why are turbos and superchargers SO expensive?!

really... i can buy my entire d16y7 engine on ebay used for $500. superchargers are quite simple devices right? just a new intake manifold with a compressor spun by a pulley.... i can understand that turbos could be a little more due the need to replace the exhaust manifold and the high exhaust temperatures involved near hte compressor, etc, but still it doesnt seem like this stuff should really cost three grand, especially for small engines.

what am i missing?

one reason i think... how many people do you know have a supercharger on a honda? not many? and if you do know one, its f n cool isnt it? well he had to pay out the ass to be the only dude in town with one! the way im goin is a supercharger AND turbo!!! hehe... but the turbos come with ALOT of stuff if you get a kit.

Forced induction devices may seem simple, but it's a LOT more complex than spinning rotors. It takes many hours to design and manufacture. It has to be precisely tuned for your application(Horsepower/torque curves, etc) plus all internals must be machined to tight tolerances. The cost is usually based on how difficult it was to make, but more important is QUALITY! You pay for what you get.....

The kits that come ready-made for your application will run you about $3000, piecing one together yourself can be done for less... about 2000 probably less than that. Of course this requires that you know what you're lookin for and what type of components will work best for you. Call it a convenience fee.

Then you factor in installation. If you're doin it yourself it only costs you about 10 hours of your time (estimating, Ive never installed a turbo myself). But anybody who knows enough to install their own turbo or sc probably aint orderin it premade. If you're takin it to a shop, youre payin about 80 an hour in labor... another $700 - 1100.

And really if you think about it, a lot of people pay about 100 for an intake, 300 for a header, and 200 for exhaust. Thats 600 bucks for like 30hp if you're lucky...really lucky. Thats for the easiest and cheapest horsepower you're gonna get. Except nitrous i guess.

Research and development is not free.

Research and development is not free.

that's why they're expensive.....

but turbo Hondas are fun...i can vouch for that one!!!

really... i can buy my entire d16y7 engine on ebay used for $500. superchargers are quite simple devices right? just a new intake manifold with a compressor spun by a pulley.... i can understand that turbos could be a little more due the need to replace the exhaust manifold and the high exhaust temperatures involved near hte compressor, etc, but still it doesnt seem like this stuff should really cost three grand, especially for small engines.

what am i missing?

why superchargers are so expensive i do not know. why turbochargers are so expensive is beacause they are one of the most beatuiful parts that has ever been made by mankind on a car. who else has thought of something better to give us 75-500 Horsepower using nothing less than 1/3 of the energy wasted by the motor. thats why they are so expensive. and i think the price for a turbocharger is pretty good u get a nice bang for the buck. superchargers are a waste of time and they do not give you half the power a turbo will. some cars it actually will but on most it has been tested that it dosent.

I don't think its fair to say blowers are a COMPLETE waste of time. They're just impractical for most applications that anyone in this section of AF would have. Since they "rob" your engine of power from the crank to produce pressure, you need a substantial amount of engine to offset that effect. And since most of us here don't run anything much bigger than a 3liter at most it doesn't make much sense. But since super chargers don't rely on exhaust gasses to build pressure, the response is much quicker... ask anybody about trying to eliminate their turbo lag and i guarantee they'll talk for hours.

All of that to say, superchargers have their benefits, they're just harder to see on small engines:2cents:

superchargers are quite simple devices right? just a new intake manifold with a compressor spun by a pulley.

There are also centrifugal type superchargers.

why superchargers are so expensive i do not know. why turbochargers are so expensive is beacause they are one of the most beatuiful parts that has ever been made by mankind on a car. who else has thought of something better to give us 75-500 Horsepower using nothing less than 1/3 of the energy wasted by the motor. thats why they are so expensive. and i think the price for a turbocharger is pretty good u get a nice bang for the buck. superchargers are a waste of time and they do not give you half the power a turbo will. some cars it actually will but on most it has been tested that it dosent.

You never replied to my post in the other thread, so i'm gonna ask you again. What are you basing your opinion on? I will agree that a turbocharged car has far more potential than a supercharged car. But you don't know anything about the original poster's plans for his car. What if he lives in a state with stringent smog laws and there are no legal turbo kits for his car, but there are legal superchargers? What if he SCCA/NASA/IHRA etc.. races in a class where turbocharging is not allowed as a means of forced induction? What if he already spent money on an i/h/e setup and doesn't want all that money he spent to go down the drain by having to replace them with parts required for a turbo? You have to look at the bigger picture here.

Well they dont need to be that expensive. It all depends where you are buying from, although i have to say that a few years ago everything was much more expensive. When did you buy?

The car needs to be totally modified and retooled