Turbo Basic

Turbocharger: an exhaust-gas driven device used in internal combustion engines to improve engine performance by forcing more air into the combustion chamber, improving its process and resulting in a larger power output.

Invented by Swiss engineer Alfred Buchi, the patent for the internal combustion turbocharger was applied for in 1905 and first began to appear in diesel-powered ships and locomotives in the 1920s.

Basically, a turbocharger consists of a turbine and a compressor linked by an axis. At the turbine end, exhaust gases from the engine passes through causing the turbine wheel to rotate. This rotation is transmitted to the compressor through the axis and this end of the turbocharger compresses ambient air, forcing it into the engine.

With its need for high-power and low weight, the aviation industry was one of the early adopters of the technology and turbochargers began to appear in production aircraft engines in the 1930s. The turbocharger was particularly useful as it could increase the altitude at which the airplane could fly, by compensating for the lower air present at high altitude.

So which was the first car maker to put in a turbo and when did this happen? This distinction for being the first to produced turbocharged automobile engines goes to General Motors and this happened in 1962. The ‘General’ put turbochargers into the A-body Oldsmobile Cutlass Jetfire. Its Turbo Jetfire was a 3.5-litre V8.

Soon, the continental makes were adopting the technology with gusto. BMW had great success with its 2002 Turbo launched in 1973, and Porsche soon closed the gap with the first 911 Turbo introduced at the 1974 Paris Motor Show. With its simple concept of increasing power, turbocharged cars dominated the Le Mans endurance races between 1976 and 1994.

It has been 102 years since Buchi patented the turbocharger, and it is still charging strong.