By Blair Smith · March 10, 2026

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As you may have noticed by now, I have some strong opinions, some of which can be controversial in modern performance car discussions. Like this:

Turbos have made sports cars worse.

Not slower.
Not less powerful.
Not less technologically impressive.

Just… worse.

Now before my friends in the boost crowd reach for the pitchforks, let me acknowledge something up front:

Turbocharging is brilliant engineering.

It delivers huge torque, impressive efficiency, and enormous tuning potential. In many contexts—especially motorsport and high-performance engineering—it’s an incredible solution.

Also, I’ve owned and like a number of them!

But for driver-focused sports cars, especially the kind I romanticize and obsess over?

The story gets a little more complicated.

There are good reasons nearly every manufacturer has embraced turbocharging.

Turbo engines produce huge low-end torque. Modern turbocharged sports cars feel brutally fast even at modest RPM.

For street driving, that thrust can feel addictive.

A small turbocharged engine can deliver the power of a larger naturally aspirated one while consuming less fuel and producing fewer emissions. 

Gotta keep those legislators happy!

If you’ve ever spent time around the tuning community, you know why turbos are beloved.

A few tweaks—boost, intercooling, fueling—and suddenly an engine that made 350 horsepower is making 500.

The ceiling is high.

Turbos allow manufacturers to use smaller displacement engines across multiple platforms while still meeting performance expectations.

From an engineering and business standpoint, they make perfect sense.

But…

When you look at sports cars through the lens of driver engagement, the picture changes.

One of the purest pleasures of a great sports car is instant throttle response.

Press the pedal.
Engine responds.
Immediately.

That relationship between your right foot and the engine is the foundation of precision driving.

And it matters more than people realize—especially when it comes to properly operating a manual transmission – I’m talking about rev matching and heel/toe downshifts.

A naturally aspirated engine snaps to attention the moment you blip the throttle.

A turbocharged engine often responds with a brief pause, followed by a surge. A reluctance. 

For daily driving, the effect can be subtle. But pushing a car hard on a twisty road or a track – this becomes a huge frustration.

The delay breaks the rhythm.

It can be jerky.

It can feel synthetic.

It can upset the balance of the chassis.

As they say “smooth is fast,” and the proper gear changes are a key part of that equation.

Gotta nail those downshifts!

Even modern turbos—despite enormous advances—still introduce a small delay.

You ask for power.

The car thinks about it.

Then it delivers.

Sometimes a fraction of a second later.

Sometimes with a surge.

That delay matters because once again, driving quickly, or simply driving well, is about predictability and timing.

The best sports cars feel like extensions of your nervous system.

You think it.
They do it.

Turbo lag inserts a middleman into that conversation.

Instead of enjoying a smooth climb in naturally-aspirated power, turbos feel closer to an on/off switch.

Off boost: calm.
On boost: chaos.

That can be fun in a straight line.

But mid-corner?

You're not attacking, you're managing the car. 

Naturally aspirated engines build power progressively as RPMs climb, and you’re not having to guess where the car gives the most back. 

You want more? Increase those revs. 

Turbos? More (torque) is less (revs).  

This one is purely emotional.

But it matters.

Turbos suffocate the noise.

They interrupt exhaust flow and swallow the natural character of combustion.

Even great turbo engines often sound…

muted
filtered
less alive.

Yes, turbos can make some entertaining noise too. 

But....

Compare that to the mechanical symphony of a naturally aspirated performance engine:

Individual throttle bodies.
Induction roar - a rising mechanical crescendo as RPM climbs.

Ability to let the exhaust scream.  

A great sports car doesn’t just go fast.

It sounds like it means it.

The problem with turbos isn’t that they make cars slower.

They usually make them much faster. And for many enthusiasts, that’s the goal. And more "power" to them. I respect that. 

But sports cars for me have never been purely about speed, they’re about communication. The conversation between driver and machine.

The conversation I love to have. And naturally aspirated engines do it better. 

With what engine—turbo or naturally aspirated—have you had the best conversation?

Hit reply and tell me.

This one should start some arguments! 🏁

— Blair Smith

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