12-01-2012, 10:18 AM
"Before we continue, I just want to get this out of the way. Word has it that the new BMW M3 is going to have a tri-turbo engine and that one of those blowers is going to be electric"
"I still haven't read any real definitive info on the BMW units, but from what I understand right now, they're working on a pretty clever idea. I believe the idea is to have a powerful motor in line with the impeller that will be used to help spool up the turbo to prevent lag. The turbo is then powered by the exhaust as normal. The electric motor could never keep up.
The really clever part though is that I've read they're going to do away with the wastegate and instead, use the motor as a generator to recover excess energy while keeping the turbo from over-boosting. The real engineering feat in all that, I'm sure, was to make all the bits withstand the heat involved.
Kudos to BMW for thinking outside the box. Not that we should be surprised.
"
"I still haven't read any real definitive info on the BMW units, but from what I understand right now, they're working on a pretty clever idea. I believe the idea is to have a powerful motor in line with the impeller that will be used to help spool up the turbo to prevent lag. The turbo is then powered by the exhaust as normal. The electric motor could never keep up.
The really clever part though is that I've read they're going to do away with the wastegate and instead, use the motor as a generator to recover excess energy while keeping the turbo from over-boosting. The real engineering feat in all that, I'm sure, was to make all the bits withstand the heat involved.
Kudos to BMW for thinking outside the box. Not that we should be surprised.
"