supercharger V's N/A

[k10]

Hello
I've had 3 N/A MK1's, a sunroof model and 2 tbars. The Sunroof model I converted to a track car and had loads of fun. Great cars with a great engine,
See track links below
http://www.youtube.com/user/ricointheuk ... 5l75zs8zu0

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z9Qp-v60ivM

Anyhow, Mr Poo has been good fun. Considering a Supercharger but I want to know if it is actually a better car.
From what I've read on here it's heavier and feels it to drive. What I like about the N/A is it's agility and finger tip drivability. I want to keep that but have another 30 BHP for straights at Bedford etc... What does the supercharger offer in reality in terms of driving dynamics...

[k10]

No-one driven both the S/C and N/A then?

[MartG]

Import SC is around 60Kg heavier than the equivalent NA model - the equivalent of carrying an 8 stone passenger. Half the extra weight is in the E51 gearbox, so if you get a converted UK car with the C51 'box the penalty is only 30Kg.

For that you get an extra 21 bhp in standard form ( i.e. with cat fitted ), but a decent exhaust and a larger SC pulley kit will see you over 170bhp. More important than the estra power though is the massive increase in torque over the NA engine, especially at lower revs. Makes it a lot more flexible in use, with less need to keep changing gear to stay in the power band.

Personally I never found the SC's handling to be compromised in any way by the extra weight, though I've never driven one with standard supension ( mine had uprated dampers and springs, with a 35mm lower ride height ).

[mk1 dal]

hi , i have both and would drive the charger over the n,a anyday off the week, there isnt much differance to 50 mph but after that the charger comes in to its own with the torque, it just pulls and pulls and will leave the n,a for dead , uprate the suspension and fit bigger pully kit and you have a supercar go cart , love mine and have done 1600 miles in 7 weeks just playing

gary

[jrleech]

My comparison was a modified SC vs my old NA (Janspeed and K&N). The SC is clearly quicker, but I enjoyed driving the NA so much more. The SC has loads of lower down torque, but tails off as you get high up the revs, where as the NA picks up at the top end. I felt when pushing hard in the NA, I felt like I was racing, and got quite a buzz. I didn't get that in the SC.

It all comes down to personal opinion.... but my money's on the NA

[mk1 dal]

hi , you are right in what you said , the tvis sounds great and the punch you get from it is exciting , one of my cars does have the s1 janspeed system and it sounds awesome if not loud but adds to the going fast effect , but for the track has this lad wants it for the charger will win hands down on performance and speed every time .

gary

[SuperRedMR2]

I've driven my mates mk1a sc conversion and I was blown away as it pulled like a train in every gear! He had the dastek chip, oversize pulley, ind kit etc was putting out around 185bhp. It was scary fast.

You do lose the TVIS noise but you get a lovely noise from the charger

If you get one with uprated suspension and brakes, it will keep up with modern day cars easily and would be alot of fun to drive!

[Paul in the Port]

Sorry for the hijack but just to ask about the 3rd obvious option as i'm considering an engine swap after i do all the suspension on my own car.

How does the 20v silver / black top conversion stack up in comparison to the N/A / S/C??

[Neil_turbo]

most people will say its not worth the effort for an extra 20hp

I have the silvertop conversion and love it!

Though have recently purchased a 1.5 with LSD, now that is fun!

[Nimbus]

having owned 2 NAs and now an SC for the past 18 months..

I'd say the SC feels more 'planted', difficult to describe, but it just feels more stable.

The engine is way better tho.. its just torque all the way

[010on1986]

I prefer my mk1a (bluetop) to the SC, but I have never driven a mk1b tbar.

I notice many differences in feel between the two, (power aside) notably weight.

[k10]

Thanks for all your replies. It's kind of like a mixed bag of results some prefering the S/C and others the N/A.
So I have concluded the following
1. The S/C is faster but heavier and does not have the rev happy agile nature of the NA but it replaces it with bags of torque....
This leaves me with the big question.
Which is more FUN to drive hard???

[mk1 dal]

hi , personally i would go with with the charger for fun , speed and scare factor if you fit the mods it will be scary fast and a joy to drive on track and put a big smile on your face a you pass alot more expensive cars and supposedley faster cars than the soooo under rated mk1 . if you fit the supercharger engine to a striped mk1 na shell it will be awesome but it will need other mods to suspension and if hitting high speeds the bonnet mod is very good at stoping front end lift at high speeds . but its all down to taste , if you like the rev happy n,a with it great sound as the tvis kicks in and very quick for its time 1600 cc engine then fine , but for track the charger will be mind blowing , the sound of the supercharge is like a savage tornado chasing you and with the mods the s,c is far far better .

gary

[Lauren]

Thanks for all your replies. It's kind of like a mixed bag of results some prefering the S/C and others the N/A.
So I have concluded the following
1. The S/C is faster but heavier and does not have the rev happy agile nature of the NA but it replaces it with bags of torque....
This leaves me with the big question.
Which is more FUN to drive hard???

There's no easy answer to that. The SC is faster and especially so with the obvious mods. I think the key thing with an SC over an NA is if you have an SC with an LSD, it becomes very exploitable to steer on the throttle, especially so in the wet.

I'd say you get 95% of the fun of the SC with an NA. I had two SC conversions that were very modified. Then I went back to a MK1NA and loved that.

There's not much in it in summary really. I do prefer the revvy nature of the NA and it does have better throttle response than an SC.

[k10]

What about fuel economy for the S/C to bring real world running costs into the equation?

I get around 33 mpg on my N/A in mixed driving...

[Lauren]

What about fuel economy for the S/C to bring real world running costs into the equation?

I get around 33 mpg on my N/A in mixed driving...

Around 5mpg less. It depends how you drive it really. If you go really easy we achieved 39mpg once, but that was at 55 on the motorway all the way back from JAE 2005.

[ulysess1966]

I've owned one of each and the SC is a more exciting car, simple as that.

If fuel economy is an issue, fit a switch to disarm the blower, takes about an hour and you get that 'Mad Max' feel. Fuel economy will rise to around 35mpg if you drive carefully.