Howdy peep holes!
Well with me not being able to do too much to the Maverick as of late I have pulled myself up and thought about what I want to achieve and the best way to go about it.
The build has to be done right this time. If it gets a 5th build I will be divorced!
What I am after is a vehicle that is very torquey , still has a respectable top end and is reliable and Im not really relying on custom parts if something breaks on a big trip to the desert etc.
I have been trying to decide between slipping a Eaton M90 onto the 5.0 or building a 347.
I have knocked the 347 on the head at the moment because ultimately I want something with forced induction. The Mav needs to be engineered again for the extra cab conversion so I want to get forced induction signed off at the same time.
The engineer has no issues with forced induction on it as it fits in with the capacity to weight rules.
The only thing he is concerned about is potential induction noise with the supercharger especially with extra pipework in it because I want to have it intercooled.
So I started looking hard at the M90.
Considerable amount of fabrication required to build an inlet adaptor with W2A intercooler and drive belt pulleys etc.
Pros are it will come on boost very early building lots of torque which is what I want.
Cons are not a standard belt length or belt setup if I break something out bush. Will be messy and cramped in the engine bay by the time I build a manifold and setup an intercooler. Also the M90 whilst an excellent blower is pretty much maxed out on a standard 5.0. It leaves no real room for the future when the more power bug bites. To upgrade to a M112 or M122 requires most of the fabrication to be done again...................
An underbonnet turbo setup isn't an option. With the LPG system , air box etc there simply isn't room without a lot of rooting around and I am worried about the exhaust housing getting water splashed on it doing river crossings.

Then I started thinking and doing some research on rear mounted turbos.
I have a good sized space in the rear tray that I was just going to enclose to hold snatch straps etc. The space is big enough to hold a turbo , air box , oil scavenge pump and water to air intercooler core. It is also right above where the exhaust runs...................... The space is pretty much splash resistant. Ok if I drown the truck in a bog or the river the space will get filled with water. But for that to happen the interior will be filled with water too meaning the ECU is drowned so Ill have bigger problems to deal with.

If I fit a turbo back here I can run the air intake straight up above the roof line and not have a snorkel on the guard. The exhaust can the be run straight up the otherside as a stack (the Sydney boys will love to finally see a vehicle fitted with stacks )

Whats peoples thoughts on the idea? If I was to go down this route and run an inline oil filter on the return there will be enough space in the inlet tract to catch shrapnel so I could have a try of the eBay China turbos.
This idea also leaves me future space to fit a bigger turbo etc if I wish as not as much will need to be remade.
My limit of turbo size understanding is air goes in , is compressed and magic comes out.
Is there any recommendations for a turbo that will be on boost at 1500-1800 RPM in this configuration and will maintain about 10lb until 5500? I reckon 10LB would be good as by the time I lose boost through the intercooler and pipework I should be down to about 6lb at the motor.
Ideas and thoughts?

Mate I would speak to Geoff from Snort Performance as he has completed a very similar conversion to what you are after on a ute and it came up a treat!.

Cheers. Its something to look into.

Interesting prospect Matt.

Rear mount would be an easy enough set up to install.

What size exhaust are you running?

How far back into the rear are you looking at mounting?
The further back, the cooler the exhaust gases will be (I do mean the engine exhaust ) therfore having less heat at the turbo. The further back the mounting the longer the air return to the engine, therefore the intake temps will be cooler than if the turbo was engine bay mounted. Also the will be less heat as there will be no engine bay heat to effect the turbo temps. I have seen set ups that do not use an intercooler at all due to the longer run of the air return.
You may not even need to run an intercooler but if you find in neccessary, I think that a normal Air to Air would suit your needs, easy enough to mount upfront in the normal spot.
Could you mount the turbo underneath, you should have heaps of room with your lift.

As for the turbo, if you want boost at lower RPM (1500) then I would suggest a smaller turbo against a larger one, probably a standard turbo from an XR6T would be good. Probably better to talk with Dazz or Troy about Turbos as I am more PD Charger as you know.

I think you will find this an easier and cheaper install than with the Eaton, even though PD is far superior . Happy to offer any assistance or support.

Thanks for your assistance Paul.
Its currently running a 3" single system. So once that's choked down to a T3 or T4 flange it should by my way of thinking get some gas velocity back up.
I definitely agree that an intercooler may not even be required. But since W2A units are so cheap from frozen boost and it looks like Ill have the room I think I will just fit one anyway to be on the safe side.
I don't want an air to air as there is no airflow to do any cooling if Im out climbing up rocks etc.
Turbo underneath is a no go. Its funny how the truck looks so massive but as far as mounting stuff there is really f**k all room as Daz could agree with.
Also I don't want to have a turbo underneath as it will be exposed to river crossings , bog holes etc. I have also smashed my current exhaust more then once on rocks. A turbo under there would end in tears I reckon.
As you said on the phone Im think a standard XR6T snail could be the unit to do what I want.
Definitely time for more research. I want to get this right this time.