What are some of the current innovations in turbochargers?
I started following when a friend finished his turbo build and impressed me with the performance he was able to get out of it, and questioned if I should consider changing plans for the engine project I was going to do. Yet from the vendors performance claims I was going through, it was hard to evaluate the intent for the evolution of turbo technology from that alone. I browsed Alibab for sure what they were specifying - which geometry of compressor wheels, what bearing type, the A/R ratio of turbine housing? Winglet wastegate integrations vs non-integrated, showed me the spectrum across a supplier listing. That engine building and performance automotive Facebook group though that had members who follow turbocharger development and discuss what innovations with technical specificity, showed me what’s the recent fads for them. I kept spotting mentions for BorgWarner’s EFR series with its ball bearing design and response characteristics and Garrett’s newest G-series with mentions of compressor efficiency improvements. Someone explained in there that twin-scroll turbine housing designs are recently much more accesible at non-exotic pricepoints which changes the math for a moderate-budget build significantly. I compared that against alibaba supplier technical documentation and understand what that specification language in the facebook group discussion actually looks like in component terms. I kind of carried out that with what the community knowledge were and combined with Alibaba’s technical resource gave me like, genuinely informed view. My engine project.
Posted May 12, 2026, 2:56 PM UTC