turbo engines in general

[CrabbyMilton]

I know that turbos on diesels have been the norm for many years now and they seem to be fine. However, what about gasoline engines. Here's why I ask. Unfortunately, my '21 NISSAN ALTIMA with only 14k and 13 months old was rearended on the expressway Friday evening and totaled. So I now need to buy a new car. It's likely if possible that I will get another ALTIMA just like my former one which had a 2.5L non turbo. However, my rental is a '22 CHEVROLET MALIBU that has a 1.5L turbo. Nice enough car but many have said to avoid turbo gasoline engines if possible. So I'm just considering things before the settlement check comes. BTW, that turbo in the MALIBU has 28 less HP than the 2.5L non turbo in the ALTIMA. So take a guess which engine will probably last longer. Perhaps these new turbo engines are ok after all but I would like some perspective anyway.

[luvrbus]

The 2.7 Eco boost turbo engine pushes a full-size Ford 150 pickup down the road like 5 L engine and I don't know of anyone that has trouble with one lol and I don't even like Ford pickups but the turbo  gasoline engines last just as long if not longer than the N'A engines of yesterday with more power on less gasoline   

[chessie4905]

I just sold my 1.4l turbo 4 cylinder Buick Encore. Put 40k on it. Awd, 30 mpg average. No problems except a bad coil pack under warranty. Will not hesitate to buy another turbo gas engine. Remember, they have used turbo gas engines for years. Recall the Corvair Spyder? Were many others. Regular oil changes, with appropriate Mobil synthetic oil.

[sledhead]

My 2019 Ford Ranger has a 2.3 eco boost ( turbo ) and is a rocket if you want to floor it but a lot of that is the 10 speed auto .

Yet if I drive it for gas mileage it is amazing

My wifes suv is the same with a 2.5 turbo and a 8 speed dual clutch auto
and she gets a bit better mpg then my truck

2021 Santa fe Caligraphy

every truck or car should have a 10 speed auto until the electric vehicles will work up here in the frozen tundra

[lvmci]

Milton, hoping you and your family are OK, after such a bad accident...

[CrabbyMilton]

Thanks I appreciate that. I'm thankful to our Lord since I wasn't hurt just shaken.
I'm a life long bachelor so I was the only one in the car. I really loved that car too so that's why I would like to get another new ALTIMA or a TOYOTA CAMRY as an alternate choice. The Milwaukee County Sheriff's deputy who took care of me was an absolutely wonderful young lady. For safety I had to wait in her squad car and she got most of my things out of the car for me. I discovered the next day that she even took the thumb drive out of the dash for me. I had to get the rest of the stuff out at the tow lot anyway but it's nice that she did more than she had to. But hey, now I can brag that I got to ride in the back of a squad car for the first time in my life.

[RJ]

Perhaps these new turbo engines are ok after all but I would like some perspective anyway.

Milton -

With the ECMs controlling everything on engines nowadays, I wouldn't worry about a turbo on a gas engine. The combination of power and fuel mileage they're producing is pretty amazing compared to yesteryear's.

Back in April of 1962, Chevrolet introduced the Corvair Monza Spyder, the very first turbocharged US production vehicle, with Oldsmobile releasing the Jetfire turbo a couple weeks later. The Chevy flat six produced 150 hp out of 145 cubic inches, the V-8 Olds 215 hp from 215 cu in.

Pre-ignition, or "ping" as we used to call it, was a real problem with these early turbos. Olds had their "Turbo Rocket Fluid" (similar to a water-injection system) to keep the pre-ignition under control, but when you ran out of fluid, you ran out of boost. 

Chevy took a different approach by setting the initial ignition timing at 24º BTDC, then using a pressure-retard device to retard the timing as the boost came on. It looked just like the old vacuum advance units, and there were more than a few turbos destroyed because someone used the wrong one. The other clever thing Chevy did was design the muffler in such a way that under full turbo boost starting at about 4500 rpm, back-pressure in the muffler would increase to the point that above 5000, the turbo would cavitate, thus limiting the amount of boost.  Very clever engineering for those days!

