New breed of supercharged car small motors: are they good?

[dannyp]

Half the problem is what they make them out of. Seems fords engines dissolve from the inside out. I’ve noticed people starting to call the ecotec the eco boom

 

[Ashley Burton]

Half the problem is what they make them out of. Seems fords engines dissolve from the inside out. I’ve noticed people starting to call the ecotec the eco boom

It's all a cost saving exercise!

The consumer wants a competitive price, So Manufacturers cut corners. Then the consumer wonders why they brand new vehicle has broken down

 

[Sarto]

So in the end they aren't so bad.
Thanks to all for the answers.



Sart0

 

[J1nx]

Most supercharged cars don’t have turbos, if they do it’s refered to as compound charged.
Supercharging has died out in favour of turbos generally. I’d avoid supercharged cars personally.

 

[HughF]

Most supercharged cars don’t have turbos, if they do it’s refered to as compound charged.
Supercharging has died out in favour of turbos generally. I’d avoid supercharged cars personally.

I assumed the OP was actually referring to turbo'd petrols

 

[dannyp]

There’s quite a few compound charged vw engines about. They basicly use a tiny supercharger to give tiny engine some pull in the low rpms and get the turbo woke up.

Small lean burn petrols don’t pull much without help

 

[J1nx]

I assumed the OP was actually referring to turbo'd petrols

The title has 'supercharged' and then in first few lines again, the op then asks about turbo maintenance

 

[HughF]

The title has 'supercharged' and then in first few lines again, the op then asks about turbo maintenance

Yeah, I figured he was just confused...

 

[Sarto]

Indeed, I mean turbo.

 

[CornishPete]

If you're only doing low miles who cares about mpg? Get a 3 litre petrol and enjoy driving!

 

[HughF]

Indeed, I mean turbo.

my boss has a 500 twinair, has had it since 2012, zero issues, excellent MPG...

Personally I drive electric now and would never have a twinair as it's a bit agricultural, but might be an option for you.

 

[daleyd]

Not really a small engine, but I’ve just had a new company car with a twin turbo 2l engine and it’s very very good.

It pulls from almost no revs because of the small turbo, with virtually none of the low down lag you would traditionally associate with a turbo engine and when you want more go the big one kicks in - and having driven diesel cars for the last 10 years it’s amazingly quiet and refined.

 

[sako243]

And here's me contemplating a 6.2l...

 

[Rannsachair]

I have gone from bigger engined cars to an Alfa 159 1750 tbi: Feels like a car with a much larger engine. 200 PS from 4750 to 5500 rpm and 320 Nm of Torque at 1400 rpm. The high torque from low revs means it pulls like a much larger engine and is certainly fun to drive.

Fuel economy is not great, though much better than a V6 Alfa.

 

[Wallace]

And here's me contemplating a 6.2l...

C63?

 

[dannyp]

I sill like my 2 ltr NA. No pull at all below 3000 rpm. But when your screaming it out it’s fun

 

[Hood]

Loved my 3.0L flat six Subaru Legacy and Outback, wish I still had them.
Have a 2.0TDI Passat now and it is ok but just not in the same league. It does have its benefits though, Tax under half and fuel consumption more than double.

 

[HughF]

I've been in one of these for the last year, covered 22k miles at 132mpg average.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chevrolet_Volt

Finest bit of auto engineering I've ever owned or driven.

 

[HughF]

Loved my 3.0L flat six Subaru Legacy and Outback, wish I still had them.
Have a 2.0TDI Passat now and it is ok but just not in the same league. It does have its benefits though, Tax under half and fuel consumption more than double.

I've just bought and exported 2 3.0 outbacks to Holland, delivered one of them on Tuesday. Great drive over and managed 35mpg with the cruise set at 70mph the whole way.

 

[Hood]

I've just bought and exported 2 3.0 outbacks to Holland, delivered one of them on Tuesday. Great drive over and managed 35mpg with the cruise set at 70mph the whole way.

Yes, when we bought the Outback we had a 60 mile drive back and we got about 36MPG on the run home. Our normal driving though is 16mile round trip a day and we got about 19-20MPG in the Outback and 23-25 MPG in the Legacy Spec B. The outback was an Auto, the Spec B a manual.
Both went like stink although the Spec B was about 1-1.5 seconds faster 0-60.