What is better a Vortech Centrifical Supercharger, a Greddy Turbo, or a Stillen Roots-Type Supercharger?

Answer 1

Okay, I’m going to go out on a hunch and figure that you are looking into a force induction options for you 350z.

I have a 350z and I looked into all of those options. I came to a conclusion that the Vortech was the best choice for me. Since I live in California the smog laws are very heavy. Vortech and Stillen were the only two options that had a legal system, which I could pass smog. So basically they were the only two kits that were legal for street use. The plus side of the supercharger systems were that nothing else was needed to function onto the vehicle. They basically were 100% complete. However the Stillen supercharger required an aftermarket hood, since it will not fit under the stock hood. So that was one down side of the Stillen Supercharger. On top of that the Vortech kit yield more power than the Stillen one. Yes, Stillen has three different stages and it would take getting a stage 3 kit in order to have more HP than the Vortech. However if you custom tune the Vortech and get a smaller pulley you will actually see more HP with the Vortech. So basically the potential to get more HP was easier with the Vortech kit than with the Stillen. I also felt that the Vortech was an extremely reliable supercharger. Another factor that made me go with the Vortech was that the power band builds up with the RPM speed. So basically you start seeing boost around the mid RPM band and you will see higher boost levels than the Stillen at Redline. Since Stillen uses a Roots type supercharger the power band comes on pretty much instantly, however it stays flat throughout the RPM band. Since the 350z is already has a very good amount to torque in the RPM band you will be spinning your tires like crazy with the Stillen. Even the test results when the two superchargers went heads up the Stillen was very hard to control and the Vortech out performed it.

Now the Greddy is an alright kit however there seem to be more popular kits out there like the APS, Turbonetics and so on. The good thing is that Greddy actually has a twin turbo setup for the 350z, which people are seeing the highest HP out of it. However when you find out the total end cost it is not even worth it. The potential HP that a turbo kit can offer seems to be greater however it seems like you have to purchase a lot of upgrades in order to make it safe. Since the Greddy kit is really only a turbo, you basically need to get the intercooler, turbo timer, boost controller, and a good wastegate and a good tune in order for it to be safe. The Supercharger systems overall seem to be the safest out of the box, where you do not need all those extra stuff. So in the long run the supercharger system was actually more cost efficient and the safest way to go.

Now please do not believe all of the mumbo jumbo about how a turbo does not rob power. Since the turbo actually uses the exhaust fumes to turn the turbine, there is a higher heat factor involved. This heat will cause you to have to run lower timing to help control this heat. Lower timing equals to HP loss. On top of that the turbo is built into the headers, which also causes a restriction in the exhaust system, making it inefficient, which also robs HP. There is no way a Supercharger system will produce more heat than a Turbo system. Exhaust fumes are VERY HOT and can reach tempartures in the 1000C degrees. This is excess heat that is being trasfered into your engine. A Supercharger runs off of the belts so you do not have to worry about this extra heat that is being dumped into your engine. It is compressed air, which does get hot, however you do not have the extra 1000C degrees of heat being transferred. That is why it is very important to run an intercooler and even get a turbo timer so you can control this excess heat.

On top of all this do not let him mislead you in thinking that a supercharger is going to make your fuel economy suffer. Superchargers run off of the belts so basically the supercharger will always be blowing air into your engine. This makes your engine not work so hard to produce HP, which will result in a fuel economy increase, depending on how you drive. There is a reason why Ford, Mercedes, Jaguar, Buick, Toyota, and others all use supercharger on stock cars. It’s because you get maximum HP gains, with reliability and it helps on the fuel economy. Just to give you a heads up. From LA to Las Vegas I use to get 24 miles per gallon on my stock setup. After the Vortech was installed I got 32 miles per gallon to my way to Vegas. As you can see it really did help out on my fuel economy. I know from experience.

