Supercharge - Turbo Question

[OrangeSi2K]

I own a 00 Civic Si that was built for and had 2 different superchargers on it, both of them being fried due to the belt not lining up correctly. I don't exactly know what is all done to the car, but I do know it has lower compression and stuff like that to make the supercharger work properly. My question is, what would I have to change to switch from a supercharge set-up to a turbo set-up, and is it even worth doing? What are the benifits from a supercharged set-up or a turbo set-up.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks,
Jeremy

[Asc4130SD]

If you got low comp pistons and upgraded rods already then turbo charging is the way to go. The difference is it will cost a bit to get turboed, but the power will be worth it. The turbo powerband comes on alittle later then the supercharger but get alot stronger in the higher rpm range. The only thing that could be a problem is getting it tuned right. I was running a Turbo honda for over 11 years now and there has been big improvements throughtout. I used to run a Accel DFI 6.21 with 720cc injectors and a revhard turbo kit. Then went to a SDS ECU, not sure if it was an upgrade or downgrade, but anyways then finally went to a hondata a few years back, and wow what an improvement :). Stock idle and big mileage improvment, plus no more A/C issues and smoothed out all around driveability. But 367 whp and 239 Tq is not bad at all @ 16lbs of boost on a GSR. Hope this helps out in your choice of SC over TC.

[mild2wildintegra]

I have to say I agree with ASC on this. Superchargers are usually the cheaper way to go at the beginning, but after you run one for a while, the time you put into maintaining your ride, and the headaches you get from detonation, the cost is about the same. To me, my time is worth money, and when you are constantly tightening the belts on your supercharger and have to go through the headache (and labor) of trying to increase your boost, the money you put into a turbo is well worth it. If you tune them the right way, or have someone help you out, in my experience you wont have many problems with a turbo. Hope this helps...
~Chris

[Spunkster]

Sounds like installer errors. I've run JAckson Racing superchargers on both my ITRs without any problems. This is on stock compression (10.6:1) completely stock internals. One was run at 11PSI and daily driven without any problems. The other has the LHT intercooler and runs less boost with no cat, but makes the smae power as the old setup.

[Asc4130SD]

I have seen a few SC cars out there and its not a bad alturnitive to a TC car, especially if you live in California. Since it is a smog legal option. The only forseen problem is when you want more power. You can only overdrive the SC so far, before the heat generated from the SC and compression (boost) negates any if not all gains from SC. Where you can turn up the boost on a TC car till you run out of the turbo's efficency range and/or injector duty cycle (can just go with bigger injectors though). Majority of the turbos out there will support more then you can handle, but hay thats just what i think. If it is an daily driver and your only ride the SC would be great as there becomes a smaller chance of blowing up your motor. Because there are less adjustment you can do that can potentially blow up your motor. Like Electronic Boost Controllers, lol and turning up the boost with no disregard to what else is going on. Even built motors blow up when you push them hard enough :( and yeah there must be an install issue, or the SC was just way to small for that motor and it was way overdriven. Im not sure on imports, but on V8 with 8-71 on top of 454 the SC is spinning a little more then 1/2 the speed of the engine. So if the Engine RPM is 6000 then the SC might be spinning at 4500 RPM.
Well that just my 2 cents

[VC!]

I have a 2000 Honda Civic Si with the following items:

1 .6 Liter DOHC VTEC Motor
JRSC (M62 Blower)
MVM Stepper Pulley + 4" Blower Pulley (Approximately 12 PSI)
AEM Cold Air Intake
JG Engine Dynamics 64.5MM Throttle Body
GM 3Bar MAP Sensor
Hondata Intake Manifold Gasket
RC 440 cc Fuel Injectors
Integra GSR Intake Cam (model year 2000)
Integra GSR Exhaust Cam (model year 2000)
DC Sports Stainless Steel 4-2-1 Exhaust Manifold
Random Technology Metallic High Flow Catalytic Converter
DC Sports Stainless Steel Exhaust System
Hondata S300

As a daily driver it is extremely reliable. I havent had to do anything other than regular maintenance to keep it in good shape. The main thing is going to be what you want from / do with your vehicle. Even a turbo kit that is poorly installed or maintained will be a massive headache.

I suggest supercharger for a daily driver with the ability to put an end to most other people's stoplight to stoplight challenges, and I suggest turbo if you want to stomp on everyone with no regard to what they might have under the hood.

Just realize that with a supercharger or turbo, there is still going to be a fool out there with deep pockets who is going to build, or pay someone else to build, a car that is faster than mine or yours. Many buy all types of performance products and dont have a clue on how to take are of them.

Also, if heat is a major concern on the JRSC at higher boost levels like it was for my car, look into the Snow Performance Boost Cooler kit. I gained 36 WHP and lowered my intake air temperature by 60 degrees during dyno tuning.

Hope these suggestions help!