbo they have in stock is 2500, I was looking at one of the ecs tuning k03 42mm turbos. I'm giving them a call tomorrow on what codes were present. One thing on my mind is that my mini is a JCW, not an s, so I'm unsure if the k03 will fit/give the same(or more) power.

 

It sounds like you would like to upgrade. No issues with that. Just beware the smoke can be a symptom of several things, from valve cover to valve guide seals and yes, to a failing turbo. My own experience with three of the R56's, each with the same symptoms as you, has never required the turbo to be replaced. Valve cover, valve guides, diverter valve, vacuum control solenoid and even vacuum pump were my causes. The one turbo I did replace myself was because a mechanic said it was bad. It was not, it was the DV. If you do replace yours do NOT throw it away. They are very easy to rebuild as long as the rotating impellers are in good condition. Bearings and seals are all it takes. Oh, and if you replace it and it still burns oil, remember you heard it here first