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We ship world wide.
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History of Turbocharging and Supercharging
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Turbo History
The idea of turbocharging an internal combustion engine is almost as old as that of the internal
combustion engine itself. The first efforts were in 1885 and 1896, when Gottlieb Daimler and Rudolf
Diesel tested the effectiveness of increasing the power output and reducing the fuel consumption of
their engines using pre-compressed combustion air. (Sounds like these guys also laid the
groundwork for nitrous oxide as well.) It wasn’t until about 1912 that Dr. Alfred J. Büchi of
Switzerland developed the first exhaust-driven supercharger. Dr. Büchi, Chief Engineer of Sulzer
Brothers Research Department, proposed the first prototype of a turbocharged diesel engine for
commercial development in 1915, but his ideas gained little or no acceptance at that time. But by
1925, Büchi demonstrated the advantages of exhaust gas turbocharging by achieving a power
increase of more than 40 percent. This was the beginning of the gradual introduction of
turbocharging into the automotive industry.
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Here’s what the ill-fated Oldsmobile
turbo unit looked like. The unit is
primitive and inefficient by today’s
standards, especially on the
compressor side.
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The first turbocharger applications were limited to very large engines, e.g., marine engines, during
this time. However, General Electric, with an eye on the emerging aviation industry, began
developing this technology as well. Dr. Sanford A. Moss of General Electric proposed a
turbocharged engine concept in the late 1910s, and in 1920 took a LePere bi-plane that was
equipped with a Liberty engine, fit a hand-built General Electric turbocharger to it, and set a new
altitude record of 33,113 feet (10,092 m).
Turbocharging automotive engines started with truck engines in 1938, when the first turbocharged
truck engine was built by the Swiss Machine Works Saurer. The beginning of World War II and the
need for industrial and transportation power accelerated the development of turbocharger
technology.
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Perhaps the most glamorous turbo application was to warplanes – notably the high-altitude
airplanes, B-17 Flying Fortresses, the B-24 Liberator, the P-38, and the P-47. It was out of this
area that the first company dedicated to turbo technology was born. The Garrett Corporation was
formed in 1936 by J. C. “Cliff” Garrett in Los Angeles, California. His company supplied the charge
air cooler (soon to be called the intercooler) for the B-17, located between the General Electric
turbocharger and the Pratt & Whitney engine.
The efficiency and power advantage of turbos was also applied extensively on the less glamorous
but equally important production chain. During the war years, turbos began to be used extensively
on large marine, industrial, and locomotive diesel engines. But it wasn’t until the early 1950s that
the current turbocharger industry landscape was set in full relief.
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In the early 1950s, Caterpillar Tractor Co. (CAT) began experimenting with turbochargers as a way
to get a competitive advantage in developing future heavy-duty earthmoving equipment. CAT
designed and built a turbo, then sent it for testing to Garrett. The first unit failed miserably during
testing. At that point, CAT decided to let a specialist develop and produce turbos for them. They
needed a firm with experience in turbocharged engines as well as with metallurgy, seal, and bearing
technology. CAT struck a deal with Garrett, who put a team together to developing a turbo for CAT’
s equipment. Bob Keller, President of Turbonetics, Inc., says that one of the members of that
original team was Hugh McGinnis, who basically told us all how turbochargers work.
During this time, McGinnis and Garrett were refining the design of gas turbine engines and further
developed their understanding of the metallurgy of the housings, high-speed seals, radial inflow
turbines, and centrifugal compressors. With the CAT contract and a world in full recovery after the
war, Cliff Garrett made the decision to separate the turbocharger group from the gas turbine
department due to commercial diesel turbocharger opportunities. The new AiResearch Industrial
Division for turbocharger design and manufacturing was established September 27, 1954.
AiResearch Industrial Division would later be named Garrett Automotive, which is now a subsidiary
of Honeywell.