On top of all this a supercharger usually comes with a bypass valve. This valve is vacuum operated which lets the excess air out similar to a blow off valve on a turbo. The thing about this valve is that when you are driving around town normally your car is going to feel stock. The minute you give the gas pedal more pressure it will close the valve causing you to feel the boost a lot sooner than a turbo, since it does not have to spool up. But what it all comes down to is that even though it takes a small amount of power to run the supercharger the excess air that it is constantly running into your engine more than makes up for the amount of power lost. Since there is constantly more air getting rammed into the engine because the supercharger is belt driven your engine does not have to work as hard, which will make the overall efficiency of your engine better. There is no way it will bog your engine down…that is a total joke. It sounds like he has never driven in a supercharged vehicle in his life.

The bottom line is that there are several pros and cons to each system, you just got to find one that will fit your needs and budget and that will fit your driving style and use. Hopefully this helps you out. I only can talk out of my experience in which I have ran into.

Answer 2

It's all up to you on what you want. I personally think that you get more bang for your buck with a turbo and here's why,.. with a supercharger, centrifugal or roots, you're losing HP by powering the supercharger itself because it's belt driven. Basically, you're losing power to make power. You could lose around 50hp just by cranking that damn thing, which isn't something that you'll be able to count into your RWHP when all is said and done. For example, you'll have to upgrade your fuel delivery system along with everything else as though you were running 600hp when in fact you are only putting out 550hp or less at the rear tires. There are a lot of parts that will need to begin changing out once your engine starts pushing anything more than 350-400hp. In stock form it's not designed for that,.. anyhow, back to the question.
With a turbo, you're not robbing your engine of power. The hot exhaust gas is what gets the turbo spooled up which is nice in more ways than just the power robbing aspect. The turbo really isn't being used during your normal driving. You'll have to be running at about half-throttle, revving the engine, or running a higher RPM for the turbo to be spooled up and working which means better gas mileage for you when you're not racing around. When you run a supercharger, it's always "on" and it's always bogging down your engine which increases your fuel consumption.
Some people will say that you're forcing hotter air with a turbo than a supercharger, and that's false. Any time you compress ANYTING you create a molecular change that creates heat. So either method of forced induction is going to bring a higher temp of air. This is why you run an aftercooler set-up. Normally, a turbo kit will include this item and a supercharger kit will keep it as an option.
You'll spend about the same, maybe even less, on a turbo kit that will put you ahead of the supercharged pack with better reliability and gas mileage. Do some research on which is the best set-up for your specific car and find a reasonably priced kit. If you're even a little handy, you can figure out the installation, but if you've never been under the hood before leave it to a pro.

Answer 3

A turbocharger is more efficient for the automobile, it actually helps the engine alot more then people think, however the supercharger can keep offering more and more power even more then your engine could handle, so if you decide to get the supercharger you might have to do some inner engine modifications as well, and the turbo you will want to get a pressure test done to the engine, but all around the turbos are alot cheaper and produce a heavy kick in the a$$....

Answer 4

Better for what?

Each one have its advantages.

A turbo will be the most efficient and less expensive way to increase the power, although have its trade-offs., like turbo lag.

A supercharger will give you immediate maximum power, to a higher price and higher weight.

Roots-type is the most brute way to increment the power, and out of the superchargers, the centrifugal super will be the less expensive and easier to install.

If you are into Drag racing, go Roots.

Answer 5

350z Stillen Supercharger

Answer 6

go with the supercharger theres power thru the revs a turbo takes time to spool up as frar as the two they are probably just personal preference

Answer 7

first off, the brand has nothing to do with it.

turbochargers are the most efficient method of power adding, because instead of using power from the crankshaft, they use the power from the exhaust gasses.

it also matters what kind of inlet temps, RPMs, mass flows, etc etc were talking about, because each has its optimum operating range.

and the most efficient are the variable vane turbos made for porsche, but thats a whole nother story.

Answer 8

they are all ok