Supercharging V.S. Turbocharging 3rd gen

[4runnerPete]

I have a 3.4l v6 4x4, and when i put it to the floor it drags a** . I realize that the best way to juice it up is through forced induction. I'm just wondering what peoples thoughts are on S/C V.s T/C. Some things i want to consider are final millage, additional horsepower, ease of self instillation, risk to vehicle integrity, and of course final cost. Any thoughts on the subject are appreciated.

 

[snow junky]

depends how much money you got

 

[4runnerPete]

well i dont wanna say moneys not an issue cause i aint made of it but, i can get it. Im looking to spend somewhere in the 3k department

 

[shadow247]

Personally, I'd go with a supercharger. There are no tried and true Turbo setups for these motors, the only ones I have seen are custom. Clownmeat has one and there was a nother member that built one, but it will take a lot of fiddling to get it right.

The TRD supercharger is a bolt on affair, will work without any additional mods, and can be upgraded later on with things like the 7th injectior, water injection, etc. The main issue with the TRD 'charger is that they are no longer available through Toyota, but there are usually a few floating around out there used for sale.

 

[FancyPantsMcGee]

Some things i want to consider are final millage, additional horsepower, ease of self instillation, risk to vehicle integrity, and of course final cost. Any thoughts on the subject are appreciated.

final mileage: i'm supercharged with 33's, i get ~12mpg
additional horsepower: TRD; fully upgraded expect 75 horse gain
turbo; your wallet is the limit for horseys
ease of installation: supercharger; a few hours. easy peasy.
turbo; there are no bolt-on manifolds i'm aware of. so expect to fork some cash/time out to plumb it up, plus fitting an intercooler will be time consuming. tuning it will be time consuming etc...
If you want to make more power with the TRD down the road you'll have to fork out more$$ for gauges, meth injection, fuel controller, injectors/7th, fuel pumps etc. (read: URDUSA.com, tokensolutions.com)
vehicle integrity: the charger, if kept as a low boost system will be relatively unnoticed for wear and tear. the more air you put in the hotter everything gets(in general). so it will come down to you on this one.
final cost: every penny you have and then some, regardless of choice. you can feasibly do the trd for $3k. I don't know about the turbo, but I'd expect to see $5k go out the window.
forced induction is really great stuff, but it's also a rabbit hole. read up.

..just one mans opinion.

 

[4runnerPete]

final mileage: i'm supercharged with 33's, i get ~12mpg
additional horsepower: TRD; fully upgraded expect 75 horse gain
turbo; your wallet is the limit for horseys
ease of installation: supercharger; a few hours. easy peasy.
turbo; there are no bolt-on manifolds i'm aware of. so expect to fork some cash/time out to plumb it up, plus fitting an intercooler will be time consuming. tuning it will be time consuming etc...
If you want to make more power with the TRD down the road you'll have to fork out more$$ for gauges, meth injection, fuel controller, injectors/7th, fuel pumps etc. (read: URDUSA.com, tokensolutions.com)
vehicle integrity: the charger, if kept as a low boost system will be relatively unnoticed for wear and tear. the more air you put in the hotter everything gets(in general). so it will come down to you on this one.
final cost: every penny you have and then some, regardless of choice. you can feasibly do the trd for $3k. I don't know about the turbo, but I'd expect to see $5k go out the window.
forced induction is really great stuff, but it's also a rabbit hole. read up.

..just one mans opinion.

thanks for the info. from the start i have been thinking supercharger, but i realized i hadn't read much about turbos and wanted to see if there were any viable options. I'm really starting to like they way the S/C sounds the DIY aspect is very appealing to me. I don't know too much about cars but im good at figuring it out, and good with my hands. Would it be risky installing it myself?

 

[4runnerPete]

Also what is your performance like, I like to let loose every now and then and currently my runner leaves a lot to be desired

 

[Fishwerks]

I get 17 mpg combined with the supercharger, stock pulley and 32s. No idea on final horsepower, but its much mo betta than without the s/c.

The TRD supercharger isn't hard to put on yourself and can be had for cheap if you are patient. Look on tacomaworld, craigslist, etc. They don't pop up here too often. If you add the 7th injector from URD (underdog racing development) that's another grand.

Clownmeat and Yoterman have a thread going on about the rear-mount turbo set-up they are both running and have nothing but good things to say about it, and that is definitely under $3k, but they have turbo experience. Here is the thread for it - http://www.toyota-4runner.org/3rd-gen-t4rs/133976-rear-mount-turbo-exhaust.html

 

[mikey's2010SR5]

Do both. Low end from the supercharger and high end from the turbo. Then lag isn't an issue. Anyone remember the green Lotus that had both. That thing was stupid awesome.

