As the Tacoma pulls around several broken 'crawlers and lines up to take on the nasty rock ledge, the onlookers laugh at the idea of taking a slightly modified Tacoma over the Moab obstacles. With 6 inches of lift, 33-inch tires, and a 5-psi Squires Turbo System, the Tacoma crawls to the summit where the driver breaks into a four-wheeled victory dance. Squires Turbo Systems strikes again!
As Rick Squires, VP of R&D at Squires Turbo Systems (STS), stands at the base of the Moab slickrock, he instantly feels a sigh of relief and perches himself next to the prototype Tacoma like a father hovering over his newborn son. As spectators peer into the engine compartment looking for the sound they all know is a turbocharger, Squires gestures for them to look under the truck where the remote-mounted turbocharger is located.
Where's the turbo? We'll give...
Where's the turbo? We'll give you a clue: It's not near the engine. Underhood, the STS kit looks more like a cold-air induction system than a turbo system.
Squires grew up in Spokane, Washington, and, like all die-hard motorheads, began his car/truck/motorcycle obsessions when he was just a boy. His first car wasn't a beat-up Volkswagen or an old Chevette, it was a '23 T-bucket outfitted with a 327 Chevy on nitrous. It was clear to all who knew him that speed was a priority and would play an integral part in his future.
Some years later, after burning out in the automotive repair business, Squires determined that a career change was in order. The question floating around in his head was: How could he bring awesome performance to the average truck owner? Since he had great luck with turbos in the past, he turned to what he knew. Squires reasoned that if the turbo could be mounted elsewhere, the traditional problems of melted wires, difficult heat shielding, and complicated turbo installations could be remedied.
"I want to bring turbo performance and technology to the masses - every guy with a truck who wants good power should be able to have it," Squires tells us.
But how does the Squires Turbo System work? According to Squires, the turbo doesn't care where it's located, so why not mount it in a place with ample space? After removing the factory exhaust behind the catalytic converter, a patented Garrett turbo/TiAL wastegate assembly is hung in place of the muffler. A series of HPC-coated intake tubes runs the length of the truck and is plumbed back into the stock throttle body. After spooling up the turbo, the spent exhaust gases exit through the tailpipe.
Oiling the turbo is perhaps the coolest part of the entire system, and subsequently the most crucial part of the STS patent. Pressurized engine oil is routed from the engine all the way to the turbo via a braided stainless line. After traveling through the turbo, a variable-rpm, 12V oil pump returns the oil to the valve cover. Where traditional front-mounted turbos gravity-feed the oil back to the motor, the STS requires a little help to travel the distance. On the plus side, oil never bakes inside the turbo after shutoff due to lower turbo temperatures, so a turbo timer is not required.