What is Supercharging?
There is nothing new about the principle of supercharging. It is almost as old as the internal combustion engine itself, although it did not become popular until the mid nineteen-twenties when it entirely took over in the racing car field. No doubt many people wonder, if it is of practical use, why the major car manufactures have never produced a popular supercharged car. The answer is very simple. The manufacturer can bore a bigger hole and fit a bigger piston much more cheaply than he will build a supercharger. Military aircraft of course used supercharging extensively right up to the advent of the jet engine, as there was no other way to overcome the problem of rarified air at high altitudes. Most such aircraft had superchargers fitted with clutches enabling them to be used only at the higher altitudes. Most people these days who drive cars at least have a rough idea of how a car engine works. They know that the engine operates by breathing in a mixture of petrol and air and burning
