Which is better? Turbo or Supercharger

If you are a car fanatic you most likely like to go fast. Even if you are one of those guys that has a show car and doesn't drive it too much, you still wanna put the biggest fastest engine you can afford into it. Its just something that we all have in common, we all appreciate speed and think we drive like Alonso. But what is the best way to boost your engine? Turbo or Supercharger?

Turbos

Turbos are cool. Noone can deny that having the turbo spool up and the wastegate open up and make that swooosh sound is not just amazing. Straightpiping the car will also make the most amazing backfiring noises and will even spit some flames out the back. How cool can this be? But it's not just cool, it's fast. It will boost your horsies up by 20% to 50% if done properly. Most turbos are a bit cheaper than superchargers but you should have a remap and an intercooler at least in order to achieve peak performance. Whether you get a supercharger or turbocharger you will need some new internal components for your engine to properly take the force but it is well worth it.

Superchargers

Superchargers are old school. They work well across all RPM range and also make an awesome winding sound. There was a guy that lived next to me that had a G35 with a huge Pro Charger in it and it was like an airplane when he pushed the gas pedal. A supercharger is a bit simpler to install than a turbo and they seem to last a bit longer. You can tune it and make a decent car be pretty kick ass.

The Verdict

It just depends on what you have and what you are trying to achieve. If you have a 4 cylinder tuner, then go with a turbo. The lag is actually kind of fun as it sets an occasion for horsepower and if you are driving around the city mostly it will give you fun jerk from stop light to stop light. If you have a 454 Chevy under the hood of you car then slap a huge 2 liter supercharger on it and take it to the drag strip. Do some badass burnouts and let her loose on the green light. It might even do a wheelie.