Wednesday, July 25, 2007

“Remember class, there’s no such thing as a stupid question.”

I had a great question today. “I heard that a car with a supercharger will screw up a radargun. Is this true?”

This is untrue in every way, shape, and form. I can only speculate that they were asking is a supercharger emitted some form of interference that would affect the reading on a radar gun. Superchargers and turbochargers are mechanical units that do not emit any microwaves, electric signals, or radiation. Therefore, they would not affect an electronic device such as a radar gun. If they did emit such interference, would they really be installed in a modern car that is almost completely controlled by electronics?

“Sure, a supercharger will only interfere with a radar gun signal at full throttle, redlined in top gear. Throw the radargun into the grill of the car. Now your mechanical supercharger has interfered with an electronic radar gun.”

Ryan