Autos Fans

Mazda CX-7 - difference between turbo and V6?—by makavelli405

whats the difference between the CX-7 turbo and a V6 engine?

Best Answer —by mark_hensley

The difference between the Mazda Turbo 4 and the V6 can be significant. A 4 cylinder makes cranking power every 180 degrees and a 6 cylinder makes crank power every 90 degrees of rotation. The shorter stroke engine has an abundance of power earlier in the torque curve, but soon flattens once rpm is at 5,000 or higher. The longer stroke V6 will continue the arc beyond the 5,000 rpm plateau of the 4 cylinder because it is making power later in the stroke and with more force/torque at a higher rpm.Secondly, the gearing of the two cars will be different. This is an extreme example, but consider a John Deere tractor engine that displaces 500 hp. The way it is geared is for the purpose of pulling, not speed. So you can have a turbo 4 cylinder that produces 244 hp run circles around a John Deere 500 hp tractor because of the gearing, however, the Mazda 4 cylinder could never pull a stump from it’s roots in a field. To bring this point back into focus, the gearing for a 6 cylinder and a 4 cylinder motor will be different for the purpose the car is geared towards. As a rule of thumb, a smaller engine will always be good in a sprint, a larger engine will always best the smaller displacement the longer the run.

The last thing to consider, Turbos require a cooling off period or the turbo mechanism itself will not have a long life due to heat and friction. Most, automotive manuals, Mazda included will tell you to run the engine 30 seconds after you have arrived to your destination, allowing the turbo to cool. A V6 can cut off immediatly once you have arrived to your destination.

Mazda prefers the smaller engines in it’s cars because they aim to achieve a balance, an athletic power to weight ratio that provides well rounded performance. A heavier engine compromises handling through curves, due to sheer weight and related architecture. A smaller engine provides greater handling capabilities, and a higher rate of speed (zoom, zoom) traveling from apex to apex. With this course the balance of the automobile is in keeping with the state of being nimble, the art of manuverability and the science of power versus finesse in a vehicle. I believe this is what Mazda is trying to get at with it’s turbo 4 cylinder turbo, and I may add the same holds true for the rotary powered Mazda Rx8.