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Turbo blankets can lower your car engine bay’s temperature lower and this will improve the performance of your vehicle. Turbo blanket does not absorb the heat but reflects it on the inside.
Personally, I have used turbo blankets on my Dodge RAM 1500. The results are pretty dramatic. I must admit that this blanket is doing its job and the temperatures have dropped by a big margin after installation.
Performance wise, I didn’t experience any change, it seems to behave exactly as it does all the time. I believe with this minor change, it would have less wear on the components in the engine bay.
In this article, I will write about some knowledge I’ve gained from my experience after installing turbo blankets. I will be covering these topics:-
- What’s a Turbo Blanket?
- Will A Turbo Blanket Cause Damage?
- Horsepower Gain From Turbo Blanket
- Turbo Blanket Vs Heat Shield
- Turbo Blanket Installation & Cost
- Will A Turbo Blanket Cause Smoke?
If you’re here, I’m sure you’re interested. So, let’s begin!
What’s a Turbo Blanket?
Turbochargers are regularly exposed to very high temperatures, but a blanket keeps the heat contained. Turbo blanket is normally attached to the turbine and it keeps the engine bay at a lower temperature.
These blankets are made out of special materials that have insulating properties. It works well when there is a lot of heat. The blanket will keep the temperature inside of the turbine instead of letting the warm air radiating out inside your engine bay, which could damage the plastic or rubber components inside the engine bay.
When an engine bay gets too hot, it could possibly overheat and cause permanent damage to your engine. This is why people use a turbo blanket to overcome this issue by keeping your engine bay at lower temperature.
If you’re running a stock turbocharger, you’re most probably fine without a blanket – the stock turbo does not generate a significant amount of heat, and components are properly designed to cope with the heat under factory standards.
Will A Turbo Blanket Cause Damage?
No. Turbochargers are designed to cope with extreme temperatures. Maintaining the heat of the exhaust within the turbocharger will not damage the turbocharger.
There is a misconception that the heat contained by the turbo blanket will cause damage to the turbocharger due to excessive heat. That is not true.
Tackling the excessive heat problem, you should not switch off the engine directly after some heavy throttling. Instead, you should let it sit idling for a few minutes to allow the oil to circulate and cool down the turbocharger more effectively.
Personally, I have installed this turbo timer that I got from Amazon to let the engine idle for 3 minutes after I lock my pickup truck. It is suitable for all vehicles with 12 volt switching power supply, equipped with instructions for easy installation.
Horsepower Gain From Turbo Blanket
You will not get obvious improvements on power when it comes to this mod because it doesn’t directly affect the performance figures in any way. The purpose of this blanket is to keep your engine bay cool.
However, if your engine bay is cooler, it does benefit the engine’s health and efficiency by breathing in cooler air. Who knows, you might be able to gain some boost when you are pulling some quarter mile times on the drag strip.
RELATED ARTICLE: Heat Wrapping & Shielding Intake: Does It Gain Horsepower?
A study from University of Texas at Austin which was done in 2016 by Steffen Hans Bickle. He uses PTP Turbo Blanket throughout the study and found out that turbochargers with a turbo blanket had an advantage of generating slightly more boost.
A very interesting fact, having a turbo blanket does not mean that your car can get more power, but to get more power sooner. Meaning, your car may accelerate a little bit faster.
Check out this interesting video that I found on YouTube explaining in details:
Turbo Blanket Vs Turbo Heat Shield
Turbo blankets and heat shields are basically the same. They generally serve the same purpose.
One of the downsides of heat shields is they are normally built with titanium, and it is not flexible. Make sure you get one that fits your car perfectly. If your budget allows, you can install a heat shield and turbo blanket to achieve maximum heat protection.
When purchasing a turbo blanket or a heat shield it is a good idea to look for a good brand that makes quality products. And heat shield is one of the best when it comes to this practice. They have a big reputation in the car world for creating one of the best products out there.
If you have an aftermarket turbocharger, I highly recommend installing the heat shield or turbo blanket. Heat is the enemy when it comes to cars and engines, the more heat protection, the better, in my opinion.
The heat within the turbo will help with air flow thus pushing the air out of the exhaust faster with the air pressure difference.
The blanket should do the job containing the heat within the turbocharger to escape from the downpipe. If you want the best results, I would also recommend heat wrapping the downpipe.
For most applications, this mod is not necessary for your daily drivers. It’s very rare for your car to overheat as long as you properly maintain and check on the coolant levels.
RELATED ARTICLE: Heat Wrapping Downpipe & Ceramic Coating: Things To Know
Turbo Blanket Installation & Cost
Installing a turbo blanket is pretty straightforward. A decent turbo blanket normally costs around $30 – $80.
It’s really simple installing a turbo blanket, my 5 years old son can do it. (Of course, with guidance). You will only need to open your hood and slap the blanket on your turbocharger. Try to clamp the blanket as tight as possible so it doesn’t get loosen easily.
Voila! You’re good to go. No tools needed. *wink
When you’re buying a turbo blanket, try to not choose the cheapest ones. When you’re dealing with extreme heat, get one with better quality, it’ll definitely worth the bucks.
Will A Turbo Blanket Cause Smoke?
No. Turbo blankets are made from a combination of heat-resistant materials, flexible metal, and in some cases, some real deal. A turbo blanket is not supposed to create smoke.
However, you should be aware of knockoffs. There are some companies selling low quality turbo blankets, and they could start smoking after some time.
I would recommend you to get a decent one. I got my PTP T3 Turbo Blanket from Amazon. Maybe I overpaid a little, but it’s still running strong after 3 years.
Final Thoughts
We have come to the end of this article, and we have covered a lot when it comes to turbo blankets.
Heat protection can be very beneficial to the performance and longevity of your car. It’ll definitely enjoy the lower temperatures and will be less prone to overheat, especially in summer.
To sum things up really quick. You should definitely consider this mod if you have temperature issues, if you don’t you are better off without them.
