[skyfan]

Originally Posted by Robotech

Both turbo chargers and super chargers push more air into the engine than it would normally suck in on it's own (remember an engine is nothing more than a big air pump).

Turbo Chargers use exhaust gas to spin a turbine...think of it as a large fan...that will compress the incoming air.

Super Chargers have a belt that attaches to the crankshaft. This turns large impellers inside the super charger which compresses the air.

Turbos usually heat the incoming air considerablly, superchargers less so (when you compress a gas its temperature always rises. You want to minimize heat as much as possible...hence why we have intercoolers for turbos and super chargers). However, with a super charger it takes power from the engine to turn the super charger. They call this parasitic loss. With a turbo, you have what is called turbo lag. When you first mash on the gas the turbo has to "spool up" in reaction to the increased exhaust flow. This is why when you stomp on the gas in most turbo cars you feel a bit of acceleration and then BAM the car takes off. The larger the turbo the greater the lag generally.

I test drove a Acura RDX last week. I has a two stage turbo with a valve which is suppose to minimize the lag. I have to say I really didn't like the lag surge effect, but it did take off like rocket once it kicked in. I guess you will have to used to the feel of the car.