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In hindsight, Cliff Garrett’s 1954 decision to start a company dedicated to turbocharging was in part
a response to the success of a prototype turbo built in 1953, designated the T02. Just to be clear,
this is not directly related to current Garrett Automotive T2 series. The T02 prototype performed
above expectations for over 1,800 hours without hinting of a failure. From this prototype came the
T15. It was less complex yet equally durable, and CAT ordered 5,000 units as a power adder for
the CAT D9 tractor.
Garrett wasn’t the only company developing turbochargers in the early 1950s. Cummins Engine
was using turbos made by Elliot and Schwitzer for its diesel truck engines and even dabbled in
producing its own units for a time.
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Even with all this corporate effort, in took until the 1960s for turbos to become reliable and essential
components of diesel engine design with full acceptance of the trucking industry. By the end of the
decade, AiResearch established itself as the leader in turbocharger technology with a broad range
of products covering the full spectrum of commercial applications. The firm retains its top position in
the industrial market still today, with minor competition from Borg Warner, Schwitzer, Holset, KKK,
and several European knock-offs.
The Chevrolet Corvair Monza and the Oldsmobile Jetfire were the first turbo-powered passenger
cars, and made their debut on the US market in 1962-63. Despite maximum technical outlay,
however, their poor reliability caused them to disappear quickly from the market.
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The 1962 Oldsmobile Jetfire, a 215-ci aluminum V-8 with a Garret+AiResearch T5 turbo using what
Bob Keller of Turbonetics called “the most complicated application one could imagine,” is an
example of how clueless even factory engineers were about turbocharging. Mistake number one
was that the engine had a 10.25:1 compression ratio. Mistake number two: it was under-carbureted,
using only a single-throat side-draft carburetor. Mistake number three was that it employed a
complex water-injection system utilizing what the marketing types branded “Rocket Fluid.” This was
a basic 50/50 mix of water and alcohol that was used to prevent detonation and supply a little more
fuel in an attempt to make more power. This system was so unwieldy and complicated that
Oldsmobile actually offered to remove the system and replace it with a conventional carburetor for
a fee of $50. Obviously, high-tech engineering in the formative years of the musclecar craze had a
few teething problems.
Chevrolet, on the other hand, did it much better with the introduction of the turbocharged Corvair. It
took a far more elegant approach, using a turbo system designed and built by TRW with input from
McGinnis. For the record, it wasn’t the turbo system that doomed the Corvair. It had more to do with
a certain Mr. Nader’s jihad against what he saw as a murderous machine, detailed in his book
Unsafe at Any Speed. Still, the turbocharged Corvair proved that turbocharging a mass-produced
engine could be done successfully and potentially profitably.
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The 1960s was an, how to put it …, an entrepreneurial decade. Horsepower was hot, the baby
boomers were in full musclecar mode, and several individuals began to try to master the art of
turbocharging. Several tried to ride the wave to a successful aftermarket business along with Vic
Edelbrock, Isky, and other businessman/racers, but most failed. But that research and development
that these individuals and firms performed are the bedrock that the current OE and aftermarket
turbocharger businesses are built on. Turbos reappeared on Indy cars in 1966 and have
dominated ever since.
The 1960s ended with Texas-based Rajay Industries purchasing the TRW product line, as well as
hiring Mr. McGinnis as chief engineer. Rajay established a Long Beach, California, facility and
developed the turbocharger market for general aviation, specialty industrial, and automotive
performance applications. According to Turbonetics’ Bob Keller, probably one of the most
significant contributions to the development of a turbocharger aftermarket sector was that Rajay
made its products widely available. This, continues Keller, allowed many would-be turbo Einsteins to
get their feet wet. Because Rajay sold product to the public, companies such as M&W Gear,
Spearco, and Daytona Marine appeared on the scene. Still, Rajay’s largest business, by far, was to
compete directly with Garrett-AiResearch in the agricultural/industrial diesel market.
