blower

[thinker]

this may sound like a really stupid question....but what is the purpose of a blower? i dont know much about engines so i was just wondering

[Coventrysucks]

A blower is a supercharger, which, put simply, increasese power and torque by forcing more air into the engine.
Turbos and superchargers are discussed in more detail in this thread (http://www.ultimatecarpage.com/forum/showthread.php?t=2892) :)

[thinker]

can they be put in any engine or duz it have to be a specific type...i usually see them in old school muscle cars and drag cars, but never in modern cars

[Ferrari Tifosi]

Yes they can be put on any engine, with the proper modifications to the fuel and ignition systems, and proper fabrication for the unit and its plumbing. But, yes, they can be put on any engine. One modern car that has a blown engine is the Koenisegg (is that how you spell it?) CC and CCR.

[thinker]

are those big blowers that go on classic cars street legal cars or only for dragin...but either way they look pretty tite

[Matra et Alpine]

are those big blowers that go on classic cars street legal cars or only for dragin...but either way they look pretty tite

Thre's no constraint in the UK n fitting blowers or turbos as long as it passes the gas emissions test.
I'm sure it would be the same in the US.

Sadly, however, in the UK, the insurance company takes a different view and engine mods can increase your insurance by a LOT. So you have the freedom to chose to add one but you will likely be unable to afford the premium. I've seen Minis (original) costing more than a Ferrari because he fitted a race engine and racing rear beam axle. Most boy-racers won't tell their insurance company they've made mods :eek:

BTW new MINI Cooper S uses a supercharger (blower) and the Mercedes "Kompressor" all use superchargers - that's German for blower :).

[Falcon500]

New ford mustang cobra use superchargers from the factory...Studebaker used alot of that back in the day...their prize peice would of been the R4 and r3 avantis (the r4 useing twin eaton superchragers and being the untimelyclassic that rewrote the books at the salt flats back then anyways) Ford also used some supercharging on someof their Y block engine f100s and thunder birds where popular....
Super chargers have also found their way on GMtrucks 6/71are popular andare well noted forbeing fiddled with and adapted to car engines...hence the old school part your talking about...

[Wouter Melissen]

The Blower name will forever be connected with the 1929 4 1/2 litre Bentley, with the supercharger fitted. Although it's most likely the best known of the original Bentleys, it was from the successful.

Mercedes Benz used engageable superchargers for most of their top of the range models throughout the 1930s.

[Falcon500]

The Blower name will forever be connected with the 1929 4 1/2 litre Bentley, with the supercharger fitted. Although it's most likely the best known of the original Bentleys, it was from the successful.

Mercedes Benz used engageable superchargers for most of their top of the range models throughout the 1930s.
ps i know other used it befor ethe companys i mention but im talking inside m,y experiance :)

[NAZCA C2]

Mercedes Benz uses superchargers in many of their cars such as the E55 AMG and the SLK 230 kompressor.

[RaceStudebakers]

.......Studebaker used alot of that back in the day...their prize peice would of been the R4 and r3 avantis (the r4 useing twin eaton superchragers and being the untimelyclassic that rewrote the books at the salt flats back then anyways) <SNIPPED>...

Correction; Studebaker, (production cars), put a single McCulloch, variable supercharger on their '57 & '58 Golden Hawk, almost every '57 Packard that went out the factory door and the '58 Packard Hawk. Then again, a single Paxton supercharger was installed in '63 & '64 on the R2 and R3 Avanti and certain "package" Hawks and Larks. The R4 Avanti, (EXTREMELY rare), was fitted with a two-four barrel carb. setup.

The "the r4 useing twin eaton superchragers" Avanti that you've referred to would probably be the private entry, twin supercharged Avanti, "Duo Centro", (it was never a company effort).

Studebaker powered Studebakers are still competing and winning races in almost all racing venues, including setting records at Bonneville, to this very day. Also noteworthy is their impact at the Pure Stock Muscle Car Drag competitions.

This is an R4 powered Avanti...
http://racingstudebakers.com/coppermine/albums/userpics/10001/normal_R4w2X4bbls.jpg

Many more high performance Studebaker pictures here...
http://racingstudebakers.com/coppermine/index.php

[henk4]

Correction; Studebaker, (production cars), put a single McCulloch, variable supercharger on their '57 & '58 Golden Hawk, almost every '57 Packard that went out the factory door and the '58 Packard Hawk. Then again, a single Paxton supercharger was installed in '63 & '64 on the R2 and R3 Avanti and certain "package" Hawks and Larks. The R4 Avanti, (EXTREMELY rare), was fitted with a two-four barrel carb. setup.

