http://forums.corvetteforum.com/zerothread?id=264996

Anybody have information on an electric supercharger or power steering pump?

 

I don't recall who the manufacturer is.. but there is more than one manufacturer out there using a "roots" type blower with an electrically activated clutch assembly that engages or disengages the blower at low rpms or part throttle. I'll think of it sooner or later! :crazy:

 

I read somewhere [a long time ago in a land far away] that the Road Warrior car actually used an electric clutch on the supercharger. My question is, what's the point? I think the ricers :smash: would pay a bunch for it.

 

I don't think an electric clutch is quite what we are getting at here. I think the idea is an electric motor that compresses the incoming air. The problem is going to be the size of motor and the RPM's required to be effective. To build any decent amount of boost you will probably be looking at a fairly large motor, you run into some other problems as well.

The same principal that makes an electric water pump work well will kill you on an electric blower. If the boost doesn't build with engine speed you will loose a good deal of the benefit yet if you have high boost at idle you are not doing any good things either. I'm sure it can be done, but it will be cumbersome to say the least.

 

What I'm really after is an electric power steering pump. If I get one of those (if they exist) it will make enough room (I think) to mount a supercharger onto an LT-5. The electric supercharger would be an easier route, but it looks like that's a non-existant possibility for a larger than 3.0 liter engine.

 

I have another idea for you. check out how mallet "lays down" the radiator on the C5 blower cars. they then have lots of room up front for mounting a reverse rotation blower. you may also have to relocate the AC canister, but this gives you quite a bit of room for that blower and intercooler if desired.

I'm very interested in a blown LT5 as you know. they twin turbo route has been done, but a blower can work well too. packaging is the key as you know.

maybe this would work and allow the blower some room.

mallet did an SB2 blower car that had a very complex pulley drive system for their "one lap car" very stout machine making over 1000 HP.

the other option might be a modified upper plenum (flat box) with the new magnacharger the c5 guys are using.

very efficient blower and if you get rid of the secondary actuators, and replace the "crab" upper half of the intake, it might work.

food for thought. :yesnod:

 

Looks like if you remove the fan shroud (replace with push-through mount fans mounted low) and remove the power steering pump you'd have about 8 inches or so behind the pulley. That's close but not quite enough to do air ducting too. An alternative to laying the radiator down is to stand it up with a shorter radiator. I believe the earlier C4s had an arrangement like that. With a little cutting you could go to a 29" wide radiator to make up for some of the height lost. You could also move the air filter to behind the radiator to free up a couple of inches up height, so maybe the stock height will work.

I just need to find out how much room you'd need. And find out what to do about the power steering. If there is not an electric pump available, I wonder if anyone makes a non-power rack that's easy enough to use. A little higher steering effort would be acceptable to me if I could get forced induction out of the deal :)


[Modified by 91mongoose, 9:50 AM 4/7/2002]

 

by any means possible!!! have you contacted TRW??? they have the electric assist rack and pinion I believe. the blown ZR1 is worth the hassle, but not for the faint of heart. are you going to lower the compression??? I'm looking into alchy injection to keep the high compression AND run the boost. the import guys are having pretty good success and the LT5 combusition chamber is very detonation resistant IMHO> :jester

 

If (read when) I come up with the funds to do this I most likely will go with stock compression at first to see how it behaves. I'm sure others will want to try this if it works, and changing the compress drives the cost of the project sky-high since you'd essentially be building a 368 to lower the compression. With two motors sitting around, I can build the second one at 8.5 to 1 and try that if I'm not happy with the results of the stock compression motor.

I have not contacted TRW, that's a good idea.

 

after seeing the shaft driven magnacharger on the c5 I wonder if a custom manfold would allow the manacharger to adapt to the LT5. It would require removing the secondary actuators or running the blower "up high";

the starter might present problems too but this blower is very efficient, priced right, and adapting a manfold that mounts the blower in the valley wouldn't be too horrendous.

what do you think??

 

There is a lot of stuff in the valley. You've got the oil breather, the ign. coils, the ign. module, the secondary throttle system, the starter, and the evap. canister purge solenoid and vacuum hookups. I think you'd have a hard time making it fit because there is no way to move the starter or the oil breather. Even if you moved everything else you'd be left with a space about 3.5" high by 12" long before you modified the manifold.

Having spent the past 1/2 week being very intimately involved with the engine compartment (starting from empty) I still think the only place to put it is on the front of the motor up high. It'd have to be at hte level of the PS pump or higher because there is a cross beam in front of the engine below that. I think if the air intake were moved to behind the radiator and the radiator was then stood upright as far as possible the room might exist. Better yet, you could plump the air intake for the S/C to up where the AIR pump is (or was if there's not enough room) so you'd be getting cooler air.

A standard C5 radiator is and inch wider and an inch shorter than the Ron Davis unit I'm running now, I bet you could stand it vertical or maybe even tip it forward. Replumbing the cooling hoses, the A/C lines, and the oil cooler lines would be problematic for making it a "kit". You'd need at least the following to make a kit:

1) Electric P/S pump or a non-power steering rack (non-power steering would remove about the same weight as the S/C would add, nice!)
2) New custom upper radiator shroud
3) New custom fan shroud or push on mount fans
3) New custom radiator (maybe)
4) New custom air intake plumbing
5) New custom oil cooler lines
6) New custom A/C lines from the dryer to the condensor and the evap to condensor.
7) New custom upper and lower radiator hoses.
8) The supercharger (duh!)
9) A chip that accounts for the boost
10) Probably some custom brakets for steering solution, S/C mounting, and other little issues.

I'd guess about an 8-10 hour install for a real mechanic, double that for a shade tree guy.

 

thanks mongoose. what SC are you thinking about. a reverse rotation Vortech or Paxton novi???

Kurt White is also very interested in doing a SC. I'm really more into twin turbos. while the TT will be more expensive and difficult, they have a bit more potential IMHO. I'm really interested in trying to mount the turbos (or a SC) up front like you.

the electric steering would indeed give you a mounting location!!! I saw lots of articles about this a while back in one of the car mags (Motor Trend I think) and I agree that a SC would be much easier.

I have toyed with alchy injection with the high compression to run some really high cyl pressure and make some serious mojo.

let me know what you have in mind. an LT5 with a hoover is a thing of beauty.

lots of people claim "it can't be done" which is all the encouragement I need. :p: :cheers: :cool:


[Modified by Rkreigh, 5:02 AM 4/9/2002]

 

That is a good reson to do it ! :yesnod:

 

I don't have a particular supercharger in mind yet. It will more than likely come down to dimensions and cost. I also want one that's internally lubricated, I don't want to be tapping oil lines, and if the S/C blows I don't want it taking my LT5 with it.

If anyone has any sugestions I am wide open. I am a novice as far as knowing witch S/C is better and why. It'd be cool if I could get someone to throw in the S/C for free in exchange for rights to the kit when it's finished.


[Modified by 91mongoose, 10:01 AM 4/9/2002]