 

[4-Ripcord]

I have about 2.5k into my supercharger setup. 2.2" pulley, 7th injector with tuning computer, etc..

I get 18 combined regularly. Highway is at or slightly above 20. I'm on 33" tires.

 

[4runnerPete]

I have about 2.5k into my supercharger setup. 2.2" pulley, 7th injector with tuning computer, etc..

I get 18 combined regularly. Highway is at or slightly above 20. I'm on 33" tires.

wow that pretty damn good, thats just about what mine gets bone stock. Are you satisfied with the additional power to money ratio?

 

[BlackCat914]

Do both. Low end from the supercharger and high end from the turbo. Then lag isn't an issue. Anyone remember the green Lotus that had both. That thing was stupid awesome.

With the correct turbo, lag isn't an issue. I think Clownmeat's turbo pretty much spools the minute he nails the go pedal.

 

[Brilliant]

SC - sub 3k and bolts on in a days work. It ownt be fast, but it wont be slow.

 

[snow junky]

Your only choice is super charger for only 3G. Unless u do a custom setup by yourself

 

[4-Ripcord]

wow that pretty damn good, thats just about what mine gets bone stock. Are you satisfied with the additional power to money ratio?

The pulley is what made the biggest change for the smallest coin. Anyone running a supercharger should look into pulleys. Assuming they have the supporting fuel mods and/or dont need them.

Overall, I probably wouldn't do it again. nearly 3 grand just to get to the power level that the newer 4.0L V6 in 4runners and tacos already has.. not quite worth it.

 

[white_n_slow]

final mileage: i'm supercharged with 33's, i get ~12mpg
additional horsepower: TRD; fully upgraded expect 75 horse gain
turbo; your wallet is the limit for horseys
ease of installation: supercharger; a few hours. easy peasy.
turbo; there are no bolt-on manifolds i'm aware of. so expect to fork some cash/time out to plumb it up, plus fitting an intercooler will be time consuming. tuning it will be time consuming etc...
If you want to make more power with the TRD down the road you'll have to fork out more$$ for gauges, meth injection, fuel controller, injectors/7th, fuel pumps etc. (read: URDUSA.com, tokensolutions.com)
vehicle integrity: the charger, if kept as a low boost system will be relatively unnoticed for wear and tear. the more air you put in the hotter everything gets(in general). so it will come down to you on this one.
final cost: every penny you have and then some, regardless of choice. you can feasibly do the trd for $3k. I don't know about the turbo, but I'd expect to see $5k go out the window.
forced induction is really great stuff, but it's also a rabbit hole. read up.

..just one mans opinion.

This pretty much sums it up. If you have the money, talent or time to devote to putting together and tuning a good turbo set up, it would be sweet. For simple and effective, the SC is a no brainer. Just slap it on the truck and call it a day. Even some of the SC mods that can be done are a walk in the park compared with fabricating a crossover exhaust manifold, making room for all the intercooler plumbing and tuning everything to work right.

Turbos are inherently more efficient because they spin on exhaust gas the truck is already making, whereas and SC spins on an accessory pulley, which puts a parasitic drag on the motor. You can also drive a turbo motor conservatively and stay out of boost, where a SC is boosting pretty much all the time. In actual practice, there are so many variables to a turbo setup there's no way you could make a "X setup will get Y mpg" statement.

 

[4runnerPete]

yea im starting to like the way the S/C sounds, has anyone had experience running the trd second gen supercharger without additional mods?

 

[Keros]

yea im starting to like the way the S/C sounds, has anyone had experience running the trd second gen supercharger without additional mods?

My reading on the subject has proven it's a matter of opinion. Some say "don't worry, it'll be fine", others say it'll blow up.

I prefer safe and bulletproof, so I would do supporting mods.

The only way to know is on a dyno.

 

[4runnerPete]

yes i agree, bulletproof is good especially when you love your runner as much as i do haha. well thanks to the great state of NH my car is going to have alot of garage time to add on additional mods. I added an aftermarket exhuast awhile back and after that my car wont roll when it idles, i believe this is low engine pressure do to the shortness of my pipe. If i were to add on the S/C is boost going to be effected by this problem?

 

[Dous]

I always mention this.

If you don't want to spend the big money on the 7th kit. But still want the added safeguard against pinging....run methanol.

You can buy a nice Snow Performance kit for 350 bucks, or even build your own for around 100. There is a thread on YT.