Study: Turbocharged Car Sales To Triple By 2017

Turbochargers have long been employed by the auto industry to downsize engines while increasing performance. But it has only been the past few years that turbocharged vehicles have become commonplace in cars across the spectrum of models and brands. A new study by turbomaker Honeywell predicts that by 2017, turbocharged light vehicle sales will have tripled. Sounds about right.

Turbochargers have been around for decades, but only really gained popularity in the 1980s when automakers had to get more power out of smaller engines. Turbochargers have since stuck around, albeit mostly on performance cars like the Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution.

Now though, turbochargers can be found in everything from economy cars like the Chevy Sonic to full-size pickups like the Ford F-150. Hyundai offers a turbocharged Sonata, Volkswagen has plenty of turbodiesel engines in its lineup, and even the Fiat 500 Abarth sports a turbocharged engine.

This rise in turbocharging technology has led Honeywell to predict that turbocharged vehicle sales will climb from 1.3 million in 2011 to over 4 million by 2017 in the United States. Turbocharged car sales are also expected to rise in China, India, and Europe, where engines like the 1.0 liter, three-cylinder EcoBoost have proven have potent turbocharged engines can be. And consumers are responding quite enthusiastically  scooping up turbo-powered vehicles as fast as they can be built.

This is great news for gearheads and greenies alike; turbocharged engines are pretty easy to upgrade, use less fuel, but offer a level of performance many people are used to. What turbocharged vehicles are you looking forward to trying out?

Source: LeftLane News