Superchargers have been on the market for a long time, and there are many options to choose from to meet various needs, cars, and budgets.

Whether it is an OEM engine or a high-performance engine, the use of power adders is still a popular choice. Turbocharging, supercharging and nitrite are the main options for adding power to your engine. In most configurations and applications, people rely on turbochargers and superchargers the most. You may be wondering why you should choose one over the other, and what makes them different?

Superchargers and turbochargers are used as displacement replacements, helping to press more air into the engine. With a turbocharger, you can use the heat energy in the engine exhaust. The supercharger is driven from the crankshaft of the engine. Turbochargers use "free" energy that would otherwise be lost through exhaust gas.

Driving a turbocharger does increase exhaust back pressure, which puts some load on the engine, but the net loss is often less than the direct mechanical load involved in driving a supercharger. What most people notice is that superchargers can provide boost almost immediately, while turbochargers usually experience some lag to build up pressure.

Obviously, in some applications, it is not advisable to waste precious time waiting for the exhaust pressure to build up, so a supercharger is used. In other cases, people cannot afford to lose horsepower, so turbocharging is a better choice.

No matter how you choose to add boost to your engine, depending on your engine and application, both superchargers and turbochargers are good choices, but we want to spend some time discussing superchargers.

Superchargers have been on the market for a long time, and there are many options to choose from to meet various needs, cars, and budgets. Your basic Roots supercharger is usually installed where the intake manifold is located. It uses rotating mesh lobes to inject air from one end to the other, accumulating pressure in the intake manifold, causing a large amount of air to gush out. 

The twin screw supercharger rotates in the manner of a bottle opener and sucks in air. The air is compressed and then forced into the engine in this way.

Then you have a centrifugal supercharger, which uses an impeller to distribute the air through strong centrifugal force, where the diffuser converts the air into high pressure. Brands such as ProCharger, Vortech and TorqStorm are examples of this supercharger style. The centrifugal supercharger forces air into the engine in a consistent flow rather than bursts.

"We have worked with various turbocharger brands and companies," said Doug Aitken, owner of Prestige Motorsports in Concord, North Carolina. "We have used a lot of side flinger or your centrifugal superchargers, such as TorqStorm, Vortech and ProCharger. We have also been involved in your screw superchargers, such as Magnuson, Whipple and Kenne Bell, as well as your earlier Roots type supercharger, such as Blower Shop or BDS."

When it comes to superchargers, there are obviously many options. Nowadays, customers usually want to use some type of supercharger or may have brand loyalty.

"If a client asks me, what should I use? It just boils down to expectations," Aitken said. "We focus on accessory drives. Are they running AC or power steering? Do they want to get power immediately or gradually based on how the rest of the car is manufactured? Or is it a drag? These are the main things, But many times I think it’s just the customer saying what he wants, and we will provide him with advantages and disadvantages based on the rest of the car.”

As with anything related to engine manufacturing, the pros and cons depend on the customer and their expectations and applications.

"With turbocharging, you have all these pipes," Aitken said. "You have a hot end and a cold end, and many things are happening. This not only costs money, but also increases the complexity of the system. For the supercharger, it will also retain all the accessories, and you only need to screw the blower. That's it. It doesn't really bother you too much, and you don't have a lot of extra pipeline complexity. 

"But when you enter certain combinations, such as F3 ProCharger, which is a drag racing deal, maybe the customer will drive it on the street and want AC, then the front-drive system is really not desirable. You have to make those things Many customers want to be able to own their cake and eat it, depending on what they are doing and their budget. The reason why we make so many different superchargers is mainly based on the needs of consumers."

One disadvantage of a supercharger is that in order to increase or decrease the amount of boost and power output into the engine, you must mechanically change the pulley options. 

"The advantage of a turbocharger over any supercharger is that you can use a wastegate to control the boost," he said. "This is good because you don't have to mechanically change pulley options and the like. This is a disadvantage of superchargers. 

"However, if it is strictly a resistance piece, I would choose the crank-driven ProCharger or TorqStorm. Not only is it equipped with the entire front accessory drive system, but if you want around 1,000 horsepower, TorqStorm is also equipped with dual superchargers. The load on the cranks is small, and they run on a serpentine belt, so you won't break the belt all the time. 

"Whether it is Vortech or ProCharger, the problem you encounter when using many side parabolas is to produce the same power on a single blower. Generally speaking, you are running a gear belt, it just doesn’t last. If it’s a street car , Is not conducive to long-term high durability."

However, some crank drives can be used in gear sets, and you don’t even need a belt, which eliminates the durability factor. You don’t have to worry about gear drives, and you rarely see them malfunctioning. 

"If it is an F3 or F4 for a complete game application, and it is a crank driven by a quick-change gear set, it is definitely a ticket," Aitken said. "And Vortech also provides products for this application."

In the street market, twin-screw superchargers and Roots blowers are good choices, depending on the customer’s needs, if it fits under the hood, and whether he wants his power now, instead of building boost through rpm .

"Whipple supercharger has a lot of front drive accessories designed around these, so all your accessories are included," he said. "Whipple is great for people who want power now, maybe they like Whipple's complaints. One drawback is trying to put it under the hood, which depends on its content. This is also ProCharger, Vortech, and TorqStorm The place that really shines because you can put these superchargers under the hood. They are smaller and lighter and are mounted on the engine instead of the intake manifold.

