Blower or Nitrous

As a Hot Rodder only one thing matters and that thing is power! Everyone wants more Power, hot rodders, mob bosses, women, the Soup Nazi, and even Iron Maiden became powerslaves (why did they have to die, why couldn’t they just live on)! Anyway we know that more power means more speed and better performance.

            In the Hot Rod world two of the easiest ways to make power are Nitrous or Supercharging (theres turbo too but we will get to that another time). Both have there advantages and disadvantages and there are a few types of both.

            Superchargers have been around for a long time, since the beginning of cars themselves! There basic concept is simple, be either an Air Pump or a Compressor for an engine. Normally Aspirated engines taken air by atmospheric pressure, what a supercharger does to an engine is either pumps or compresses even more air into an engine!

            For Superchargers there are 3 different types of them that are used. The first type is the Roots Supercharger. The Roots Supercharger is as old as the automobile its self, maybe even older! It was first invented by the Roots Brothers as an air conveyor for mine shafts back in the 1880s, since then it has been used in all types of cars and racing. Roots type Superchargers are easily identifiable, usually seen sticking out of the hood of classic muscle cars or hot rods. They usually come in a 2 or 3 lobe rotor design and are best for Low RPM power.

            The 2^nd type of Supercharger is the screw supercharger, the screw blower in looks similar to the roots but works differently. The roots works more like an air pump and pumps burst of air into the engine working as where the screw works more like an air compressor that steadily flows air into the engine. The screw supercharger makes most of its power at low rpm and very high rpm.

            The other type of Supercharger is the Centrifugal Supercharger. The Centrifugal looks like a turbo and works similar to one too. However instead of using exhaust to build pressure they are belt driving buy the crankshaft, which spins the impeller, which then dischargers air out into the motor. Centrifugal Blowers work the best in mid and high RPM ranges (similar to turbos).

Nitrous

            Nitrous has a similar concept to a supercharger, which is getting more air into an engine but it works in a different way. The chemical formula for Nitrous is N20 (Two Nitrogen Atoms and one oxygen atom), what the one oxygen atom will do is oxidize additional fuel in the engine. Nitrous is usually stored around 900 psi in a pressurized bottle and it is stored as a liquid, when the liquid gets in the engine it cools way down which increases the air and fuel mixtures density allowing it to burn faster and make more power! Also despite the common myth that nitrous is flammable and explodes its not! It actually makes an engine less likely to detonate!

The 3 different types of Nitrous are Dry, Wet and Direct Port.

How Dry works is only nitrous is injected into the intake manifold. No fuel or air is added. This is good for low horsepower increase for about 30-50 HP. Wet Nitrous works by injecting nitrous with fuel, this is the most common for carb engines (since a nitrous plate has to be placed beneath the carb aka the plate system). Last is Direct Port Nitrous (aka Fogger) which nitrous is directly inject through each intake port in an engine this system is usually used for all out race cars.

Now which is better for your engine? Well both will give power right away and both have there Pros and Cons.

The Pros for Supercharging are:

Instant Power when you hit the throttle

Minimal Maintenance Cost

Easy to Install Bolt on Kits

Works great with Carb, TBI or EFI

Extremely Durable

The Pros for Nitrous are

Low Start up Cost

Instant Power

Easy to tune

Easy to hide

The Cons for Supercharging are

High Start Up Cost

More Violent Throttle Response

Adds Weight

Takes up more engine room

Nitrous Cons

Bottle Refills will get expensive

More Maintenance

Limited use for each bottle

So both are great for making more power, really what it all comes down to is preference. Whether you want to install a supercharger or go the nitrous route it all depends on your engine building skills and style.