Turbo charging vs. Supercharging

[Induction Concepts]

Actually, all of this is not quite right.

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by h2sin:
Turbo = High Maintenance, High risk </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

This is exactly the opposite.

Think of endurance races like the 24 hours of LeMans or Daytona. Those race teams have practically unlimited budgets. They can afford any technology they can dream of, they choose turbos for a reason, because of their dependability and reliability. If superchargers made more power or were more dependable, thats what they'd be running.

Every semi on the road has a turbo. Again, for dependability and reliability. These trucks go hundreds of thousands of miles before a rebuild.

Turbo systems are more complex, simply because they have more tubing, but tubing isn't moving parts, so it doesn't wear out from friction.

Turbos don't require any more maintenance than a supercharger, or a naturally aspirated stock engine for that matter. Regular oil changes with a quality oil and use a quality air filter, things you should do on any car.

With a turbo, it isn't putting extra stress on the front of the crankshaft from belt tension. You also aren't burning extra fuel to spin the supercharger all the time, even when you're not using it (in boost).

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">
Turbo = More power than your H2 can handle </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

With the push of a button, or the turn of a knob, you can adjust the boost level, and therefore the power of the engine, down to practically zero (above the power level without a turbo). Can't do that with a supercharger. Superchargers require at minimum a pulley change and usually also a different belt. Some superchargers drain all of their oil out of their snout when you pull the pulley off for a pulley change.

On the systems that we build, we don't have a stock engine in mind when we pick the turbos, we select the turbos based on something above 500hp simply because we didn't have any interest in building yet another 400-500hp solution, there are already plenty of those out there already. But, by just swapping turbos (different size) (4 bolts and a couple of clamps per turbo), we can select almost any range of power.

There are companies that select their turbos for power levels on a stock engine though.

Our turbos can be run on a stock engine, with the boost turned down, but why spend all that money for only 400-500hp? Our customers just want more power than that, and 95% of our customers are real street vehicles, not clapped out racecars with tags, but vehicles with all of their emissions and accessories (power steering, power brakes, ac, cruise, etc.). Some people will drop off a brand new car, straight from the dealer, we'll pull the engine, have a stronger version built, reinstall it, then install the turbo system.

Our customers all have built engines. And many are nothing 'wild', just with stronger parts in them than what the factory installed, they have a perfect idle and perfect drivability. You'd never know they had a turbos until you put your foot in it.

The bottom line is that power output is a personal choice, some want more, some want less. At least with turbos you have almost an unlimited range of power to choose from, and the adjustability of changing the boost level with the push of a button.


<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">

Supercharger = All the power you will ever need

there, I simplified it for you </div></BLOCKQUOTE>


Again, personal choice.


<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">BTW if you are building a H2 to go drag racing, go with turbo.. otherwise stick with SC </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

As I said in my very first post, if 400-500hp is all the power you seek, then a supercharger is probably the most economical way to go. But turbos aren't only for drag racing, I know I haven't seen many semi's at the strip, but they all have turbos, and they have them because they are dependable and they make a mountain of torque for pulling and towing.