Spring is here. If you’re a car enthusiast, the warm weather is a perfect excuse to spend the weekend in the garage tuning up and tinkering with your favorite 350 crate engine. Many projects can help your car roar into summer with better engine performance. Adding a supercharger yourself is a surprisingly easy upgrade that pays huge dividends in horsepower, torque and more. Here are the six best reasons to use an easy kit to add a supercharger to your car this spring.
1. Get More Horsepower
What is a supercharger? It’s a small device that compresses the intake air, or the air flowing into your engine. In a combustion engine, oxygen is a necessary component in the reaction that burns fuel and powers your car. Once all of the oxygen in the intake air runs out, the reaction must stop. However much power you’ve accumulated up to that point is the amount of power you’re stuck with.
A supercharger compresses the incoming air, increasing the density of oxygen. This means a longer and more powerful combustion reaction inside your engine. Adding a supercharger to a 350 short block engine adds approximately 50-100 horsepower.
2. Get More Torque
Superchargers add torque as well for uphill climbs or difficult jobs. One advantage a supercharger has over a turbocharger — a similar upgrade that uses the exhaust gases to feed more air into the engine — is that a supercharger works well at low RPMs, while a turbocharger struggles. Even if you don’t climb hills or do any towing, you’ll feel the extra torque from a supercharger in how your car grips the road.
3. Save Money Over Other Upgrades
A supercharger is easier and less expensive to install than a turbocharger. Many people around the world are on tighter budgets as costs rise, so opting for a supercharger is a wallet-smart upgrade. It’s also less complicated to install yourself, saving the extra cost of paying a mechanic if the DIY upgrade proves too challenging.
4. Learn About Your Engine
Despite what some people might think, excess time spent fiddling with your car’s engine has a practical purpose. Keeping tabs on the internal workings of a car is an important and often neglected part of vehicle maintenance. While installing a supercharger, you’ll be able to see any cracked tubing or bulging cases under the hood.
5. Make Memories With Loved Ones
Working on the car can be a powerful bonding experience. If a loved one is interested, can teach them how an engine works to broaden their understanding of the world. Chatting while you install a supercharger kit can be a fun bonding experience.
6. Have More Fun Driving This Summer
Summer is right around the corner, with sunny weather and perfect conditions for driving. A supercharger can make your summer drives more fun by delivering horsepower and improved engine performance. You only get so many summers to drive with the music up and the windows down, so make this one a year to remember.