The "the r4 useing twin eaton superchragers" Avanti that you've referred to would probably be the private entry, twin supercharged Avanti, "Duo Centro", (it was never a company effort).

Studebaker powered Studebakers are still competing and winning races in almost all racing venues, including setting records at Bonneville, to this very day. Also noteworthy is their impact at the Pure Stock Muscle Car Drag competitions.

welcome to UCP...this seems a bit like an old thread, maybe you can add some words to the Studebaker Avanti thread as well...

[RaceStudebakers]

welcome to UCP...this seems a bit like an old thread, maybe you can add some words to the Studebaker Avanti thread as well...

Thanks for the welcome Doug. I was just lookin' over the Studebaker postings here. There's usually many errors in Studebaker histories as posted. Although they were a significant car maker until the 60's, seems like the fables and facts get mixed with alarming regularity. ;)

Studebakers still enjoy a fairly large following, and a renewed effort is going into putting them into the prformance arenas, once again. They have very stout drive trains and the V8 engines, (small block status), have much untapped potential. In particular, their success and acceptance at the PSMCD has been great inspiration, (although they do race in many other venues).

Thanks again for the welcome. I know that I'll enjoy my visits, (when I CAN visit! :D )

[Cedric]

this may sound like a really stupid question....but what is the purpose of a blower? i dont know much about engines so i was just wondering

They just force more air into the engine, which means more oxygen, resulting in a more powerful combustion.
Blowers are normally mechanically driven forced induction systems (by the crankshaft), whereas turbos are driven by exhaust gases.
The advantage of a blower is that you have more power on tap even in the lower rev range. A typical blower is the Roots supercharger, which uses rotating lobes which suck and force air into the engine. The fast spinning lobes are separated by tenths of a millimetre and never touch each other, thus not causing friction and omitting the need for lubrication. Therefore, oil-free air can be fed to the cylinders.
These blowers make a distinctive sound, a bit like a high-pitched whine.
Blowers were very popular in the 1930s and they were first used in fighter aircraft to increase power during high-altitude flights.

[RaceStudebakers]

The Blower name will forever be connected with the 1929 4 1/2 litre Bentley, with the supercharger fitted. Although it's most likely the best known of the original Bentleys, it was from the successful.

Mercedes Benz used engageable superchargers for most of their top of the range models throughout the 1930s.

I believe, (at least in the US), that Studebakers would be the car most associated with the use of "blowers". The McColloch and Paxton superchargers are "blow through" systems, therefore the "blower" nomenclature.

Although there were a few noteworthy US car makers putting superchargers on, (Ford, Hudson, etc.), they were very "special" models, and are very rare and expensive these days. Studebaker put out MANY supercharged, “street” cars, all destined for many road miles, and tuned as such. In fact, Studebaker supercharging parts are still fairly easy to find and fairly priced. I have a couple of '57 Packard Hawk supercharged engines myself. A running, complete, early supercharged Studebaker engine can be had for around $4,500 US.

The later model Studebaker supercharged engines/setups are rather more rare and expensive, as the R2, R3 and R4 engines are "different" from early supercharged engines and later non-supercharged Studebaker engines. The R-series engines are actually 304 cubic inch motors, different heads and engine accessory configurations. In fact, each R3 and R4 engine was purpose-built by the Granetelli organization, then returned to Studebaker for installation. The R3 and R4 engines have very much improved, unique intake and heads, as well as many improved internal parts, and were balanced and blueprinted. Recently, a complete, zero miles R3 engine, (that had been in the Studebaker museum), went for somewhere around $25,000.00, (the same owner of the R3 also had a zero time R4!). There’s a low-miles R3 for sale on ebay, as we speak, with a reserve of around $24,000.00.

Grrr.... I see that we can't include links to ebay here, (PLUS, if a fella takes a few extra minutes comprising his post he gets "timed out"... :mad: ). In ANY event, it's worth a trip to ebay motors to see a real R3, (as he's pictured the engine apart, with the engine internal parts displayed). Do an ebay search for "R3" in the "Vintage Car and Truck Parts" section....