Last updated on January 4th, 2024
Superchargers and Blowers, which help boost vehicle power output, are common and often confusing.
All blowers are superchargers, but not all superchargers are blowers, they’re another name for superchargers.
Knowing the meaning, functions, and differences between the two can be uneasy, especially for those new to the automotive industry.
This article will help to explain the differences and similarities between the two.
We’ll start with the meaning and use of each concept.
What’s Supercharger?
Superchargers are air compressors that enhance the air pressure supplied to internal combustion engines. They put additional oxygen into an engine to create more power.
Imagine a Supercharger as the air pump that’s bolted into the engine in order to enhance the density or pressure of the air channeled to an engine.
What superchargers do is increase the power that engines produce by pumping air or the mixture of air-fuel into an engine at a frequency beyond the atmospheric pressure force.
They can be used as a modification for race cars or street machines.
You can power Superchargers mechanically using a shaft, belt, or chain linked to the crankshaft engine.
Superchargers have 2 types;
- Positive displacement
- Dynamic compressors.
A positive displacement supercharger offers a continuous level of pressure increase at all the engine speeds.
The Dynamic Compressor supercharger doesn’t offer much pressure at lower speeds but provides rapid speed pressure that’s above the threshold.
What’s Blower?
A blower is a device or equipment that increases the air or gas velocity when passed via equipped impellers.
It’s designed to move gas and air from low to high pressure to do a given function.
A blower serves various applications in a wide range of industries, like automotive, conveying, cooling, ventilating, and exhausting.
Also, they’re used when the required pressure falls between a fan and a compressor.
All blowers are superchargers, but not all superchargers are blowers. Blowers are another name for superchargers, especially the roots-type of superchargers.
The roots-type superchargers come with 2 counter-rotating lobed rotors. They’re old and don’t compress air in the supercharger, rather they push air into the engine’s intake manifold.
How does a blower work? A blower increases gas or air pressure via the rotor centrifugal movement. It starts by taking in gas or air through an inlet valve that causes the rotors or impellers to rotate.
This will create a centrifugal force that propels the gas or air. As it happens, the gas or air will constantly compress with a linear increase in pressure.
There are 4 major kinds of blowers. Each has its uses, benefits, and disadvantages. They include:
- Positive Displacement Blowers
- Centrifugal Blowers
- High-Speed Blowers, and
- Regenerative Blowers
What’s a blower on a muscle car?
Blowers are great universal bolts on parts necessary for your car. It’s a simple way to improve your vehicle’s performance.
And what’s the aim of the muscle car blower? You’d need to apply more air to have more capacity for fuel. This is where a blower comes in.
Blowers increase air intake by compressing the air or gas without producing a vacuum.
This will push more air into your car’s engine and create a boost. With the additional air in your boost, there would be more quantity of fuel added to the charge that will increase the engine power.
| Blower | Supercharger |
| Takes in air and blows it into the engine | Compresses air and forces it into the engine |
| Can be used on both turbocharged and non-turbocharged engines | Can only be used on turbocharged engines |
| Creates boost at lower RPMs | Creates boost at higher RPMs |
| More affordable | More expensive |
Differences between Supercharger and Blower
Since the supercharger and blower are both air compressors and utilize forced inductions they seem to have no difference. However, the two functions are different.
We’ll see the differences under mount option, Force, Size, Device and structure, Mechanics, and Functions.
1. Mount option
Superchargers and blowers have differences in their mounting options. A supercharger is mounted on a vehicle front and piped to the intake. While blowers are mounted on the block intake.
2. Device and structure
Superchargers are air compressors equipment designed to enhance the pressure that pushes the air in the engine to enhance its density and permit the engine to have more oxygen cycles.
Blowers are just another term for superchargers, especially the roots-type supercharger.
3. Size
There’s also a small difference between the two in size. A blower sticks out from the hood, while a supercharger is fit in.
4. Mechanics and force
Though the aim of blowers and superchargers are almost the same, they’re driven differently.
Superchargers are belt-driven and can force only air to the manifold. In other words, they’re driven mechanically through the belt that runs from the crankshaft or via electric motors.
On the other hand, blowers force in both fuel mixture and air.
5. Displacement
Superchargers are compared to pumps since the displacement happens using a pump stroke. On the other hand, a blower works as a fan since they apply less displacement when operating.
A blower uses some centrifugal forces to push air or gas forward. Meanwhile, root blowers don’t compress air inside or internally on the supercharger, rather they push the air into the engine intake manifold.
6. Functions
Superchargers increase the engine volumetric efficiency by creating positive boost pressures across an engine manifold in the operating range.
Meanwhile, root blowers use 2 counter-rotating meshed lobed rotors in producing positive displacement pumps. These rotors are synchronized with one another to maintain a small gap in-between the rotors continuously.
The air is trapped in the space linking the lobes and later passed below it while forced into the engine.
While superchargers can be used as a modification for race cars or street machines, blowers are utilized in passenger automobile applications, especially for a two-stroke diesel engine.
Frequently Asked Questions
What’s Supercharger?
Superchargers are air compressors that enhance the air pressure supplied to internal combustion engines. They put more oxygen into an engine to create more power.
What’s Blower?
A blower is a device or equipment that increases the air or gas velocity when passed via equipped impellers. It’s designed to move gas and air from low to high pressure to do a given function.
What’s a blower on a muscle car?
Blowers are great universal bolts on parts necessary for your car. It’s a simple way to improve your vehicle’s performance.
Blowers increase air intake by compressing the air or gas without producing a vacuum. This will push more air into your car’s engine and create a boost.
What’s the main similarity between Blower and Supercharger?
Supercharger and blower are both air compressors and utilize forced inductions. They increase the power that engines produce by pumping air into the engine at a rate beyond the atmospheric pressure force.
What’s the major difference between Blower and Supercharger?
A supercharger is mounted on a vehicle front and piped to the intake. While blowers are mounted on the block intake.
Also, superchargers are belt-driven and can force only air to the manifold. While blowers force in both fuel mixture and air.
Final Analysis: Blower Vs. Supercharger
Superchargers and blowers are common and often confusing.
While some believe there’s no difference between the two, others see blower as a slang name for a supercharger for those who can’t pronounce or spell supercharger.
In some cases, when people use the name “blower,” they mean a belt-driven supercharger.
Superchargers and blowers aim to increase the power that engines produce by pumping air in the engine at a frequency beyond the atmospheric pressure force.
All blowers are superchargers, however, not all superchargers are blowers. Blowers are just another term for superchargers, especially roots-type superchargers.
The roots-type superchargers are one of the oldest superchargers to be designed and mostly the first people remember when discussing Superchargers.
