I have a non turbo 78 300 D. I saw a turbo for sale from an 82 300TD, and was wondering how easy/difficult it would be to put in on my engine....Anyone know what would be involved? Are their many other components I would have to change? ie computers? linkage? others? What are your thoughts? Appreciate your reply's...Thanks!

From what I've learned about turbochargers, I think this would be both a waste of time and a bad idea in general. Here's why:

1) Non-turbo'd diesel engines were not designed to withstand the heat generated by the turbo. One chief difference between these two engines is that the turbo diesel has oil-cooled cylinders, due to the higher compression brought on by the turbo-compressed air.

2) Simply slapping a turbo on a normally-aspirated diesel will not make a difference unless many other things are considered. Other than the heating issue mentioned above, you would have to install an intake manifold that sent the boost signal to the aneroid compensator, together with an electrical signal to a switchover valve (in case of overboost). Additionally, the injection pump would need to have an ALDA unit in order to feed the engine more fuel, as a result of increased turbo boost. Non-turbo'd diesel IP's do not have this feature.

So to do this conversion would be ill-advised, dangerous, and expensive. I used to own a Euro-spec 300D without the turbo, and I loved its torque off the line. Her rear-end was a different gear ratio than the turbo models, and she really flew (relatively speaking) from a standstill.

In my opinion, I think you should learn to love what you have...

In a word, don't. There are many internal differences between turbo and non-turbo diesel engines.
Regards,
Randy D.

You would be opening a can of worms. The bottom end of a 617.950 motor is beefier to handle the extra power. There is a 45% power increase by adding the turbo. So you have to have an engine designed for this power and torque. Matt mentioned the oil cooled cylinders, he is correct. The 617.950 engine has oil spray nozzels that shoot oil up and into the pistons' underside to keep them cool. Another thing the 617.950 engine has is an oil cooler, and it's a huge one. It is as tall and thick as the radiator and is about 5 inches wide. So as you can see, it's more involved than just slapping a turbo on.