Turbo question

[Sister Mary]

My CX-7 is 1st car I've owned with turbo engine. It has automatic transmission. Is it normal for there to be a slight time lag (no more than a second) between when I press the accelerator and when the engine kicks in? I've previously driven stick and even old V8s. On both of those the acceleration has been immediate.

Thanks.

 

[sm1ke]

My CX-7 is 1st car I've owned with turbo engine. It has automatic transmission. Is it normal for there to be a slight time lag (no more than a second) between when I press the accelerator and when the engine kicks in? I've previously driven stick and even old V8s. On both of those the acceleration has been immediate.

Thanks.

Yes, its normal. This is due mostly to the fact that the CX-7, like most newer vehicles, uses a drive-by-wire system, meaning that the throttle is controlled electronically, instead of the older cable systems. On the older systems, the faster you press the pedal down, the faster the throttle body opens. On newer systems, it doesn't matter how fast you press the pedal, it will always open at the same speed, which can make it feel like the throttle response is lagging when compared to older V8s especially. This is basically the case for all new vehicles, and it isn't specific to turbo vehicles. Turbo lag is something different.

I believe some manufacturers have implemented "Sport" modes that change the speed that the throttle body will open (among other things). Not the case for Mazda unfortunately.

 

[youri]

The automatic transmission also adds a bit of lag, there is a bit of delay for the torque converter to get up to speed.