Supercharger takes 100+ HP to spin?
 

My tuner told me today that my car would be generating 800+ rwhp (it pulled 710) if it was a turbo. He said a supercharger takes 100+ horsepower to spin. Is that true? That's a huge amount of power.

And you still let him tune your car?

That number seems exaggerated, you can consult with your supercharger manufacturer, give them your pulley sizes and engine rpm and they should be able to tell you how much power it takes to turn the blower that RPM.

Thanks Ted, it's a Whipple 2.9 with a 3.25" pulley on it. BTW, if you're able to deal on a 10-rib kit please let me know what you can do for me.

Working on it this morning.

Yes a super charger eats power to make it work. Its direct loss on the crank. Some eat more than others. I've heard some guys estimate it at 140 hp ( that are making big power)

My knowledge on the roots/twin screw is a bit limited with high HP applications to be honest. But anything that works off of the drive belt will take HP to drive. Whether or not it is power steering pump, alternator, supercharger, etc.

However, most of the race centri-blowers might take up to 15-20% to drive . In other words, a F1A for instance on a 1200HP motor may take 150-200HP to drive at max RPM & max boost... The "smaller" the head unit, the lower the boost/lower the RPM the lower the HP to drive.

For most of our applications in the Gen V market, (700-800BHP) with ~10psi I would say 50ish-90ish HP maybe... It's all relative, and once again this is for a centri-driven application.

It takes some decent hp to drive a supercharger belt depending on the setup/boost level ect.

This is an often overlooked subject too. Say if the car makes 600rwhp with a blower.The crank itself could be putting out 650-700hp with 50-80hp drawn from the belt. This is often why you see turbo cars make more power/last longer from the less hp they take to make the hp.

Exactly! Turbo Rocks! :thumbsup:

+1

+2:drinking:

Granatelli ??? He had some very interesting comments on this topic from an event that took place where a belt came of a blower during a dyno run. The power level flashed up about 150 hp or so before droping. Suggesting that the blower was requiring about 100 hp or more to turn. Hopefully he will chime in. Turbos are efficient for sure. I like the instant torque of the maggie for my driving style on the street.

Whipple told me yesterday that their 2.9L Super Charger takes 35HP to spin at peak boost.

Based on the exhaust back pressure created by Turbo's I'd imagine they consume 25-35HP as well. I know adding LT headers, hi-flow catalytic converters and a 3" exhaust increased my peak HP by 27.

I have to toss the BS flag on this story, particularly considering its from a dude that makes a Camaro turbo system. Surely super chargers consume HP, as does a turbo via increased back pressure. This is why I think LT's, HF cats and 3" exhaust are critical for supercharged cars.