Supercharger for towing

[SteveoTahoe]

I read a lot of threads about superchargers. Seems as if the performance gains are awesome. I haven’t see too much about how much you notice these while towing. I am considering a supercharger but only so I have more towing torque. I need reliability. I just don’t want to spend 7k and not notice a big difference while towing. Anyone else install one for this reason? Mine is a 5.3 with the 6 speed and max trailering.

 

[Joseph Garcia]

I cannot personally help you with your question; however, other members on this Forum that have superchargers in stalled will chime in.

 

[Bill 1960]

I have not done that specific mod. However similar mods to other tow vehicles (finally) convinced me that performance mods are the enemy of reliability. I leave my towing vehicles as built now.

Issues of particular concern will likely be engine cooling and keeping the trans together.

 

[STORMIN08]

look into what most call the stage 1 or 2 cam....those seem to offer the best result bang for the dollar.

look up Richard Holdner on Youtube, he is a former westech dyno tech and has a ton of video with numerous levels of mods to LS, LT and SBC engines...all very good stuff

 

[STORMIN08]

Richard Holdener, Author at EngineLabs

www.enginelabs.com

 

[Foggy]

Mine is the GenIV, so a bit different.. But when adding my edlebrock SC
I really don't thing any reliability changed at all...
I did it for the same reason as you want to. Although mine is the 6.2, but
you have more gears in trans and direct injection.. From what I've found direct injected
motors Love forced induction.
I did have to upgrade my Radiator to deal with the extra heat of SC and towing.
The major drawback is MPG... My MPG dropped from 16-17 not towing hiway to 13-14
and while towing from 9-10 mpg to about 6 mpg. I do have lots more power, but
I think if i were to get a do over, I'd go with cam and head mods... Or a centrifugal supercharger
instead of a roots PDS type SC.

 

[SteveoTahoe]

look into what most call the stage 1 or 2 cam....those seem to offer the best result bang for the dollar.

look up Richard Holdner on Youtube, he is a former westech dyno tech and has a ton of video with numerous levels of mods to LS, LT and SBC engines...all very good stuff

Thanks I will check it out

 

[SteveoTahoe]

Mine is the GenIV, so a bit different.. But when adding my edlebrock SC
I really don't thing any reliability changed at all...
I did it for the same reason as you want to. Although mine is the 6.2, but
you have more gears in trans and direct injection.. From what I've found direct injected
motors Love forced induction.
I did have to upgrade my Radiator to deal with the extra heat of SC and towing.
The major drawback is MPG... My MPG dropped from 16-17 not towing hiway to 13-14
and while towing from 9-10 mpg to about 6 mpg. I do have lots more power, but
I think if i were to get a do over, I'd go with cam and head mods... Or a centrifugal supercharger
instead of a roots PDS type SC.

Yeah I was wondering about the mpg, didn’t consider the radiator but that’s good to know

 

[Thrust]

Some tuners can provide tow tunes. I doubt you will overheat with a supercharger. My concerns would be cat temps and trans life, if stock transmission.

 

[swathdiver]

I read a lot of threads about superchargers. Seems as if the performance gains are awesome. I haven’t see too much about how much you notice these while towing. I am considering a supercharger but only so I have more towing torque. I need reliability. I just don’t want to spend 7k and not notice a big difference while towing. Anyone else install one for this reason? Mine is a 5.3 with the 6 speed and max trailering.

These motors love blowers! They use about half a horsepower while cruising so no real loss in fuel efficiency when you're not on the throttle. Supercharger torque is instantaneous so it will hold gears longer before shifting while towing. These supercharger kits add about 100-120 Horsepower to a 5.3. They are very reliable and GM even warrants the add-on kits that came with some special editions from Lingenfelter, Hennessey, Calloway, etc.

 

[iamdub]

I read a lot of threads about superchargers. Seems as if the performance gains are awesome. I haven’t see too much about how much you notice these while towing. I am considering a supercharger but only so I have more towing torque. I need reliability. I just don’t want to spend 7k and not notice a big difference while towing. Anyone else install one for this reason? Mine is a 5.3 with the 6 speed and max trailering.

These motors love blowers! They use about half a horsepower while cruising so no real loss in fuel efficiency when you're not on the throttle. Supercharger torque is instantaneous so it will hold gears longer before shifting while towing. These supercharger kits add about 100-120 Horsepower to a 5.3. They are very reliable and GM even warrants the add-on kits that came with some special editions from Lingenfelter, Hennessey, Calloway, etc.

^^^This!

For towing, I'd pick a blower long before a cam. With a quality blower setup, a proper tune and non-race use, you're not gonna hurt your engine or trans and fuel economy should be almost unchanged when not using the boost. Twin screw is best for sustained loads due to higher efficiency and lower heat, but they're also the most expensive. Second place would be a Roots type. I wouldn't even bother with a centrifugal for towing use.

