Turbo vs. Super Charger

[punk2m1d]

My 08 tC is my fun car as well as my daily driver. I have an intake, exhaust, and sway bar right now. I've heard that adding a turbo can shorten your engine's life span by a lot. Also, there are a million different parts to adding the turbo and keeping the turbo itself alive, correct? Blow-off valve, turbo timer, etc.

The super charger is more reliable, but only brings the tC to 200hp... not very super if you ask me.

With either choice of forced induction, is an upgrade in octane mandatory? I like to have fun in my car, but remember it is still my grocery getter.

Thank you in advance.

[Redneck4csa]

My 08 tC is my fun car as well as my daily driver. I have an intake, exhaust, and sway bar right now. I've heard that adding a turbo can shorten your engine's life span by a lot. Also, there are a million different parts to adding the turbo and keeping the turbo itself alive, correct? Blow-off valve, turbo timer, etc.

The super charger is more reliable, but only brings the tC to 200hp... not very super if you ask me.

With either choice of forced induction, is an upgrade in octane mandatory? I like to have fun in my car, but remember it is still my grocery getter.

Thank you in advance.

First of all, utilize the search button. It helps out alot. Adding a turbocharger can be hazardous to the health of the motor if you do not set it up right and don't take care of it. Other than that, you're pretty safe. The motor is pretty stout from the factory as far as internals go. It really all depends on how much boost you're looking to push. The supercharger is not going to add as much power, but it is covered by the factory warranty. Adding a turbocharger will VOID the warranty immediately. However, back to your question about reliability, a turbo will most likely last you longer than the supercharger. If, like I said before, you take care of it. An upgrade in octane is mandatory. Either way you decide to go, it will make getting the groceries ALOT more fun...

[MR.310]

going from stock to turbo or s/c is going to make ur car more fun to drive. if ur the type of person that whats to just have fun driving ur car? get the s/c. you can easly get more then 200hp out of it. or if you want to kick the crap out of everybody else, get the turbo. im sure even with the s/c your going to beat the hell out of most cars.

[punk2m1d]

Hmm, I've always heard that superchargers last longer than turbos. And that turbos hurt the engine more. I wouldn't want too much of a crazy boost or anything, but around 300hp would be nice.

[Redneck4csa]

Hmm, I've always heard that superchargers last longer than turbos. And that turbos hurt the engine more. I wouldn't want too much of a crazy boost or anything, but around 300hp would be nice.

Well, the Turbonetics kit is rated at 300hp. I would look into that if those are the numbers that you want to hit. I've heard really good things about the Greddy kit though. It's all in who you want to go with. As far as lasting longer, the turbo should last longer over time than a supercharger. A supercharger runs off of a belt from the crank. Putting just alittle more stress on the engine for boost. A turbocharger runs off of the exhaust and therefore is more efficient. It's all up to your preference. The only thing I will point out is the warranty.

[navylife59]

Yes, there are alot of variables to make your decision. Turbos on tC's seem to be very reliable, engine wise, thus far. I have known of atleast 2 tC engines damaged by oil leaks from the TRD S/C. These were do to improper installation of the unit by the Dealership and eventually warrantied.

Most car manufacturers moved from turbos to S/C for factory performance upgrades in the late 80's/early 90's. The reason was cost, longevity, upkeep, and emissions. To the car owner, have to change the oil twice as early, manually running the motor for 5 minutes to cool down the turbine, the inevitable turbo replacement, and the stark possibility of a blown motor from bad gas or being forced to run a lower Octane fuel was just too much. Sales plummeted. Turbo setups also inherently run richer and require higher octane fuel. As fuel prices went up, the demand for better economy dwindled the turbo performance market even more. Most of this has changed, however, with better turbos, refined tuning and engine control equating to better fuel economy, less maintenance/user hassle, and prolonged engine life.

So what made S/C setups the saving grace of factory boosted performance? Primarily, it was image. Now you can envision your daily driver transformed into the sporty image of a supercharged hotrods or that of a race winning dragster. At the time, turbos were unproven in the race field and too few hotrods were spool'n will they were tool'n around town. S/C setups could easily be made emissions compliant and not always require premium gas. They we also very reliable and predictable. Costs were lower do to the simplicity of the design that required fewer parts and modifications. S/C could be easily adapted to either blow-thru or draw-thru induction depending on the engine design need.

What I believe to have been the deciding factor most pontificated over was that of owner alteration of factory performance parameters. Many factory turbo motors bit the dust as it was relatively too easy for an owner to crank up the boost. Supercharged vehicles require a pulley swap to change boost settings. Chances are that a pulley upgrade won't be made available from the factory necessitating an aftermarket one to be manufactured. Couple this along with a security pulley fastner and you can be assured that the vast majority of factory S/C cars will be just that; factory.