Electric Superchargers... worthless or worth a try?

6

66WarPony

Well-known member
Check this out guys: I've been looking around for some bolt on performance mods for my wife's 08 Yaris and stumbled upon a (few) electric superchargers. Hmmm... they claim 2-3 lbs boost at the flip of a switch, run off the battery at 3 amps (I think) and mount right after the remote air filter. Are these things just junk, or would it be worth a try? The are relatively inexpensive ($100 and down) and I thought it would be cool to do a relatively small, cheap mod with my Weber. All thoughts and opinions are welcome and appreciated...
 
I've never tried it myself, but I've seen cars with them, and the general consensus I got was they were a joke. Most of em' are plastic hair dryer-like things that are just jury rigged together. I'd stay away.
 
Real electric superchargers exist, but they certainly don't draw 3a - more like 300a! Check out CPT's VTES or the Thomas Knight electric supercharger. Those things might actually produce a result. But 3a? Notsomuch.
 
they are bs, i looked into it, they restrict airflow and make vac not boost, the 300a might make a small amount of boost but where would you get that kinda power without making weight
 
Look at it this way, if any good, if for real, why have no auto makers came out with? If real it would be a dream installation, no belts, no pulleys, no belt tensioners - just bolt on and plug in.

The ones I've seen are nothing but bilge exhaust fan for cabin cruisers. Check e-bay - look first at "electric supercharger" then in boat parts look at "bilge exhaust fan" -- compare.
 
Well, if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is... I read that article on Ebay, not long after starting this thread. Apparently the do have some equipment out there that works, but not at 3 (more like 300, like you said) amps. I am going to look into those mentioned above and see if they're worth their salt, it would be cool to find something that actually does work and post the results, even if it is just a temporary upgrade. Thanks for the input guys, add more if you hear anything.
 
The problem with electric powered things is when you have to convert from one form of energy to another. An electric motor has a potential to be very efficient, upwards of 90% in some cases, but when you have to convert mechanical energy to AC current, then convert that to DC current, then convert that back into a mechanical energy form, you have losses that make the electric motor inefficient. It's not that the motor itself is inefficient, but after all is said and done and you need 300 amps of current to achieve your goal, it ultimately takes a toll on the mechanical power supply fueled by gasoline. Kinda like the question "If the alternator supplies enough power to power the vehicle, why does the engine still need a battery to run?"
 
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