 

[THarber]

PD blower will give you instant torque but is not as efficient on long hauls at upper rpms. A turbo or belt driven supercharger would be better for that. A cam and tune will not give you that added 100 to 150 hp boost like any of the above. AS long as you keep your foot out of it, none should really cause a loss of mpg. I have thought long and hard about a pd blower for my 6.2 but lately am leaning towards a single turbo. My tuner drives a single turbo Avalanche and unless you really jump all over it, it is as docile as stock. Once you put your put into it however, its a beast. He's pushing about 750hp and still on the stock long block.

Tim

 

[iamdub]

PD blower will give you instant torque but is not as efficient on long hauls at upper rpms. A turbo or belt driven supercharger would be better for that. A cam and tune will not give you that added 100 to 150 hp boost like any of the above. AS long as you keep your foot out of it, none should really cause a loss of mpg. I have thought long and hard about a pd blower for my 6.2 but lately am leaning towards a single turbo. My tuner drives a single turbo Avalanche and unless you really jump all over it, it is as docile as stock. Once you put your put into it however, its a beast. He's pushing about 750hp and still on the stock long block.

Tim

Hopefully, he's not gonna be towing at high RPM. The point of boost is to increase the efficiency/power of the engine (air pump) so that it doesn't need to spin faster (in a lower gear) to move air. The use of the supercharger or turbo is load-based with a vacuum-operated bypass valve, so it'll automatically be employed based on load rather than RPM. If the engine is making more power, it won't need to be in a lower gear so it'll be spinning at normal highway RPM, and hopefully in a higher gear or two than where it does now.

I agree that a turbo is even more ideal in terms of efficiency. When sized properly, it can closely match the low-RPM boost of a PD blower, but this means it'll "uncle out" about the same as the blower in the upper RPM. Either would be a gain across the board and he's not aiming for upper RPM/racing power. By belt-driven, I assume you meant a centrifugal SC. This, as well, would be a gain across the board. But it wouldn't be maximized down low where he needs it for towing. Being RPM-dependent, his engine would have about the same power curve it has now, just raised. So, if he needed more power for towing, his trans would have to stay in a lower gear. Maybe a gear higher than if it were stock. But, still not as efficient/effective as a PD blower.

 

[SteveoTahoe]

I really just want to lower rpm’s at cruising speeds while towing and improve torque. It’s a big investment at 7k. Is the 6.2l worlds better for towing? If it is maybe I should just look to upgrade. Of course that’s more than 7k !

 

[iamdub]

I really just want to lower rpm’s at cruising speeds while towing and improve torque. It’s a big investment at 7k. Is the 6.2l worlds better for towing? If it is maybe I should just look to upgrade. Of course that’s more than 7k !

IMO, the boosted 5.3 is the more economical route. It's not only cheaper than buying a whole other vehicle, you'll only need to feed 5.3 liters versus 6.2. So, when not towing or playing, you'll benefit from the better fuel economy. The boosted 5.3 will be stronger than the NA 6.2.

 

[THarber]

I really just want to lower rpm’s at cruising speeds while towing and improve torque. It’s a big investment at 7k. Is the 6.2l worlds better for towing? If it is maybe I should just look to upgrade. Of course that’s more than 7k !

PD blower then, hands down. Yes the 6.2 is a beast compared to the 5.3 but the blower will make a huge difference. Look at the whipple 3.0 or 2.9. They are priced about the same but the 3.0 also requires a new ECM and custom tune where as the 2.9 is more or less a bolt on and comes with a tune. Magnuson also has some great units. They are are within a few hundred bucks of each other unless you find a smaller 2.3 somewhere.
Tim

 

[SteveoTahoe]

Thanks for the input. I think I’m going to give it a go. Just can’t justify a new vehicle. I looked at the magnussen and the whipple, from what I can tell the mag is what the factory uses and seems to be a good bolt on option

 

[BoosTTed C6]

5.3 Liter with TVS 1900 and max towing package. When I pull my enclosed with the car inside (appx 7200 lbs), I do not even know the trailer is back there. It climbs hills nicely as well. Best thing I did because, before hand, it was terrible to tow with - gutless, always down shifting, tough to climb anything but the mildest of grades.

 

[Rocket Man]

I have a Whipple on my 02 6.0 and it tows and hauls awesome. And I’m expecting no reliability issues. The only maintenance required for the blower is to change its oil at 100k miles, as well as to make sure the intercooler tank is kept full.

 

[avalonandl]

Just be ready to use 93 octane. But I like the SC....