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Naturally Aspirated or Turbo?

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Gliderman8

Gliderman8

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As I am looking at cars, most have the inline 4-cylinders. My ignorance of turbos might be showing since I fear them as potentially being a dependability problem.
Am I better off with a naturally aspirated or a turbo 4-cylinder engine? Of course the turbos put out more torque and horsepower but do the turbos hold up or are they problematic?
A six is always an option on some models.
Your thoughts please.
 
Elliot, new or used? Turbos have gotten a lot better than they were back in the 70s and 80s, when you were supposed to idle for a while to let the turbo slow down before you shut off the motor so you didn't burn the bearings. Still they do put more stress on the motor, and add more moving parts to wear out, if I were buying a new car with a warranty I wouldn't worry about it too much, unless you are planning to keep it long past the warranty period. If used I might steer towards a naturally aspirated motor. Easier to give better answers with more information on what you are looking at. The mechanical bits of motors are very dependable these days, and most of the problems will come from all the various electronic add ons, coil packs, sensors, fuel injection. Some known issues, older Toyotas, engine sludge issues, apparently mid 2000 Civics had some issues with cracked blocks I wasn't aware of until recently, Subaru 2.5s have head gasket issues, but the older, smaller motors go forever, bmws have plastic components in the cooling system that break cause rapid coolant lose and all sorts of problems. Lexus straight six, SC300, IS300, Supra, bulletproof, I am sure there are more, I know this stuff because these are some of the cars I was looking at when I was shopping earlier this year (actually wasn't looking at Toyotas, but wife's friend was so I researched). Look up the car you are interested in and look at the customer reviews on cars.com, msn autos, yahoo autos, that will give you some idea, but there are Lemon versions of the most reliable car (either due to some one off manufacturing issues, or a bad owner, and there are luck of the draw "bad" cars that don't give lick of trouble.
 
Looking at new right now. It will replace my wife's 2005 Stratus. I'm Sure we would have it past the warranty period and that makes me leery of the turbo. Hyundai is the only one offering a 10 year/100,000 mile on the power train but I really don't know how good it actually is.
 
Hyundai has come a long way in the last ten years or so, not necessarily up with the best of the Japanese, but not so far behind that the lower price and big warranty don't make up much of the difference. My dad has a Elantra, his retirement buggy, he is very happy with it, and has had no problems for about 5 years of ownership.
 
Elliot - I just reviewed the New and Used Car summary pages from Consumer Reports, 2009-2014.

The only Turbo powered cars with average (or worse than average) engine problems were Kia Optima (2011, 2012) and Volvo XC70 (2010, 2011). Other than that, Turbo engines rate no different from non-turbo - above average or much better than average.

I agree - more parts, more possibility of problems. But it looks like engines - and turbo engines - have greatly improved since I got my first turbo engine back in 1905.

:jester:



Tom
 
Next you're going to tell me your 1905 model also had Bluetooth Tom!
Thanks for the engine info.
Dedicated forums sound like a good idea-- thanks Rick.
Don- I think all the 4-cylinder with turbos run on regular but I will be sure and check.
 
Been wondering if the new gen MX5 will be offered in a turbo.
The premium fuel would be a deal killer
 
Wife's Saab likes premium fuel but will work on regular. The computer backs off the turbo and timing as needed to prevent pre-ignition if you push it a little too much with lower octane juice. Ordinarily you never even notice it. Since we don't put too many miles on either vehicle, being retired, I just pay the extra and go for the highest octane I can find. That way I can enjoy the full push of the turbo whenever I feel the need. So I get the mpg advantage of the 4 along with the performance of a 6 cylinder.
 
We test drove a new Fiesta-ST recently. It's a kick in the pants, a real pocket rocket. And, unlike many new cars, it's still available with a stick. The dealer even had sticks on the lot.

Like the Saab, it auto-tunes to the gas you put in it and is specified to run on regular. (The horsepower figure on the spec sheet is based on 93 octane. Don't know what the dealer had in it when we drove it.)

The only complaint I had is that it doesn't have a boost gauge. Who the heck builds a a highly boosted turbo motor and doesn't give you a boost gauge?

The Focus-ST has one, but not the Fiesta-ST.


pc
 
The car is for my wife and she definitely will not drive a stick.... if it was for me, the only way I'd go is with a stick.
Talk about useless or no gauges, I looked at the new Chrysler 200 and they had a "Oil TEMP" gauge and a "Transmission Fluid TEMP" gauge. Please tell me why anyone wants to know fluid temps? Why not an oil pressure gauge?
 
Elliot - a depressing thought ... I'd bet 99% of car buyers these days don't have a clue how they work, or what needs watching.

"My oil has a temperature! My oil has a temperature!"

(Fix my horn - the brakes don't work.)

And yes, my 1905 turbo did have bluetooth options:

220px-Anglosaxonrunes.svg.png
 
I did an internet search and found your 1905 ride.......

Tom's 1905.jpg
 
hey - you've been in my garage again. It's tough to find good oxen these days, so I usually have former students pulling it.
 
My wife drives a 2002 VW Passat with the turbocharged four, and there have been no issues with the turbo whatsoever. Likewise my youngest son, he has a 2003 Audi A4 with the same turbo four. Both cars well over 100,000 miles now, and running like Swiss watches still.
 
Thanks Steve... that's good to know the turbos are running without problems. I just seem to remember there were all sorts of problems with them early on regarding overheat blades and worn bearings.
I should go back and have a look at the Passat. I like the diesel version, but it's out of my price range.
 
The diesel Jetta was a car a came close to buying, It is a little cheaper than the Passat, I am not a VW-phile, and I can't really tell much difference from looking at them, but the Jetta is a little cheaper. I was looking at the certified pre-owned when I realized the new were out of my price range. From what I have read the cars meet or can even exceed EPA ratings, unlike many gasoline powered cars. They make great torque, and the diesels have better reliability ratings and much better resale than the equivalent gas models. Unfortunately, right now with the difference in price between diesel and regular it is hard to justify the price difference from an economic standpoint.
 
The follow is my unbiased thoughts on all of your concerns and questions: Yes.
 
Gliderman8 said:
As I am looking at cars, most have the inline 4-cylinders. My ignorance of turbos might be showing since I fear them as potentially being a dependability problem.
Am I better off with a naturally aspirated or a turbo 4-cylinder engine? Of course the turbos put out more torque and horsepower but do the turbos hold up or are they problematic?
A six is always an option on some models.
Your thoughts please.
Click to expand...

I'd have no fear of modern turbo engines. Modern engines of any sort are very reliable despite their increased complexity.

My wife just bought a Buick Encore (small AWD hatchback). It's got a turbocharged 1.4 liter engine, and so far I'm very impressed with it. It pulls our local steep roads (we're in the Utah mountains) with ease and gets good gas mileage.

I've had a Hyundai and a Kia, and a couple friends here at work also have them. No problems. I sold my first Hyundai (2003 Accent) to a friend at work and he's still driving it.
 
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