"When comparing superchargers, screw-type blades and rotors are heavy. The heavier these things, the greater the resistance to the motor. Obviously you won’t be as clean as a turbocharger. Many people consume horsepower on a supercharger. Confused by this fact."

The fact is that every turbocharger company has great products, sometimes it boils down to a preference for one brand over another. However, the application, budget, and available space under the hood should be your driving factors in deciding on the supercharger.

When it comes to supercharging and supercharging, there is a huge misunderstanding that no one has really talked about. When you hang the blower on the side of the engine, assuming it has all the good parts, the limit on the power produced by the motor depends entirely on the blower itself. It is the main air pump and can only deliver so much air. 

"The YSI blower can move X amounts of air, so if I put it on 427 or 363, the peak power will be the same," Aitken said. "No matter what your camshaft is, it's the same. The only difference is what level of power it makes. The 427 is a larger motor, so it eats up air, which may be Produces 1,100 horsepower. The push. The 363 will produce the same power at 16 pounds. The boost is the limiting measure. Some people may argue that you need to spin the blower harder. Well, if you are already at maximum blower speed , Then you’re done. We’ve proven this over and over again. 

"In your turbocharged world, the situation is slightly different, but in the supercharger, you are limited by the size of the blower itself. We have used TorqStorm and their twin superchargers on three completely different engines. A lot of work has been done. We have a 540 big block, a 427 Ford, and a 427 LS. These engines have completely different structures, valve angles, valve sizes, manifold layouts-everything is different. They all make the power of each other different Less than 1%."

There are a lot of things about power adders, such as superchargers and turbochargers, that people don’t fully understand. One of the biggest examples is that bigger is not always better. 

"Sometimes technology surpasses the theory that bigger is better," Aitken said. "I mean Whipple has a 4 liter and a 4.5 liter supercharger that can get you somewhere in the 1,100 horsepower range. They are also equipped with a brand new 3L engine that can produce 1,100 horsepower. You must not Don't ask a question, why should I buy a 4.5L blower when the power of 3L is the same? This may be an application matter. 

"4L is the rear feed, so in the sand cart, the motors rotate and they suck in air from the front of the vehicle. They don’t want to suck sand. This will be the reason you use this blower. But if it’s in any type of streetcar I will use 3L or their new 3.8L instead of any 4L or 4.5L because they will generate more power. 

"There are new technologies out there-the rotor design, the rotor material, and the air inlet are all different. The technology has surpassed the supercharger, but is bigger. We can produce the same amount of power in a smaller blower. I think all of this The company is constantly working hard to challenge this limit."

According to Jason Saris of Saris Racing Engines, although you can use a smaller supercharger to get similar horsepower to a larger one, it depends on the application.

"From the perspective of street and drag racing devices and the sea world, the size of the supercharger is different, which is completely different," Sarris said. "3 or 3.3 may produce a 1,100 hp resistance zone explosion for 10 seconds, or even a 30-second boulevard explosion. It is not the right choice for an offshore marine engine that produces 1,100 hp. 4 liters or 4.5 liters A blower would be a better choice because it will generate the boost required to reach 1,100 horsepower, the rotor speed is much slower, and the heat is much less. With a smaller supercharger, the high rotor speed will cause the intake air temperature It climbs as the heat increases. It is okay in the short term, but it is unacceptable in the long term."

When it comes to TorqStorm products, they only have one blower, nothing more. They are all the same size, so you only need to run one or two. 

"In our tests on a single engine, we were able to produce an engine in the 750 horsepower range, but it only took 40 horsepower from the engine," he said. "In most cases, you can usually see an increase of 200 horsepower on a single supercharger. If you hang the dual there, obviously you can generate more than 1,000 horsepower.

"When you enter ProCharger and Vortech, you will find many different compressor sizes and styles. At the low end, using a serpentine belt can produce 700-800 horsepower. If one wants more than 1,000 horsepower, then you will upgrade To things like ProCharger’s YSI or F1R and Vortech’s V-30."

Remember that running a supercharger means more pressure on the engine and higher engine heat, so make sure your parts can withstand the pressure to ensure longevity.

"When you supercharge an engine, you need a good internal structure," Aitken said. "We like to use forged cranks, H-shaped steel rods, ARP 2000 or better bolts, and forged 2816 pistons with heavy and heavy wall pins. In addition, depending on the engine itself, it will be the cylinder head gasket area. 

“Engines like LS are very similar to Ford because they don’t have many bolt holes per cylinder until you go to the aftermarket cylinder block and cylinder head options. Depending on our needs for clamping loads, we may introduce a fire ring, It’s not just the traditional MLS washers that give you peace of mind. We have always known that people will push the engine harder, especially if they change the pulley. Now their power is 1,100 horsepower. If we don’t upgrade, we will meet To the cylinder head gasket."

Finally, because the supercharger generates heat, you need to make sure to use an intercooler to help cool the air entering the engine from the supercharger. A supercharger with a higher supercharger will produce a hotter discharge, so as the boost pressure increases, the effect of the intercooler will become more and more obvious. No supercharger alone can achieve the efficiency of an intercooled supercharger.

Most importantly, the inter-cooled supercharged is more powerful and safer for your engine than the hot non-inter-cooled supercharged. Intercooler reduces the intake air temperature, provides complete timing, allows more low-end boost and horsepower, and expands the power range. Did we mention more boost? EB

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