I dont think the majority of the people even consider the advantages of this system, such as:
the single turbo that doesnt run off a custom very $$ designed/built exhaust manifold (even though the STS kit is fairly expensive... especially since it seems like all the bugs arent worked out)
With a custom manifold you'll need:
1
to have both exhaust banks running through a y into one turbo
"simple" single tube running the compressed air to the intake
single air filter
mangled up mess of a exhaust manifold
OR
2
run twin turbos (one per exhaust bank)
run compressed air through a y pipe into the intake
single air filter (must have a y pipe into both turbo compressor side inlets)
-OR-
dual air filters
2 separate exhaust manifolds
Plus, I think we all can agree already, that having the turbo(s) under the hood will of course increase engine bay temperature. So you'll have to wrap the heck out of the turbo and all hoses nearby, plus add a heat shield or 2, heat padding to the hood or other close by surfaces, etc. So, added weight, added cost of materials, added time and much less space under the hood for other work.
So when you consider all of that the STS kit appears to be a fairly simple "bolt-on" kit. Of course anything like this will require a chip or computer tuning, youd have to be completely ignorant or stupid to think otherwise. Yeah, I have to agree that having the hot turbo back there isnt the greatest idea, especially with the intake sucking in the dirt, water. Snorkel time. With the 05's plastic bed, that might be a issue. So basically there is no perfect system, theres concerns with any of them.
Personally Id love to see a company provide a complete turbocharger system, with full dual exhaust from the front to the butt, or at least a tuned single tube system. Until a company steps forward (which I seriously doubt will happen) or I spring up some $10,000 for a turbo system the STS is about as close as we'll get to the TRD SC system. Of course for the 05 Taco there is no options out there at all, right now. Of course, personally, Id drop the compression of the engine with forged pistons, shorter throw rods, then shot peen, etc everything else. Toyota engines are great but they can only take so much, especially if you want a dependable daily driver. If you are going to spend 4-5000 you might as well get your moneys worth and drop the comp and raise the boost, something above the pathetic 4-5psi.
About the ideas of twincharging your truck...
In my MR2 days a friend of mine had a '88 MR2 which he tried to tune a twincharged system. He spent way too much money on it and in the end he gave up and sold the car before it was close to running perfect. Probably even to this day it doesnt run perfect. Gerald, who had the twincharged MR2 in Sport Compact Car years ago (Toysport sponsored the article) even had issues with his car. Like once the turbo had completely initialized it was either WOT or nothing, which was quite scarey when the boost was cranked up. He normally ran it about 350hp (1.6 liter 4 banger) but was quite certain 500hp could be ran with a weekend cruiser. I tried to work up a system for my 89, I looked at different superchargers, turbos, different methods of sequencing the sc with the tc (multiple bypass valves, vanes, flapper valves, etc) but couldnt work out a truely reliable system. So, I was either going to pitch that crappy roots supercharger and replace it with a turbocharger or slam in a 3SGTE or a v6. I ended up selling the car, which I do miss at times, before I got to do any serious playing, which saved me some money I suppose.. With a few minor mods I ran a average of 9.5psi through the factory roots. I never did dyno the car but ran it against other MR2's, 5.0's, etc and the car beat pretty much anything, except at higher speeds where the sc sucked.. I did lose one race in a big way, '04-05 TT NSX.. Id hope so considering the differences of the price tags.. I believe with a properly built engine, tuned maps and properly selected turbos you cant go wrong.
Ford put out a Rally car (I forget the name of it) that had a great twincharger system but yet again I did read some issues with it. Its hard to perfect the system especially when you dont have a big sponsor footing the bill of tuning, parts, etc. So do yourself a favor and not even consider twincharging your truck..
NOS is great for the track, drag that is. Sucks for everyday driving, especially if you want the extra power to tow something, or even for race course. Water injection would be a better option for a long term help, at least there you can pick up water just about anywhere without paying a arm and a leg.
