Why are naturally aspirated engines better

If you exercise a bit of patience or keep your engine speed up, the response is more immediate at the right RPMs. There is no lag whatsoever on a naturally-aspirated motor. The only things standing between the air and combustion chamber are the air filter, throttle body, and intake valves.

As your engine goes up in RPM, it sucks in more air, which is then supplemented by more fuel. Peak power is made higher up in the RPM range, and most new engines in the market come with variable valve timing that increases torque and efficiency at lower RPMs, and power and torque at higher RPMs. Though, a counter-argument for turbo lag will be to go with a smaller turbo, a twin-turbo, or twin-scroll turbo.

Variable turbos are also part of the equation and the main goal of these technologies and advancements is to eliminate lag and increase response. There is a case to be made. Whenever maintenance and reliability come up, a simpler system will more often be more reliable and more easily maintained.

Fewer parts, mean fewer things to worry about, and naturally-aspirated cars are simpler than a turbocharged motor. Turbocharged motors need oil lines routing to the turbine.

It needs more vacuum hoses and space to fit in the turbocharger, the intercooler, and all the plumbing. Not to mention that a turbocharged car will definitely come with a different computer to accommodate all those sensors.

There could be certain exceptions to the overview, however. See, with 1. Meanwhile, a 2. When you get up and running, a naturally-aspirated motor will produce 2. Turbochargers were invented in by a Swiss engineer by the name of Alfred Buchi, a diesel engine researcher at the Sulzer engine manufacturing company.

He received a patent for use of a compressor to force air into an internal combustion chamber using exhaust gases to increase power output. Forcing more air — and more fuel, therefore, into the combustion chamber than atmospheric pressure, creates boost.

Naturally-aspirated internal combustion engines simply lack the bolt on. Turbochargers enable smaller, more efficient engines to compete with the power and torque ratings of much larger engines. This increase in efficiency is all because of air. All engines generating power need to pump a specific amount of air to maintain a particular cruising speed. With the proper gearing, smaller engines require a wider throttle opening to pump roughly the same amount of air as a bigger engine.

As well, naturally aspirated engines feature great low-end power good for towing and hauling. This self-perpetuating nature makes them wonderfully efficient as they use otherwise wasted energy and convert it into huge boosts of power.

The downside to turbos is the compressor needs to reach a minimum speed for its effects to be felt and this results in a delay in the power being delivered.

Turbo lag is something that just about all engines with a turbocharger experience. Sudden demands of acceleration are delayed by the engine waiting for the turbo to catch up, before the power comes through quite rapidly as the compressor reaches the speed needed to provide the desired power boost.

As manufacturers came under increasing pressure to reduce emissions from their engines, fuel efficiency was identified as a simple way of doing that — less fuel burnt less waste gases created.

Smaller engines used less fuel, and by including a forced induction system to offset the decreasing power levels generated by these smaller engines, they were able to keep performance levels consistent despite the loss in engine volume. Improvements in other engine technologies meant smaller engines were providing more power than previously, but it would not have been enough to cover the deficit along with the increasing bulk of modern cars and performance expectations of buyers.

Turbochargers were the natural choice, neatly solving the problem by providing the power boost needed while still keeping engine sizes small. Their energy recovery provided power without increasing fuel demand on the engine, like superchargers do and thus increasing fuel efficiency and lowering emissions. Diesel engines were the primary driving force behind the turbo uptake.

Rising driving costs and their better mileage had hugely increased their popularity and although previously seen as dirty diesels, tighter emission regulations forced manufacturers to act and clean up their performance and their image. As much as a turbocharger was the natural choice for a forced induction system in mass produced cars, diesel engines were the perfect hosts.

Diesel engines operate at much lower engine speeds than petrol fuelled engines, and this narrower range meant a single turbo could cover most power bands and provide a greater benefit. Diesel engines also generate a more powerful exhaust, making them superior at powering the turbocharger itself.