19/07/2026
The baby brother to the S280 gets overlooked in the big number chase game and thats all good, because the 280 is a great unit that's very adaptable, but what if you use your car as a daily and prioritise response, refinement and reliability ?
Turbo Technics S270 has been around a while, spawned from the earlier S242 unit, its pretty much a bespoke unit itself, with only the turbine housing shared with the original KP39 stock turbo.
We have done quite a few of these for customers but the perfectionist in my wanted it better, and one of the things i wasn't happy with was the actuator, which i feel is a little on the weak side.
Initially this turbo was specced with an upgraded actuator from TT, but this was too extreme with a tight working ratio, this works well on the bigger 280 unit but the 270 is smaller and spools quicker and therefore required more control over a wider range of movement.
What we needed was a middle ground, something stronger than a stock actuator, with a progressive spring that works best with the software, so I went with a Forge actuator (this will be available for my customers who opt for this unit)
With the TRS calibration, what worked on the 280 needed some changes, the VCT phasing was tamed to prevent surging and overshoot, boost level was set so we saw a 1.65 bar flat over 4k and a very slight taper over 6500 to 1.6 bar, this is essentially the same peak boost that a Stage 2 set up would run, traditionally hybrid units would be running up to 1.8 bar at the redline and that's not something I wanted to do with this turbo.
A disproportionate amount of time was spent driving and logging the car on the road to get the feel right, it had to be super sharp low down but not overshoot and become messy, and it had to punch hard in the mid and upper rev range too, so lots of base preload settings were tried with software revisions to find that sweet spot.
Others have done it before but none have spent the time in the real world where the softness and inconsistency of the stock supplied actuator felt lacking to me.
The final part was dyno testing carried out yesterday at Piranha Racing Developments UK who kindly squeezed me in, hitting my target of 300+bhp with a solid , wide power band.
Keeping the boost as low as possible was priority, higher peak numbers are achievable pushing it harder to 1.8 bar but that isn't the point of this unit, it's to retain that punch of a strong Stage 2 and an OEM+ level of feel that delivers no matter the mood.
It suits exactly what I want from this car as a daily driver, no hybrid noises , minimal stress on the engine , and a lot more fun than a stock turbo!
If you're interested in this set up for your Fiesta ST, drop us a message for more information.
Hardware fitted -
Turbo Technics S270
Wagner Tuning UK Competition intercooler
ITG Air Filters Induction
Forge Motorsport Custom actuator and crossover pipe
GFB DV+ Recirc
Milltek cat back
Stock cold side boost pipe
Testing carried out using Tesco Momentum 99 octane fuel
**Dyno video in comments section
