kimboinatl

I've been reading up on turbos/superchargers today. One impression I get from reading up on turbos is that they can be hard on your engine and that they require more maintenance than a supercharger. Is that pretty much true? Anyone have any personal experience with running a turbo on their car for an extended period of time?

TattooTears

I've heard people say they are hard on the engines but I don't really believe that based on the fact that so many cars come stock with turbos and that tractor trailers use them and those things run forever

94Cbra

It all depends on the boost you run. 8# is the standard psi on most superchargers and turbos. 8psi is 8psi no matter where you get it from.

StangMang

i heard that superchargers are harder on your engine than turbos cause they are a belt set up and are more stress on your engine

matthockey32

turbos are powered by exhaust. no matter what kind of internal combustion engine there will always be exhaust. turbos offer free power meaning they require no power from your car to make boost. superchargers onthe other require a belt-drive to make boost. the belt-drive takes power from your engine to make more power.

Redline03GT

stock turbos on most cars do not damage the components because they run at a low PSI. Their entire purpose is fuel economy, not power. Problem with turbos is that they are generally run at a higher PSI than superchargers, and therefore more stories are made about turbos being hard on your engine and hard on your wallet. I personally wouldnt mess around with turbochargers unless i REALLY knew what i was doing, which i dont.

Redline03GT

Just to clarify what i wrote before because it sounds contradictive.

Stock turbos (small cars and diesel trucks) - low psi for fuel economy

Turbo upgrades - higher psi for excellent power and torque

Most people with mustangs go with superchargers because there are already several popular supercharger kits out there which you only have to buy and have installed. Turbos become much more complicated, as they do not work with many stock parts.

kimboinatl

So then from what I gather it doesn't matter if it's a turbo or S/C, just depends on the PSI rating.

From what I've read/heard it sounds like a stock 4.6 can handle 8psi without any problems. If you go higher than that though you would need to swap out some parts, right?

mdvaldosta

No, all boost is not equal. A turbo at 8psi will put out more hp than a supercharger at 9 psi, and the turbo will be easier on the engine.

FoxGT

I've built 4 turbo kits, 1 twin turbo, & 1 S/C kit. The turbo is harder on the engine than the blower because of heat. It produces more heat because it has more restriction. You have the turbo in the exhaust keeping the exhaust from escaping fast. + you have the turbo blowing air into the intake. kind of a trapping effect. A turbo is not free power. It takes a restriction in the exhaust which brings hp down a bit, but it makes up for it. The turbo is more efficient as far as gas milage, but if you ever heard that a turbo adds to fuel economy you were being misled. It is true that a supercharger will put out less power @ 9psi than a turbo @ 8psi unless the setup is horrible. Stock turbo's are just as good as aftermarket turbo's if it is from a recently made car unless you get special turbos like ball bearing. Turbo sizes are sized to whatever rpm you want the speed. small turbos are good for low end response, but get scorching hot @ high rpm. Large turbo's are hot when at low rpm & run fairly cool @ higher rpm & provide the most power due to less restriction & more airflow. Turbo kits are hard to put on unless you fabricate you own, Its just time consuming. Turbo systems require more parts because you have to have exhaust piping to power the turbo & boost control as opposed to longer belt. You can control boost in a turbocharged car from the inside by about 6 psi, anywhere above or below the limits you will need a different wastegate spring. A turbo or two will shorten your engines life. With the right thermal management you can get about 90% of the engines normal life. Water cooled turbos won't require as frequent oil changes & the turbo will last longer. Keep the engine @ normal temps & you should be fine for a long time.