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After the first oil crisis in 1973, turbocharging became more acceptable in commercial diesel
applications. Until then, the high investment costs of turbocharging were offset only by fuel cost
savings, which were minimal. Increasingly stringent emission regulations in the late 1980s resulted
in an increase in the number of turbocharged truck engines, so that today, virtually every truck
engine is turbocharged.
In spite of the competition from Rajay and others, AiResearch was still the leading innovator in
turbo technology worldwide. However, the technology still wasn’t making its way into the hands of
automotive performance enthusiasts until the early 1970s.
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In the early 1970s, in part as a response to the oil crisis and stricter environmental standards, the
most significant attempt to get turbocharging into the hands of the enthusiast was made by the
creation of the TurboSonic product line of retrofit hardware produced by ACCEL, the performance
marketing arm of Echlin Corporation. (Bob Keller created TurboSonic product line after Echlin
bought out his turbo interests in the original Turbonetics in 1973.) ACCEL had been enjoying a
very lucrative business in the performance aftermarket and, through a very ambitious campaign of
advertising, feature articles, and nationwide product promotion, it was able move thousands of
turbochargers into the hands of energetic consumers who knew nothing at all about what turbos
were, how they worked, or how to install them.
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In the 1960s and 1970s, American hot rodders
(the forefathers to the tuner crowd) were
experimenting with all sorts of wild
combinations. This is an Ak Miller
turbocharged application to a Ford six-cylinder
using propane as fuel. Miller was noted for
making power with his ingenious combinations,
and this was surely one of them. On occasion,
racers still use propane-fueled turbo engines
to run Pikes Peak.
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Here’s another early 1970s
turbocharged combo from Ak
Miller on a small-block Chevy.
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Previous
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This has been a sample page from
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Sport Compact Turbos & Blowers
by Joe Pettitt
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Lightweight and high-revving, sport compacts are today’s most
popular cars. They have developed a cult following among today’s
youth and are fueling a multi-million dollar industry in modification
parts and equipment.
While most owners of sport compacts can afford the simple bolt-
ons available, some owners want to take their modifications a step
further. There is intense competition to be the fastest, and quite
often the only way to win is to go to the next level – by installing a
supercharger/blower or turbocharger on your engine.
This book is an enthusiast’s guide to understanding and using
turbochargers and superchargers on sport compact cars. It
covers the basics of each system and compares their pros and
cons. Building and tuning small-displacement 4- and 6-cylinder
engines to maximize performance and reliability with forced
induction is also covered.
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Click below to view sample
pages from each chapter!
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Chap. 1 - Exotic or Practical
Chap. 2 - Supercharging
Chap. 3 - Roots Blowers
Chap. 4 - Centrifugal Blowers
Chap. 5 - Turbocharging
Chap. 6 - Turbos & Compacts
Chap. 7 - Tuning for Boost
Chap. 8 - Building Engines
Chap. 9 - History
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Softbound
8-1/2 x 11
128 pages
300 black & white photos
Item: SA89
Price: $18.95
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Click here to buy now!
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Other items you might be interested in
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Turbochargers
How to select and install the correct turbo for big or small
horsepower gains. Discusses turbocharger design, sizing,
matching, controls, carburetion, exhaust, ignition,
intercooling, marine and high altitude applications. The most
comprehensive book available. Turbo suppliers and kit
maker addresses are included. “Everything you could possibly
need to know about turbochargers for automotive applications
is in this book.
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Price:
$18.95
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Engine Management: Advanced Tuning
Engine Management: Advanced Tuning explains how the EFI system
determines engine operation and how to change the controlling
parameters to optimize actual engine performance. This book takes
engine-tuning techniques to the next level. It is a must-have for tuners
and a valuable resource for anyone who wants to make horsepower
with a fuel-injected, electronically controlled engine.
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Price:
$22.95
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MRE
PO Box 47
Grinnell, IA 50112
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