When does "Turbo Boost" happen? How does it feel? Top Speed....?

van604

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Hi there, I've seem some posters talk about turbo boost in the forums, but I'm not sure exactly what they mean.

Do they mean...

1) When the turbo on the car is at the max (i.e. in the turbo screen on the dash), then the car will get a boost in acceleration?

2) When the car is at 5,000 RPM, the car will have massive acceleration?

I've found that the CivicX accelerates pretty fast and smoother, after turbo lag, pressing the throttle petal up to 3,500 RPM to 4,000 RPM. I've never taken it to 5,000 RPM (our roads/highways here are too short and usually has traffic. Or police).

So at 80mph/100kmph at 4,000 RPM, it's going really good. I'm assuming that at 5,000 RPM its going even faster.

The question is, when and where is there a 'boost' effect? Will I notice? IS THERE a sudden boost effect or does this refer to just faster acceleration at higher speeds and RPM?

PS: Side question, what is the actual top speed of the car?
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This is easy. The next time you drive, put the Turbo Boost meter up on your instrument area. Now as you drive, be careful and only push the accelerator enough so that the meter never goes above "0" and into the positive numbers. That will be you car operating without any "Turbo Boost". I think that you will find it aggravatingly hard. Turbo Boost is what makes these cars worthwhile with such a ridiculously small engine.
 
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van604

van604

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This is easy. The next time you drive, put the Turbo Boost meter up on your instrument area. Now as you drive, be careful and only push the accelerator enough so that the meter never goes above "0" and into the positive numbers. That will be you car operating without any "Turbo Boost". I think that you will find it aggravatingly hard. Turbo Boost is what makes these cars worthwhile with such a ridiculously small engine.
Yes, actually usually leave the Turbo Boost meter on the car dash and use it up to half to 3/4 of the way sometimes. I've never taken it to the max yet. The acceleration is really smooth on the car in these cases. When it goes to the max and if I do a sudden acceleration, does it suddenly go even faster?

I ask because I DO notice that the car is really going at about 4,000 RPM, but most cars are going pretty good at high RPM's. Trying to determine when there is a boost.

Afterall, my turbo started engaging at 15 km/h if I give it more gas. Surely that isn't a "turbo boost".
 

Streetkid

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"boost" is a word that people use to say "the turbo is in use". So when we say turbo boost we don't mean a magical point in time where all the power is there, just that the turbo is in use, or, boosting.
 

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There is no sudden "boost effect", it seems to pull as hard at 2500 - 3500 rpm as it does at 5000 - 6000 rpm
 


DKL

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Does anyone have a boost gauge in theirs?
I'm guessing it hits full (stock) boost before 3k rpm.
 
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van604

van604

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Does anyone have a boost gauge in theirs?
I'm guessing it hits full (stock) boost before 3k rpm.
This appears to be a function of how fast you depress the throttle and out gas in the cylinder. More gas means more air needed.

I.e. when you "step on it"
 

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Does anyone have a boost gauge in theirs?
I'm guessing it hits full (stock) boost before 3k rpm.
If you were to slam the gas from a stop you would be at full boost from 3-3.5k RPM
 

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Does anyone have a boost gauge in theirs?
This is your built in boost gauge. Use your steering wheel button to choose this display
Honda Civic 10th gen When does "Turbo Boost" happen? How does it feel? Top Speed....? 16_Civic_Sedan_124_0

Anything above zero is boost.

I just noticed that you have an LX. Your car doesn't have a turbo, so your car won't have this gauge.
 

NeoDragons

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This is your built in boost gauge. Use your steering wheel button to choose this display
Honda Civic 10th gen When does "Turbo Boost" happen? How does it feel? Top Speed....? 16_Civic_Sedan_124_0

Anything above zero is boost.

I just noticed that you have an LX. Your car doesn't have a turbo, so your car won't have this gauge.
All hatchbacks are turbo from the factory. the LX just has the base model cluster which has no boost gauge
 
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totopo

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hahaha, why speculate? you know there is google?

Boost refers to the pressure of the air above atmospheric going into the engine. It is influenced mostly by how much exhaust gas is coming out of the engine.

When the throttle body is closed or only slightly opened (light to no gas pedal), the engine doesn't produce much exhaust, the turbo doesn't spin or produce much boost.

When you stomp on the gas, the throttle body opens, the engine sucks in more air, but the turbo isn't spinning yet, so the air in the intake manifold is around atmospheric pressure. The exhaust from the cylinders starts spinning the turbo, and the turbo starts increasing the pressure in the intake manifold, which is like a positive feedback loop since more pressure in the intake manifold -> more exhaust -> spins turbo -> more pressure.

The delay from when you stomp on the pedal to when you start developing significant boost is termed "turbo lag." It doesn't really have much to do with RPM. You actually get more boost at lower rpm, especially for smaller turbos, as the flow rate goes up, the pressure developed drops.
 
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repeet

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All hatchbacks are turbo from the factory. the LX just has the base model cluster which has no boost gauge
Whoops, my bad. So Honda builds a turbo engine car that doesn't include a boost gauge. I never would have guessed that. I better stick to my trim level.
 

NeoDragons

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Whoops, my bad. So Honda builds a turbo engine car that doesn't include a boost gauge. I never would have guessed that. I better stick to my trim level.
Yeah, i thought it was weird when they first came out and noticed the gauge wasn't included. i just wished my gauges showed PSI # like on your the SI boost gauge.
 

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Whoops, my bad. So Honda builds a turbo engine car that doesn't include a boost gauge. I never would have guessed that. I better stick to my trim level.
It's fairly common actually. My 2014 WRX did not have a boost gauge.
 

yyzcbphatch

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Or, if you want good acceleration, down shift to S and give more gas to feel the power!!
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