Are Turbocharged Engines Reliable? The Truth About Turbo Engines

is it safe to buy a car with a turbocharged  engine or should you avoid them at all costs   that's what we're gonna find out welcome to crop  corner where we help you the consumer master   the process of car buying and car ownership  if you are a regular viewer of the channel   you might have noticed that i'm often quite  critical of cars that have turbocharged engines   but what exactly is a turbocharged engine and how  do they compare to non-turbo naturally aspirate   engines what are the pros and cons and probably  most importantly of all are they safe to buy in   terms of long-term reliability and repair costs  well make sure to stick around until the end the   video because that's what we're gonna find out and  if you enjoy and get value out of this video make   sure to subscribe to my channel i post two videos  a week always straight to the point valuable car   buying advice designed to help you the consumer  so before we get into the reliability concerns   let's go over what a turbocharged engine is a  turbocharger also known as a turbo is basically   like a small turbine which is powered by the  exhaust gas of the engine with the help of an   intercooler to help keep everything nice and cool  this is used to force more air into the engine to   make more power the reason why car manufacturers  love turbocharged engines is because they allow   a small more efficient engine to create the same  amount of power as a larger less efficient engine   this means that you can have a smaller more  fuel efficient engine with better emissions too   that produces more power which is what  a lot of consumers are looking for   let's go over a quick example to show exactly  how this works using the 2022 honda civic which   is available with both a naturally aspirated  engine and a turbo engine the naturally   aspirated 2-liter 4-cylinder engine produces  158 horsepower and 138 pound-feet of torque   it also achieves an average of 33 miles per gallon  or 7.1 liters per 100 kilometers the optional 1.5   liter turbo four-cylinder engine however produces  180 horsepower and 178 pound-feet of torque   this is 22 more horsepower and 40 pound-feet  of torque more than the base engine which is   significant but on the flip side the smaller  1.5 turbo engine also achieves 34 miles per   gallon or 6.9 liters per 100 kilometers so not  only is it more powerful but it's also slightly   more fuel efficient too and this is exactly why  so many car makers are moving to turbo engines   you get better power better fuel economy with  fewer emissions so it's basically a win-win for   everybody although most turbo engines do perform  amazing most of the concerns around them have   to do with long-term reliability repair costs and  serviceability the first major concern with turbo   engines is the fact that they have a lot more  parts than a comparable naturally aspirated engine   with a turbocharged engine you of course have the  turbocharger itself as the main additional part   you also have an intercooler which is a bit like  a small radiator to keep everything nice and cool   and you also have all the additional parts and  hardware that go along with these two components   all of this adds a lot of complexity to  the engine and means that you have a lot   more potential parts to replace down the road in  terms of repair costs and yes it's not uncommon   for a lot of these parts to fail down the road  even sometimes during the warranty period too   take for example the redesigned 2022 toyota  tundra pickup truck which replaced the old v8   engine with a brand new 3.5 liter twin turbo v6  engine although it's a great performing engine   there have been many reported issues with the  turbochargers and the electronically actuated   wastegates which are known to fail and when these  parts do fail it's a huge job in order to replace   them because they're located at the back of the  engine so most of the truck needs to come apart   and that's the issue with these engines they can  be very difficult to work on labor can be quite   intensive and the parts are very expensive too  ask anyone who's owned any gm vehicle with the   turbocharged 1.4 liter four-cylinder ecotec engine  this was one of the first mainstream turbo engines   to come out in a simple economy car way back in  2010 and ever since that time it's had ongoing   issues with the engine and the turbocharger  itself which is known to fail at an alarming rate   and there are countless other examples of  problematic turbo engines from other brands too   including from brands like hyundai and kia bmw  volkswagen and audi which all make regular use of   turbo engines now the other issue is that not only  is a turbocharged engine more complicated with   additional parts that need to be replaced but it  also puts a lot of additional heat and pressure on   the engine itself which can shorten the lifespan  of the engine turbochargers work at extremely high   temperature and because they're basically  pressurizing air and forcing more air into   the engine this can put a lot more strain on the  engine itself compare that to a naturally aspirate   engine which not only has far fewer parts but also  doesn't have all the added heat and pressure of a   turbo all of which helps to increase its lifespan  there are many examples out there of how all this   additional heat and pressure can lead to a lot  more additional problems down the road with   a turbocharged engine one great example of this  can be seen with ford's ecoboost 4-cylinder turbo   engines unfortunately ford's 4-cylinder ecoboost  engines have an inherent defect where coolant   can leak into the cylinders which can lead to  corrosion misfires and sometimes complete engine   failure this coolant issue is ultimately caused  by the added heat of the turbochargers which   puts a lot of additional strain on the engine and  ultimately ruins the seals of the cylinder head   this loss of coolant can also sometimes lead to  internal engine damage and even cracked cylinder   heads and ford's ecoboost engines are not the only  turbo engines that are known to experience these   type of issues there have also been many reported  issues with bmw's turbo engines especially the   twin turbo v8s bmw's twin turbo v8 has a somewhat  unique design where the turbochargers are located   inside the via the engine this does give you  better power but also creates all kinds of   unique issues because all of that added heat  from the turbos is right inside the engine   and all that