Hi all,

I don't know anything about cars. Apparently my 2013 S60 T5 has a torque boost feature that boosts torque from 266 to 295 for 10 seconds. What does that mean, how is it activated, and what does it do?

Me <------------------------------ Humanities graduate, professional useless person. N00b nugget.

 

turbo boost pressure is controlled by a pressure release valve (the waste gate) which is managed by the engine's computer (aka ECU or ECM). The computer determines when to release the excess pressure based on all its sensor inputs. Most turbocharger units can produce extra pressure than what's the "stock" maximum so your car has in its program the ability to allow the boost to run higher than normal for a brief period of time which creates the extra power without risking damage to the engine.

Me <----> Engineering grad (EE not mechanical), 50 years worth of wrenching on cars.

PS - "torque boost" is a cool marketing term. What's really going on is the higher the intake air pressure, the more air+fuel gets into the engine, which results in more power. PPS - An engine's "horsepower" is simply the torque x the RPMs, so for those 10 seconds, you're getting extra ponys too.