Hey

Just a quick question to you fine sedan owners that have superchargers and turbos.

Do any of you live and drive in cold climates? As in -25 to -35 degree Celsius winters (-13 to -31 Fahrenheit).

If you do, are there any issues with your FI setups and what steps do you use to maintain the longevity of the engine? i.e. Warmup, cool down, parking outside vs. parking indoors, etc.

And does your engine tuning get affected by large fluctuations in temperature throughout the year? I live in Calgary, Alberta and the temperature here goes from +35 c to - 35 c (95F to -31F) over the course of a few months and don't even get me started with Chinooks.

I guess more specifically to the owners of the Vortech Superchargers because that is what I'm planning on getting installed in the spring.

I've tried searching but can't seem to find anything. If anyone can direct me to a thread, I'd be happy to continue my research there also.

Cheers!

 

I would make a call to Vortech and ask . Your temps in Canada may be too cold in the winter .

 

I don't live in the extremes you do (Victoria, BC), but... I would think a turbo setup would be more acceptable in that type of environment. With the right weight of oil and a few minutes warm-up even in the coldest weather, the turbo would be closest to stock when not boosting. You would not be boosting in the winter anyway because, if you did, it would be hard to keep going in a straight line. The turbos warm up very quickly because of their location and the rest of the (turbo) system has no extra moving parts. Your BOV could freeze but, again, you wouldn't be using it anyway. Also, turbos cause a lot of heat in the engine bay, not really a problem when it's -35 outside. Just my two cents worth.

 

yeah i would go the turbo route just because I know those big rigs that go up to alaska and crap have huge turbos on them. Although they are different because they hook up to a deisel, it's the same principle. I just wouldn't gun the car when it was cold and let it warm up for the right amount of time. But trust me up there with a turbo you are going to slam that thing into a tree with the amount of torque you get and the black ice everywhere. Be careful

 

I have traction issues in the Summer on dry pavement, I can't picture myself trying to get any traction in the Winter. I've driven my car in -10 celcius without any mechanical problems. In fact, the turbos love cold dense air; I wouldn't be surprised to get a good 50-60whp more at that temperature. The rear tires are the ones who don't like -10 celcius. BTW, I'm in Ottawa.

Later,

 

The traction is not really what I'm worried about. I'll just drive slow...er... I've driven for two years before here in Calgary with bald summer performance tires in my civic so I know the term "gas modulation" quite well. My major concern is really about reliability. Kind of along the lines of just running the thing in the low temperatures. It's very unlikely I'll be in boost for the really cold winter days, I know even now WITH winter tires they brake loose when I hit about 3500rpm in first.

With regard to warming up in the engine bay, wouldn't the supercharger be just as warm as the turbo? Or would the exhaust gases have that much of a different affect on temperature on the turbo's vs. the supercharger? So yea, revised question:

What are the reliability issues with a turbo or supercharger in a vehicle driven in cold weather but NOT hitting any boost or at least very low boost?

Am I right to believe that the turbo's share oil with the engine while the supercharger is self sealed? If that's the case, can the oil in the supercharger be changed to a more winter friendly oil (5W40 or 0W40)?

 

The major reason for me wanting to go with the supercharger versus the turbo is that it will cost me almost double to go turbo ($7,500 vs. $13,000 for turbo) Meaning I can get boosted next year if I go supercharger but I'll have to wait till about 2009 before I can get enough extra change to warrant a $13,000 upgrade to the g.

 

I wouldn't worry at all about it. Just let it idle a few minutes to let it come up to normal temperature. No worries, plenty of cars come with superchargers and turbos from the factory.

 

Well the record low in Texas was -23 degrees...still pretty chilly...albeit was in the 1930's

 

Well put lots of cars come with factory Superchargers (both roots and centrifical) as well as turbochargers. I have driven and owned supercharged and turbo vehicles in the winter and never had any issues(other than traction).

 

Sweet. Thanks for the help!

 

I remember Vortech saying something to the effect that below freezing temps the tolerance of some of thier blowers are to tight and may end up hurting the blower . Thier stock kit SQ blower maybe ok . Thats why I suggested calling them and find out for sure .

 

Wow thats some cold temperature there, i think you;ll be fine with a SC or Turbo just dont gun it or drive it much Damn seriously thats cold, it was 47 degrees here last night and i was freezing my *** off hahaha! And you're in the negatives

 

Of course, we're talking Celcius degrees here...