Guide
Complete turbo vs CHRA
If the housings are good, a CHRA is often enough. If the turbine housing is damaged, quote a complete turbo. Ask for both when you are unsure. The desk flags mismatches on WhatsApp.
What each word means
A complete turbo is the full assembly you bolt on: compressor housing, turbine housing, CHRA and the actuator that belongs on that unit. A CHRA is the center housing rotating assembly. Shaft, wheels and bearings live there. The housings stay on the engine when they are still serviceable.
CHRA is always CHRA on this site. It is the center housing, not a nickname. Quote the CHRA when you will reuse the housings. Quote complete when you will not.
The short version lives on Guides, CHRA or complete. This page is the longer bench note.
When a CHRA is enough
Housings clean. No cracks on the turbine volute. No deep scoring on the compressor cover. VNT ring still moves if the unit has one. Actuator still holds and responds. Then a CHRA is the usual repair. You cut time on the ramp and you keep the housings that already fit the downpipe and the intake.
Search CHRA rows in the CHRA category. Match the turbo P/N or the CHRA code, not the engine nickname. A 1.9 TDI CHRA is not one part.
When to quote complete
Cracked turbine housing. Melted or broken VNT. Compressor cover damaged at the intake. Missing or broken mounting bosses. Oil leak from a housing joint you cannot reseal on the bench. Quote a complete turbo. Search the complete turbo category.
Electronic actuator faults are a separate call. Sometimes you replace the actuator on the old turbo. Sometimes the CHRA and the actuator go together. Say what failed. We quote the line that fits.
Actuator, kit, or the whole unit
A repair kit does not replace a CHRA. Kits cover small hardware. A CHRA is the rotating assembly. An actuator is the control on the side of the turbo. If you only need the actuator, say actuator. Search actuators and repair kits.
The bench list is in repair parts on the bench.
How we quote it
Send the turbo P/N or a plate photo plus what you want: complete, CHRA or both. Shop name and country. Quantity. See how to request a wholesale turbo quote.
If more than one aftermarket line fits, the quote lists them. You pick spec versus price. Warranty notes are per line. We do not put prices on the open catalog for guests.
Checks on the housing
Look at the turbine inlet and outlet. Cracks at the clamp face, broken bolts, and a melted VNT ring are complete-turbo jobs. A light oil film in the compressor cover is common. Deep grooves from a wheel rub are not. If the wheel has already eaten the housing, a new CHRA in that cover will rub again.
Check the compressor inlet bore and the recirculation grooves if the cover has them. Broken plastic pipes and clamps are not a reason to bin a good cover. A smashed inlet is.
On VNT units, move the ring by hand if the actuator is off. Stiff or stuck: say so. Sometimes the CHRA and the ring go together. Sometimes the housing is the fault. A photo of the hot side helps more than a long description.
Oil, shaft play, and noise
Blue smoke and oil in the intake often point at seals in the CHRA. That is a CHRA job when the housings are still round. Shaft play you can feel at the compressor nut is the same story. A grinding housing is not. If you can see the wheel tips have cut the cover, quote complete or a cover plus CHRA. Send the photo. We will not guess from a smoke note alone.
A whistle with a good shaft and clean housings can be a leak or an actuator that does not hold. Name the symptom. Quote the actuator if that is the part you will change. Search actuators.
Electronic versus vacuum
Vacuum actuators and electronic actuators are not swaps because the arm looks similar. Read the ID on the black box. Two screws. Photograph it with the compressor plate. If you order a CHRA and keep a dead electronic actuator, the car will not control boost.
Some jobs are actuator only. Some are CHRA plus actuator. Some are complete because the housing and the control are both finished. Say what you already removed. The quote follows the parts on the bench, not a generic engine badge.
Comebacks to avoid
CHRA on a cracked turbine housing. Complete turbo when you only needed a CHRA and then you fight the downpipe because you did not need to. Kit instead of CHRA because the kit was on the same catalog page. Actuator from the wrong turbo P/N. Those four cover most returns we see described in first messages.
If you are unsure, ask for both complete and CHRA on one thread. See how to request a wholesale turbo quote. Shop name, country, turbo P/N or plate photo, and the word both.
Family pages
If you already know the family, open a hub and search from there. GT1749 is common on VAG 1.9 and 2.0 TDI. VAG 1.9 TDI collects engine-side codes. Those pages still close on WhatsApp. They are not SKU shops.
How to decide in five minutes
1. Read the plate. 2. Look at the turbine housing. 3. Look at the compressor cover. 4. Move the VNT or the wastegate arm. 5. Decide complete, CHRA, actuator, or both. Write that decision on the WhatsApp message. Do not wait until the part arrives to discover the housing was already finished.
If step 1 fails, photograph and send. If step 2 or 3 fails, quote complete. If only step 4 fails and the housings are round, quote the actuator or CHRA plus actuator. That is the whole tree. The catalog filters only help after the tree.
What the quote will ask back
If you omit complete or CHRA, we ask. If the photo shows a cracked housing and you asked for a CHRA, we flag it. If the actuator is electronic and you did not send the box ID, we ask for it. Those questions are faster than a wrong shipment. Answer on the same thread.
The pillar for the rest of the path is turbocharger parts for workshops. Plate work is identify a turbo from the plate.
Catalog filters after the decision
Once you know complete, open complete turbos and search the turbo P/N. Once you know CHRA, open CHRA. Once you know actuator, open actuators. The filter does not fix a wrong number. It only hides the other categories so you do not quote a kit by mistake.
Empty filter plus a good turbo P/N still deserves a WhatsApp. The catalog is not every cross. The desk will say if the line exists as complete only, CHRA only, or both.
Language on the quote
We write CHRA, not a local nickname, so the line is not ambiguous. If your workshop uses another word on the lift, keep CHRA on the message to the desk. Complete means the full assembly. Actuator means the control. Kit means the small hardware, not the rotating assembly. Those four words prevent most mix-ups on a first order.