There are turbos now that instead of being driven by exhaust gases are driven by the crankshaft, much less lag than traditional turbos. Couple this with direct injection and you would essentially have a motor that can cruise a car on sub-100HP and burst to 200 plus easily and reliably.
I have a Cummins turbo diesel that is a daily driver at 235HP or so, flip a go button in the cab and it will dyno over 400RWHP and 900+ ft/lbs of torque.
The range of adjustability of an electronically controlled, direct injected, turbo charged engine is incredible.
“There are turbos now that instead of being driven by exhaust gases are driven by the crankshaft, much less lag than traditional turbos.”
Those are not new. They’re called “superchargers.”
I remember having a conversation with an engineering professor a long time ago who stated that when you really feel the “kick” of an engine ... that push you back in the seat punch ... it is not HP but rather torque that we are talking about.
This professor was an advocate of returning to steam power due to it’s high torque ability. However, I imagine that with many of the newer diesel engines, much of the same punch can be duplicated.
A “turbo” driven by the crankshaft or any other mechanical means is called a supercharger. They provide much more rapid power response and have existed since the early 1900’s.