Why does the same displacement produce 50% more power?

How can a 2.0T supercar unleash 300 horsepower?

It all stems from the automotive industry’s greatest “air magic”—turbocharging technology. Today, we’ll lift the engine hood and decode the core of this transformative high-tech marvel!

What is a Turbocharger?

A Turbocharger is a revolutionary technology in modern internal combustion engines. It recycles exhaust gases to drive a turbine, compressing air into the engine, thereby increasing power and efficiency. Simply put, it's like giving the engine"more oxygen to breathe." Essentially, it's an "air compressor" powered by exhaust gases, with its core principle summarized as "no waste of exhaust, more powerful air" in engineering philosophy.

How a Turbocharger Works?

Turbocharging is a technology that uses exhaust gases to increase engine air intake. When the car engine runs, the exhaust gases produced by combustion are expelled. The turbocharger uses these exhaust gases, connected to the engine’s exhaust pipe, to drive the turbine’s rotation. The turbine’s rotation powers the connected compressor, which draws in and compresses external air before sending it to the engine’s cylinders. In this way, turbocharging allows more air to enter the combustion chamber at the same displacement, improving fuel combustion efficiency and boosting the engine’s power output. This means a turbocharged engine can produce greater power with a smaller displacement, while also helping to reduce fuel consumption and emissions.

 Advantages of Turbocharging

1.Power Surge: Same Displacement, Double the Horsepower

With unchanged engine displacement, increasing intake air density enables efficient in-cylinder combustion, boosting

power output and allowing turbocharged engines to surpass traditional specific power limits.

2. Contracted Size, Boosted Power

The power that turbocharged engines(1.9L, 90 kg) generate equals to that of engines (4.3L,210kg) without

turbocharging.Under the same requirement for power output, engines with turbochargers reduce cylinder bore,

minimizing the engine’s size and weight, achieving higher energy produced by engines with smaller size.

3.Fuel Economy: Every Drop of Fuel, Maximally Utilized

Thanks to better combustion performance, turbocharged engines improve fuel economy and reduce fuel consumption.

4.Environmental Upgrade: Cleaner Emissions, Green Power

Turbocharged engines improve combustion efficiency, enhancing emissions by reducing harmful components like

particulate matter, nitrogen oxides(NOx), and carbon monoxide(CO) in exhaust gases.

5.All-Terrain Adaptability: Plateaus or Plains, Performs Consistently

In high-altitude regions, where air becomes thinner with increasing elevation, turbocharged engines overcome power

loss due to thin air by providing air compensation, maintaining performance in high-altitude environments.