Turbos in our future ?

Cheers Janneppi.

Whyzars, i wouldn't say Saab and Volvo were the only ones to keep using turbos. Subaru, Fiat/Lancia and a few others have been using turbo's quite reliably for a while. My other half's Legacy is 14 years old and has a petrol turbo engine and my Peugeot is 12 and has a turbo diesel engine and Peugeot had been using that engine for a fair few years previous. So I think the turbo is well proven but with petrol prices going up and efficency being a major selling point for cars anyone wanting anything even remotely fast is going to find a turbo under the bonnet if it wants to be attractive to the people who can't afford a big na engine.

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Originally Posted by Whyzars

BTW, its 20 years since turbo's raced in F1 and I was at the track in Adelaide in '88 for their last appearance. The turbo cars really screamed. I still remember my teeth vibrating whenever a turbo car went by. You REALLY needed ear plugs with the turbo's. Great memories to look back on.

:)

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I remember all the race writers mentioning how ear-splitting the atmos where compared with the turbos after the turbos were banned, due to the natural muffling effect of a turbo. The turbos were more powerful and they seem to pop and bang more, so maybe that's what you were experiencing.

It's long past due that they bring turbos back. Removing them as a speed limiting means was needed at the time, but they could just restructure engine rules and give the teams adequate time to develop smaller boosted engines once again.

Considering the potential with todays technology, it would make the cars handle even better, considering the weight savings and engine placement options of the smaller unit. Combine that with the wasted heat aspects and the KERS approach, and they have even more energy to recover.

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Originally Posted by Miatanut

I remember all the race writers mentioning how ear-splitting the atmos where compared with the turbos after the turbos were banned, due to the natural muffling effect of a turbo. The turbos were more powerful and they seem to pop and bang more, so maybe that's what you were experiencing.

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Race writers who listened to these engines week in week out would be much better judges of the sound and their writings would be a more accurate archive because they don't fade over time. 20 years will always change memories for the better/louder/faster. :)

I'm pretty sure that I've still got a magazine that I bought at the track so I'll go digging for some articles of the time and if I find anything I'll post scans or something.

I can't remember the name of the left-right corner at the end of the main straight, (Wakefield??), but that's where I watched qualifying from. The cars came through absolutely flat out and looked for all the world like they were going to brush the wall - e v e r y s i n g l e t i m e. I was close enough to feel air move as cars went by and when you're that close everything screams. I never noticed the popping on the Saturday but on Sunday we were at a slower section of the track and the braking area for that section was a good way away. Some of the pops were like gunshots and actually had an "echo" off the surrounding buildings, they were all (insert adjective here) loud.

I haven't been to a GP for a good few years but the last one was at Silverstone and we were so far back from the track in Priory Stand that ear plugs were optional. Still a wonderful event but the distance from the track does affect the experience. I guess that 1988, and Adelaide being a street circuit, allowed for much closer viewing locations. Good times.

:)

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Originally Posted by Daniel

Whyzars, i wouldn't say Saab and Volvo were the only ones to keep using turbos. Subaru, Fiat/Lancia and a few others have been using turbo's quite reliably for a while. My other half's Legacy is 14 years old and has a petrol turbo engine and my Peugeot is 12 and has a turbo diesel engine and Peugeot had been using that engine for a fair few years previous.

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Fair comment. I was thinking that Saab and Volvo don't focus on the sports car aspects of turbo's and that is what I was getting at but I didn't put that across too well.

:)

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Originally Posted by Whyzars

Race writers who listened to these engines week in week out would be much better judges of the sound and their writings would be a more accurate archive because they don't fade over time. 20 years will always change memories for the better/louder/faster. :)

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This would be the less than three months from Adelaide '88 to spring testing '89. I don't think they forgot what the turbos sounded like. I think the 20 years are changing YOUR memories for better/louder/faster. :D

In any case, it just stands to reason. If you've spent much time at sportscar races, you know between turbos and atmos of comparable outputs in the same race, the turbos are quieter. The vanes in the turbos smooth the exhaust pulses, reducing the volume.

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Originally Posted by Miatanut

I don't think they forgot what the turbos sounded like. I think the 20 years are changing YOUR memories for better/louder/faster. :D

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The way I remember things from 20 years ago I'm always taller and slimmer than I was - does that count? :p

My sentence structure has failed miserably. What you write is what I meant ie. my own memories have faded. The journalists wrote about the engine sounds at the time so their account would be a much more reliable archive and I accept that.

I don't see it as an issue though as the turbos really did scream - in my opinion. If the later cars screamed louder then that's OK too.

:)