lol, I totally disagree here. I would never say to not go with a S/C because it uses power to make extra, that's ridiculous- of course it does- but it still puts out far more power than NA. Obviously peak horsepower gains will always be had by turbo setups- but with a turbo you have a mechanical disconnect- so you have to wait for it to spool to gain power. With a SC, you get near full boost the instant you floor it (at least with a positive displacement SC).

It really depends what you're going for- there are just some circumstances where a turbo isn't as well suited as a supercharger.

Not to mention- lets look at the costs. Sure a turbo'd 3800 would make more power- but the base turbo kit starts about $2500 (and a fully optioned Stattama single turbo setup is over $5000). You can do a supercharged top swap for under $1000 (maybe even under $750 if you get the parts cheap enough). Sure the SC will make less power, but its also a fraction of the cost.


There is no bolt up twin turbo kit for a 3.8 monte carlo. There are turbo kits, but no twin turbo kit.

lol, horsepower tv is not a technical resource- they get paid by sponsors, and hence push their products. They also advertise all kinds of gains with special spark plugs and various oil additives and such- do you agree with all of those claims too?

You're talking apples and oranges here- a twin turbo 383 has no real relevance to a 3800. No 3800 has ever hit 1500 hp, the highest cars have been just shy of 1000 crank horsepower- one was a single turbo, the other was a twin (but not something you could bolt on).

Not to mention, the turbos needed to make 1500 horsepower aren't going to be well suited to a tight autocross track, or daily driving- they're going to take some rpm to get spooled up. On top of that, you're still going to need all of the mods to support that kind of horsepower- fueling, driveline, etc.

The thing with the 3800's is the biggest power, biggest single turbo setups (especially non-BB) tend to be laggy (not that it matters a ton because you're not going to hook much with a 500+ whp FWD car anyways).

 

are you goin to be doing all the work yourself? or paying someone to do it

 

I wasnt thinking of the 3800 when i wrote all that i was just explaining that the turbo kit is a lot better then a S/C and I am sorry but there are super chargers that are way more then a turbo kit if you want one worth using anyways a kid i know paid 7000 for his S/C and i am not trying to argue cause its just all opinion on who likes what anyways lol

 

I did the zzp kit on my 03. there were a few tuning issues in the beginning, but now i couldnt be happier. if your looking for tons of power, you'll be happy with the turbo. I have plenty of power and my car has been a lot of fun for me to mod over the last year and a half. love the whine of the supercharger, and its great knowing i can run with some V8's no problem. I wanted to go with a more american muscle approach to my car, and that is what really got me to go with a supercharger. For some reason to me, in my opinion a turbo belongs on more of an import car. thats just me though, not hating on anyone who has one.

 

Since that's what the OP is asking about, I think it is more pertinent. I still don't see the justification that a turbo kit is 'a lot better' than an SC. IMO, its a different ballpark, and a different mod level on 3800's. Since we have access to an OEM bolt on blower, that makes this engine different than almost any other out there.

So for those looking for relatively mild gains (ie under 300 whp)- the supercharger swap being under $1k and responding so well to bolt ons makes it a clear winner. For those wanting the most power possible, spending $3-5k on a turbo kit, plus all the supporting mods in the trans to run it- are better for those looking for upwards of 300whp.

Sure the supercharger head units can be far more expensive than a turbo, they're much more material overall. I was talking power wise. Also, for the 3800- there are no bolt on supercharger kits, other than the OEM one off the SC 3800's, and those superchargers can be had for $100 (plus another $400 for the parts to bolt it on)- that's compared to the $2500 minimum for a complete turbo kit.

 

I completely agree with you on turbos are more of an import thing and i was originally gonna go with a S/C on my car but when people are talking to much garbage on your car and they have cars with 600 horse i want to shut them up and line up my car pushing 8 or 900 horse i am all for my monte just making any other look like a lil b**ch

 

Yea it was more than I wanted to spend. I believe the base kit is around 1,700 or something like that..plus you can return your cores. I upgraded the pulley system, pcm, tb, injectors, fuel rails, fuel re-wire, porting etc. I can spin the tires at 40mph, so I guess im happy with the kit.

I was told supercharging is much easier on the engine, I was afraid of blowing it up, ha

 

What tunning problems did you have? I have some pcm problems, lean codes etc...?

 

haha, let me see if i can find the thread. basically what your gonna wanna do is use the zzp canned tune they give you with the kit and use it for a shotput, and go out and tune the car custom. I went with HP tuners at my local shop, and it pulled out some pretty impressive numbers with just the tune. basically, zzp tune was flooding the engine. cold starts were insane. i think after i installed the kit i was seeing like 217 to the wheels or something like that, after i did just the HP tune, i saw 234 to the wheels. after my intercooler, i saw 249 WHP and after headers and a retune i saw my current 277. power is there!

 

Yeah, there's nothing wrong with supercharging the 3800. They're a great way to make power and if you want something different than a turbo, it's a great option. I know that mine's a centrifugal supercharger but I love the power that's made and the sound of superchargers in general are great. Plus, if you do go with an M90 you can make it push 350whp. That's not bad for a street driven 3800.

A turbo will make more, but it also costs a lot more too. Either option is a good one imo.