12volt turbo??? Techy Question

[mpau009]

Iv just been to the big boys toys expo in Auckland, and i came across an interesting system, id be keen to know what you think about it.

The thing is an adaptor that fits onto the Airflow sensor, and sits inside your pod. It has a really powerful 12volt fan thing inside it which you connect to the throttle so it kicks in like a turbo. The guy reckons its good for around 1 - 1.5 bar of pressure . He turned it on and the pod can hover by itself if you steady it, so i kinda believed him.

The question i have, is, basically is it a load of crap??? i asked him if it would destroy my engine, cause i assumed it would lean out the mixture and stuff it all. But the salesman said that because it fits infront of the Air Flow sensor, the computer just adjusts to dump in more petrol (would an STR computer do this like a VR4?).

Iv got an STR at the moment, so i don't know too much about forcing air into the 6a13, but its the same motor as far as i can see. It even has plugs where the turbos connect on the VR4, so if you are all running similar boost would the engine take it?

Am i missing anything? it seemed like a decent enough idea, but would the engine hold up? is it any different from increasing airflow though other means (big exhaust etc)?

Any help or advice would be much appreciated, cause it seems like it might be a good application for an STR, and it doesn't take up any extra engine bay room.

Cheers.

[vampirej]

I'm sure I have seen this for sale on ebay before... but wouldn't trust it IMHO. Even for someone who wishes to uprate their turbos would need to think about their internals, let alone the fact that he said the airflow sensor would detect the higher airflow and dump more fuel into the engine?? If that's the case, why would a NA car runs lean when fitted with an aftermarket mushroom type air filter?
That's my 2p worth, I'm sure someone would correct me if I'm wrong. (Like they said, I'll get my coat) ;p

[enigma]

Its been said before - if it worked, all cars would have them!

Calculate how much air your engine inhales, then calculate how much air a small pc fan can move.

[I-S]

The fans in these things are quite powerful. That power has to come from somewhere... In other words, any benefit they might possibly give you from intake pressure will be negated by increased alternator loading and higher intake temperatures.

[Wodjno]

It probably can create pressures of 1.5 to 2.0 bar, but in a sealed unit. Your intake manifold is pressurised at say 1 bar with a turbocharged car and that is with yhe cylinders sucking air out at upto 7000 rpm.. It would probably suk the fan in

[AllBeItMine]

2bar is 25psi - you would need a turbo the size of BDA's head to generate that much boost on our engines....

as said before - there is pressure then there is flow. that is why stuff is measured in CFM... as an example, an electric tyre pump that you plug into your cigarette lighter can generate 50psi to inflate a flat tyre... but it needs 20mins to do it...

[mpau009]

Its been said before - if it worked, all cars would have them!

Cheers for all the feedback, i guess this one shows why i was the most skeptical. But i guess you could apply that twenty years ago to most inventions that are standard these days.
And its not a dinky little unit, the fan can suck enough air through the pod to make it hover around at chest height with a little guidance. Does the engine really draw that much air???

The other thing was, if the fan in the unit has air being sucked past it anyway, wouldn't it just be able to rev even higher when the current is on??

I asked about the extra draw, and they said it wasn't a problem, because it only functions above certain revs, and the alternator should cope if you drive it around town and so on.

Anyway, assuming it is capable of providing some extra air pressure, even if its only a few psi, , and won't flatten the battery every 10minutes, would this be a problem for the NA V6 engine? i couldn't really see why not, but i'm no mechanic, and don't really understand what changes take place inside the engine. Would my stock fuel system be up to any increase? i assumed they are the same.

Does anyone know anyone whos tried it?

[mpau009]

Ah ha, iv got it sussed now, iv done a bit of looking around, and i know why they aren't the miracle solution.

1) the ones that are cheap enough to be worth buying don't work, a la eBay style boat fans...

2) the ones that do work (like the one i saw) such as e-ram etc are too expensive, and don't work nearly as well as the guy at the show claimed, though e-ram guarantee a 4% minimum HP gain, but its easier to spend your money elsewhere, like an exhaust etc, that offer the same gains with less risk.

So there you have it. Lucky i controlled those impulse buying tendancies

[valmes]

sell your engine... get yourself a 6a13TT... here you go.

[bradc]

I agree with Valmes