After months of waiting, I hope to get my Montero with a freshly built motor to convert to turbo in the next couple of weeks. I'm worrying that I won't be able to do the conversion by myself. Can anyone recommend a shop in GA with experience on the starion turbo system to do the conversion for me?

The motor has been built with Wiseco 8:1 92.5mm pistons, non jet head with 1mm oversize valves, replacement stock balance shafts, and an 87 stock starion cam with stock non-roller lifters. I have ported intake and exhaust manifolds (also stress relieved), a 52mm throttle body, stock turbo, stock injectors, and a bunch of hard IC pipes. I have an 87 starion ECU, harness, spark box,and knock sensor but I'll need to fab fuel pump and fan relays.

Sounds like you are making good progress.

Your at the part of the conversion that requires the most time, but doesn't require a ton of skill. Running and soldering wires, running fuel line, fabing little brackets, all those little details that take time if you want it done right.

If you have the time and a place to work on your truck, you are better off doing it yourself and not paying someone $50/hr. Plus, if anything ever fails, chances are, you will know how to fix it. It would suck being stuck on the side of the road and trying to reverse engineer something a shop guy rigged up.

So, I say go for it yourself. Break up the conversion up into little projects that you can tackle each weekend and you'll have it wrapped up in no time. If you run into any issues there are plenty of guys here that can point you in the right direction.

I don't want to volunteer anyone but I know there are owners in the Atlanta area who are very adept with that motor. May want to do a bit of digging & check with those guys first.

As for finding a shop who would do that? Good luck. I mean most will look at you like you're crazy for asking then when they see you're serious their eyes will suddenly look like this... $$
<img src="/forums/images/graemlins/lol.gif" alt="" />

There's a guy up Lake Lanier way. Slow Steve, or something like that... <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/lol.gif" alt="" />

Was your block from a StarQuest? If not, did you get it set up with oil squirters?

As for the work, I did mine, with the only wrenching being 20 years earlier when I was a kid. Plenty of help here for if/when you need it.

I looked for the oil squirters but couldn't find them. I had to mod my narrow bellhouse block for this conversion. At least it had the boss for the knock sensor. I decided to go with the forged pistons in a higher static compression then run the stock 7.5 boost to keep the heat down. For my driving style, I hope to do OK without the squirters. Time will tell.

I agree. About a year and half ago I had no other choice but to take my Monty to a shop in Buford GA, close to where we live. One of the bolts holding the flywheel lost its head and shaved all the others leaving the flywheel turning by itself, all thanks to the dumb <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/butwiggle.gif" alt="" /> son of the guy that rebuild my engine who crossthreaded one of the bolts

If performance is what you are looking for this is the shop for your but get ready to pay top dollars, just for tapping and replacing the flywheel I paid, ready? <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/scared.gif" alt="" />$1,400 <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/zombie.gif" alt="" /> I paid that much for having my engine rebuild with everything new!!!!! but I had no choice. <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif" alt="" />
Now this guy has a great shop with dyno an all, he works on race cars like BMW's, Mercedes, Porsche, Ferrari and his specialty are turbo cars, so I asked him how much will be to turbo my Monty and I told him that I had the turbo engine and he quoted me from $6 to $7k <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/scared.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/ignore.gif" alt="" />
That is crazy money when it is basically a bolt on, definitely way too much money.

I want to turbo mine but I am determine to do it myself. I am not worried for the technical stuff because everything that you might need is here in the 4x4Wire.

I've had my hands on a good engine but at the last minute it did not come through thanks to my accident. I am ready now so I am quietly looking for an engine, I found an 88 recently rebuilt but it is up in Iowa, a little bit too far for me.

Javy

Do you have all the wiring harness for the starion? If so, do you have the control relay? It runs the fuel pump and power to the ecu. Plugs into the main efi harness from the starion motor. One output wire powers the fuel pump. A Master e8000 aftermarket fuel pump works fine. I mounted mine to the tubular crossmember in front of the tank. Keep the suction run short and direct as possible. Use the stock truck fuel steel lines. Put the starion filter in the engine compartment, and again use the stock starion fuel line to the injectors, and use fi fuel hose for the return line to the truck steel lines. No lectron fan needed if you have a good fan clutch and shroud. When I did the 85 system, the ecu would fit in the stock truck ecu steel box with only minor enlargement of one of the connector holes for a very neat install. Contol relay went on a handy bolt head on the passenger footwell sidewall. You have to move the major grommet on the starion harness to get it in the right place for the truck, but it fits the truck hole with persuasion. You need to make about 4 taps into the truck wiring harness to mate with the starion harness. See the turbo bible post for details.

PM me if you get stuck and I'll get you my cell #. Happy to help out. Work for food and beer, mostly <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/lol.gif" alt="" />

crazy money is right. It will definitely be worth my time to take a few days off of work when the weather is warm and do the wiring and plumbing myself. I've read the turbo bible through several times and downloaded it for reference. Thanks to all the pioneers who contributed. Its mostly my worry that I'll get it all hooked up but not get it to fire up when I think I'm done.

I think I have all the harness except for the control relays. I was told it is an 87 harness. I will dig it out of the box this saturday to see what I actually have. I've been collecting parts for this for about a year now. Do I disassemble the stock ECU case and put the starion guts inside?

I'd like to lay eyes on a completed install and take pics to plan for IC plumbing and AC compressor. I've got to have AC.

Yes. You have to grind/saw/dremel one of the connector holes bigger/wider. I have not tried it with an 87 ecu, but I think it will fit. Makes mounting the ecu a lot easier.

Don't worry if it won't crank the first try. Mine didn't. They like to test you, just like a teenager...

They like to test you, just like a teenager... <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/lol.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/lol.gif" alt="" />