But we've come a long way since then, and I wouldn't hesitate to buy a gas turbo today, if I was in the market. Personally, I'm saddened that VW decided to pull their TDIs out of the US market after the Dieselgate FUBAR, as that 2.0L turbo diesel was a stout engine that would run forever sipping fuel in the process.

Glad you're ok after the fender bender, and good luck shopping for a replacement.

FWIW & HTH. . .

RJ

[CrabbyMilton]

Very true. They have indeed come a long way. There is was a perception that they put out twice as much heat as a non turbo but that's what a cooling system is for.
The FORD F150 seems to sell more of them with the turbo V6 as opposed to the traditional V8 or V6 so they can't be all bad. Sure FORD has it's bad problems but that's a separate issue. I'm still more comfortable with a non turbo but you guys have given me some good perspective if I have to get a car with a turbo(MALIBU) and less to be concerned about.

[chessie4905]

Don't  know about the back pressure thing on muffler. The hot setup back then was using them on current v8's. Used them on my 1969 Chevy Nova 375 hp 396. They had a nice throaty sound, 2 1/2 inch inlet and outlet  which was rare for compact auto mufflers then, and low restriction.

[Runcutter]

Please let me chime in with a question, since there's so much knowledge here.  I'm also in the market for a new car.  Like current car, plan to keep for 15 years, 150 K miles.  Still some business trips, thus occasional mountains, and 85 MPH speed limits.  At my age, probably the last car purchase. 

I also come from the days of 6V71's vs. 8V71's.  Comparing 2 fishbowls, 8V didn't have to work as hard and lasted longer - costing less long term.  I also bought a fleet with 6V92 Turbos, eating the extra fuel over the 6V71 for long term maintenance savings. (thus, bus-related). 

Lincoln Nautilus (Ford Edg platform).  Options are base 2.0 Liter 4 cylinder, or 2.7 twin turbo V6 (adds $2,700).  Easy decision, bigger engine.  But, also seems to require 4WD, total add becomes $5k. 

Now, decision is harder, since 4WD has more moving parts (maintenance $).  Dealer says I shouldn't waste money on V6, but they also do 100% of my maintenance (where their profit is). 

Thoughts? And thanks.

Arthur   

[CrabbyMilton]

Both engines should have plenty of power. Unless you really want or need all wheel drive, you may as well stick with the standard engine. Test drive them both. I would say also that a v6 is slightly smoother but 4's these days are hardly the crude and noisy engines of years ago. Since they have so much more power, they loaf along at highway speeds now. My ALTIMA would go 70 and the engine was turning at less than 2000rpm.

[chessie4905]

4wd or awd depends on where you live. Nobody will buy a used fwd in NE. The front differential and transfer case is computer controlled to apply when it sees a certain amount of slippage, so not the past penality with 4wd or awd.

[luvrbus]

In today's hi-tech world the transmissions control the engines, the transmission tells the engine what it needs

[windtrader]

One think you may consider before buying a new car is to research some videos on YouTube where mechanics talk about different engines and the problems some have. Apparently, there are some well know duds that have pretty serious issues. It is pretty specific to particular engine families and specific years too.


Good luck

[Runcutter]

Thank you.  Two cars ago was a V8, current a V6.  Stunning to think that a 4 cylinder engine would do the job.  Fortunately, at my age, I'll be gone before they get down to a squirrel cage with two tame chipmunks.

When I bought the fleet of RTS' with a 6V92TA I was a little skeptical, but it was the biggest engine option.  50 years of that mindset is hard to change. 

I think the upcharge for the bigger engine will be worth it for peace of mind, but not if it requires 4 wheel drive and associated purchase (and subsequent maintenance) costs.  Fortunately, I have a good dealer that knows my value is 15 years of service -- thus they want to keep me happy.  Good point about driving both to see.

Thanks again for the input.

Arthur