additional heat causes these seals on  the engine to fail causing oil leaks coolant leaks   and sometimes even engine failure now sometimes  the issue with turbo engines is not necessarily   related to defective parts or the design of the  engine itself sometimes it just has to do with the   way that the car is driven which leads me to the  next reliability issue with turbo engines which is   that they don't really tolerate short distance  driving or extremely cold weather that well   turbo engines can be somewhat temperamental and  sensitive and most of them need a lot of time   in order to warm up to operating temperature  before they can perform properly so if you're   the type of person that does very short distance  driving like say only a few miles or kilometers   before shutting off the car this could lead  to major reliability issues down the road   not giving a turbocharged engine enough time  to warm up could lead to all kinds of issues   including a buildup of condensation and a buildup  of carbon on the intake valves of the engine   this is especially true of engines that have  direct fuel injection which are known for carbon   buildup with both turbo and non-turbo engines and  the situation is even worse for those who live in   extremely cold weather like severe winter which  makes it even harder for the turbo engine to warm   up properly there have been many examples of how  short distance driving and extremely cold weather   can be very problematic for turbo engines one of  the best examples of this can be seen with honda's   1.5 liter turbo 4 cylinder engine yes the same  engine that i was referencing earlier because this   engine is so efficient it needs a lot of time in  order to warm up properly so if you're the type of   person that does a lot of short distance driving  in cold weather it could lead to issues down the   road especially oil dilution where the fuel mixes  with the engine oil causing all kinds of problems   even though honda worked very hard to fix this  issue and did introduce a lot of updates for 2019   it's still sometimes an issue for those who do  very short distance driving in cold weather and   ultimately nothing is really going to fix that  problem because turbo engines just don't tolerate   that type of driving this could also potentially  become a problem for a lot of the turbo engines   that are used on hybrid cars like a lot of the  hyundai and kia hybrid suvs the issue here is that   a hybrid system is naturally designed to turn the  engine on and off on a regular basis which is not   a good thing for a turbocharged engine in normal  circumstances turbo engines not only need a lot   of time in order to warm up but they also don't  really like to be turned on and off all the time   because it creates way too many heat and cooling  cycles which could lead to a lot of issues down   the road which is why a turbo engine is not only  bad for short distance driving but it's also not   very good for hybrid cars either and that brings  us to the next issue with turbo engines which has   to do with the maintenance now turbo engines  don't necessarily need more maintenance than   regular naturally aspirated cars but they are  a lot more sensitive to maintenance and they do   need to have oil changes done on time on a regular  basis now this wouldn't be much of a concern if   most car owners were very diligent with their  maintenance and had their oil changes done on   time on a regular basis but unfortunately that's  not the reality many car owners can be quite   neglectful and can stretch oil changes as long  as possible now even though a naturally aspirate   engine might be able to tolerate a little bit more  abuse that's not going to be the case with a turbo   engine which is not going to perform well if it's  been neglected so ultimately what does this mean   in terms of reliability and ownership costs is it  best to avoid a car with a turbo engine altogether   well like i mentioned if you're the type of person  that only holds onto their car for up to seven   to eight years at the most then you should be  safe buying a brand new car with a turbo engine   most of the issues that i outline typically  happen beyond the eight-year point   usually when the car is between 10 to 15 years old  but it's certainly not unheard of to hear about   all kinds of expensive issues with turbo  engines when they are relatively new   so i would say given the choice between either  a naturally aspirated engine any turbo engine   you're always safer buying the naturally aspirated  engine instead naturally aspirate engines have far   fewer parts they're much cheaper and easier to  service and because they don't have all the heat   and pressure issues of a turbo engine they can  last a lot longer too but if you're shopping   for a particular car that only comes with the  turbo engine and you have no other alternative   just make sure that you drive the car properly  for longer distances in order to warm it up to   operating temperature you also need to make sure  that you do all the proper maintenance on time in   order to maintain better long-term reliability but  if you're the type of person that's not very good   with staying on top of maintenance or if you do  a lot of short distance driving or live somewhere   with extremely cold weather then it might be best  just to avoid a turbo engine altogether so after   watching this video would you still buy a car with  a turbo engine or would you just avoid one at all   costs let me know in the comments below and if you  enjoyed this video make sure to like and subscribe   you can also check out some of my other car  videos by checking out these links over here   make sure to follow me on tick tock and instagram  and if you need additional car buying advice   recommendations or help with getting a  great deal on your next new car purchase   make sure to check out carhelpcanada.com thanks  so much for watching and see you next time

Channel: Car Help Corner

Views: 394,041

Keywords: are turbo engines reliable, are turbocharged engines reliable, are turbos reliable, are turbocharged cars reliable, are turbo cars reliable, turbo engine reliability, turbo engine explained, should you buy a turbo, should you buy a turbocharged car, turbocharged vs naturally aspirated, turbocharged vs naturally aspirated engine, naturally aspirated engine vs turbo, are turbo engines more fuel efficient, are turbo engines less reliable, are turbocharged engines less reliable

Id: zkcCU2_iPI0

Length: 11min 12sec (672 seconds)

Published: Wed Jul 20 2022