I know that the hotair cars are equipped with much smaller turbos, but am interested in upgrading. can anyone recommend specific models preferably with some idea about perf. gains. I am getting ready to install the TM ic kit with a ford cooler, so spool time is critical. Also, I don't want more than 2800 worth of convertor. This will be a real life street car in a Midwestern hot and cold climate. Any help greatly appreciated.
The TE-44 would be a solid turbo for your application. Especially if you're worried about spoolup, as the 44 is not much slower than stock at spooling, but can deliver much more powerup on the top end. Over a stock-style turbocharger unit, upwards of 50 horsepower can be extracted from the 44 because of it's much higher airflow at any given boost level. Also, it won't need anything more than a 2800 stall, and that would probably be ideal for quicker spoolup.