Turbocharger or Supercharger?

My friend is getting a scion tC and he wants a power adder.. He doesn't "plan" on changing the driveshaft components yet, so would it be smart for him to get a turbo/super now? Also the dealer has a supercharger from TRD are those better for the car than aftermarket chargers?

Turbocharger or Supercharger?
no. the TRD supercharger is about 3K for not even 50 extra hp. He would be best going turbo. Greddy and turbonetics makes to great kits for the tC. the greddy kit is a 100hp gain kit, and the turbonetics is about 88hp gain at 8 psi. They are both awesome kits. The tC can handle this kit without any changes to the driveshaft/clutch, etc. If in the future your friend planned on upgrading the powertrain components, he could always get a larger turbo (say a t4) and up the boost to make more power. ZPI makes a supercharger for this engine, however alot of them i have seen (at the club meets and stuff) have had alot of problems. i would stay clear of this product atleast until they do some R%26amp;D on this and find out what is the problem. Small inline 4 cyl. engines handle turbos better than superchargers....thats why you see more turbos on the road that superchargers in this car category.





Bruce: You dont need to upgrade your exhaust and other compoents when you get a kit. the kit comes with the headers, new ECU and all necessary components. Down the line you can always upgrade your exhaust (which will cost you about $400). or just do it when you have the car in the shop for the turbo install. oh yeah, and remember, get a good dyno tune after its installed. that'll help you get every extra hp out of your kit. enjoy!
Reply:Go with a Turbo if you want top end power. Go with a supercharger if you want that instant bottom end power. If you dont really care go for the cheapest one. If you want a daily driving car id go with the supercharger.
Reply:its most deff. better than an aftermarket charger for one simple reason, whenever you add any aftermarket product to your vehicle, your warranty gets voided be any damage caused by the aftermarket product. If your friend is going to go with an aftermarket charger i would go with the super charger bigger is always better :) that's what i say. lol
Reply:Definitely turbo charge, its the lightest form of power you can get. Its also easier to install and produces more power. A Supercharger is using the engine to produce boost, meaning its also taking away some of the power the engine is producing. Where as a turbo charger runs off the exhaust meaning no power is being taken away from the engine while its still producing a lot of boost. I have a cousin doing a supercharger job to his corolla and there are its benifits, you will have power at what ever rpm your at whereas with a turbo you have to wait for it to spool and produce boost.





But over all, for the price, the power and the overall satisfaction of boost go TURBO!! :D
Reply:It really depends on what you want it for. If you are looking for instant power at take off then go with a belt driven supercharger, however if you want power while already in motion then a turbo charger is the better option. I say, if you have the money dual charge it(thats a turo and super) it is very expnsive and cramps up the engine compartment, but it IS worth it. Best of both worlds.
Reply:If you don't care about warranty get the turbo. Same price and more power. Even with Toyota's huge R%26amp;D budget the TRD S/C is total crap. Most of them fail within 20k miles. My 05 went about 10k miles before the brackets broke and I didnt even drive it hard. People that raced them broke them much faster. Good luck getting replacement parts for it. You can't buy them. They replace the entire S/C. It took 6 days to get mine back while I waited for parts.





Bruce - You still know nothing about a tC. Toyota doesnt sell a turbo its a supercharger. It makes around 200 hp and 185 ft-lb.





Tony - I thought ZPI had some problems (not with the turbo) and had shut down?
Reply:Simple: If maintaining the factory warranty is not an issue, tell your buddy to get the ZPI Stage 1 Turbo kit.





ZPI stage 1 eats TRD S/C and Greddy T/C alive!





Edit: Emiller..Yes ZPI as a company has had some drama, and has ceased orders, but the turbo kits themselves (when properly installed) are solid. Most aftermarket forced induction kits have the potential to be problematic -- especially when installed on an engine not meant for boost, and then driven hard. Hell, you and many others are a testament that even factory backed kits like the TRD S/C are problematic.
Reply:turbo charger cuz it has TURBO on it with NITRO SWEET i pimped out my scion TC even if i m 12 i dont drive it it has a turbo charger its just sweet
Reply:I recommend a MEGA charge.
Reply:Turbocharger: More torque and horsepower through all the RPM ranges, doesn't weigh down the engine, gives more of a power boost than super-chargers, has a nice pressure sound when you rev the throttle, and can always be adjustable to increase boost.
Reply:Yes unless you are planning on spending 7000.00 and all costs when engine components all have to be changed ie exhaust, air flow, timing, transmission and tires. Go with stock turbo which is 3500. and put new exhaust, which Toyota uses Borla and Scion's induction system and for 4000.00 you have a warrentied Scion that is almost 260 H.P. and 220 lbs of toque and it is reasonably priced considering after market thst gets 150-200-HP gain will cost about 10,000 total and cannot be financed or leased, needs premium gas, and for this price get a 30,000 corvette and your need for speed will fit your budget if you spend 10k.+20 for car
Reply:Go with the TRD unit. Toyota has a MASSIVE R%26amp;D program the aftermarket guys can't even aproach. The TRD unit will make the car much faster, yet maintain its reliability. The car will be SO much more fun to drive. Don't get sucked in by the hype about what makes the most power. Go for what will add a lot of fun AND be the most reliable. And don't use more than 7 lbs of boost on an otherwise stock engine/driveline. Otherwise you will have a broke down car very soon. And remember...99% of the guys out there are POSERS. If you have a supercharger or turbocharger, you have something real and substantial. That being said, the most important thing is knowing how to drive the car. I can not tell you how many times I have seen a guy in a faster car lose to a MUCH slower car because "speedy" was a clueless idiot when it came to driving. Don' be that guy. Enjoy the boost.
Reply:A supercharger works off the engine via a belt. It takes a little direct engine power to run it. It also has a consistant power curve, especially on launch.





A turbo uses the cars exhaust gasses, so less power from the engine. However, there will be a throttle lag. That's when you step on the gas, and have to wait a bit for the turbo to spool up and the power to kick in. That can be a problem if you're autocrossing. A turbo also creates more heat under the hood.





I've got a supercharged Mini Cooper JCW, and I kick ***.