Your car or truck doesn’t produce as much power as you’d like, so you’ve decided to turn to superchargers for forced induction. Superchargers improve your vehicle’s performance by using power from your engine’s crankshaft or a motor to draw in air. It then compresses the air and pushes it into your engine to burn more fuel and produce more power.
This raises the question of the best car and truck supercharger to buy. Getting the right supercharger for your car or truck involves more than just horsepower. You need to consider several other factors.
The Best Supercharger for Your Car or Truck
Here are a few things to keep in mind when looking for the car and truck supercharger to buy and install.
- Car/Truck Specifications. Consider your car’s or truck’s make, model, size, year and engine type when looking for superchargers to find one that fits your vehicle’s specifications.
- Supercharger Types. Different types of superchargers use different types of mechanisms to improve the performance of your car or truck, so you need to pick the type that suits your needs.
- Installation Options. Different superchargers have varying installation processes and requirements, which may cost you more because you’ll need to hire professionals to do the job.
- Legal Requirements. The legal requirements for performance on the track and regular traffic are different, so consider how you plan to use your car or truck when looking for a supercharger.
- Cost of Superchargers. You want to get the best car or truck supercharger that your budget allows.
- The value that an extended warranty provides may offset the higher cost of superchargers from reputable, established manufacturers.
The Three Types of Superchargers
Superchargers fall under three main categories: roots-type, twin-screw and centrifugal superchargers. The oldest type, roots-type superchargers, works with a large volume of air to provide a quick performance boost. While they’re the largest type of supercharger among the three, they cost the least and are the easiest to install.
Also known as blower kits, roots-type superchargers are popular because they’re street legal. Twin-screw superchargers use lobes to pull in air and trap it in the rotor housing. They then use a cone-shaped taper to compress the air. These superchargers are not street legal in some states due to the level of performance enhancement they provide.
Compared to roots-type superchargers, twin-screw superchargers produce more power, which is spread across the entire RPM range. They’re typically the most costly type and also produce the most sound.
Centrifugal superchargers rely on a powered impeller to draw in air at high speeds into a compressor. The speeds of the impeller can reach up to 60,000 RPM. As these superchargers draw in air, they increase its pressure before pushing it into the engine.
As a result, these superchargers provide the most efficient performance boost for your car and truck. They’re more popular among racing cars than road cars because they’re expensive and require professionals to install.
Top-tier Superchargers for Cars and Trucks
Besides the performance boost a supercharger provides for your car or truck, several other factors should inform your choice when looking for the best car and truck supercharger. Lethal Performance offers top-selling and high-performing car and truck superchargers, among them Whipple Superchargers.
