Your Thoughts On Turbopowers!

[vacuumlover]

I'm just curious as to what other collectors think of the Turbopowers.(1,2,3 and 1000)

I personally adore them. Yes,they have their advantages and disadvantages,as with all vacuums,but regardless of their pros and cons,I still love em'.

I would love to see your Turbopowers too!  <span style="text-decoration: line-through;">Just so I can be jealous of you for having one that I would like . </span> 


 


And just another question on them ~ Would you rather have a Non-Total System or a Total System? 


 


Me personally I just LOVE the Total Systems.  

 

[parwaz786]

I love the old fancy look and how they can vibrate the carpets so hard and suck them off so hard that they keep in contact with the floor
Also it's a dirty fan so the bag will need to be brick hard anf jam packed full before it stops sucking the carpets off its optimity

 

[vacuumlover]

"Suck them off hard."

Pissing my self laughing XD.

 

[parwaz786]

lmao

LOL

 

[themostelite]

YALL NASTY.

lol funny... I like TurboPOWER's, especially the Elite styled ones. I like them all in general

 

[vacuumlover]

Pardon my ignorance,but what does the Elite styled ones look like? The only soft bag Turbopower was the Turbopower Junior's (see attached pic)

The only Elite styled one's I can think of that we had in the UK was the "Hoover Commercial" which was a red color but it was a hardbox thus basically a UK version of the Hoover Legacy.  I'll try and find a picture.

There may have been more but I don't know.


P.s ~ Please excuse the clutter and the two motors on the hearth!

 

[citroenbx]

I love the hoover turbopower 3 because it has got lots of suction power long stair
hose and the permabag on some models

P.S I am sorry turbopowerpaul for using you pic

 

[parwaz786]

Whats the suction like on them? Is is better than a DC04 or as good as a DC07?

 

[spiraclean]

As far as the TP1 goes, the hard box models are fine, but the Junior was always my favourite. Less weight in the handle meant they were less prone to trunnion wear and leaning. And ironically, despite being the BOL option, the cloth bag offered at least some attempt at additional filtration that the hard box models didn't.

Not a big fan of the Total System models. Adding onboard tools to a cleaner that was never originally designed to have them always seemed like such an afterthought to me. Didn't like the way the hose carrier overhung the side of the machine, the small, oddly shaped hose connection that tended to clog, or the combined height adjuster/suction diverter. The Turbomaster did onboard tools far better in almost every way, IMHO.

Speaking of which, I do feel Hoover discontinued the wrong cleaner when the TM was axed. The only reason it was too expensive to produce was because Hoover overloaded it with features, and already had redundancy in their lineup. If they wanted to cut production costs, they could have dropped the TP1 instead, and rejigged the TM lineup to exclude certain features on lower priced models (i.e. headlight/carpet height display, brush roll shutoff, air freshener), none of which were essential. The TM was designed with both separate and onboard tools in mind, so could easily have offered something to suit everyone had Hoover got the price/feature mix on each model right, without any need to offer an entirely different range of cleaners alongside as they did with the TP1.

I did like the TP2/1000/3 series cleaners, as overdue as they were, and they were very popular right up to the end. Perhaps a tad on the heavy side for some, but certainly sturdy for the most part. They didn't appear particularly dated against what the likes of Electrolux were offering at the time, and still had plenty of life left in them yet, so I was disappointed to see them go. The Purepower offered the user nothing the TP2/1000/3 didn't already, it was just quicker, easier and cheaper to build, with fewer parts, hence why it took over.

 

[vacuumlover]

@Parwaz ~ I have no idea,as Iv'e never touched a Dyson before. The suction is pretty strong to be honest.That's if its on the later models where it has the wider suction channel. If you want I could do a video showing how strong the suction is.

@spiraclean ~ I agree on the weight of the 2,3 etc. Also,that was a nice read. Lol.

 

[sebo_fan]

Well, the Purepower uprights also brought HEPA filters which even the TP3 never got the chance to have fitted.

Personally having owned the Hoover Turbopower in various variations PLUS the TP2 models, I can't say they're the same as the Dyson DC01. The DC01 was just very different to what had gone on before all because of its "icon" design style and fangled suction principle - even if it had a similarly copied central hinge pivot that Panasonic uprights have enjoyed for years, as well as Electrolux and Hoover, too.

Comparing a manual height adjusting vacuum to one that has an auto floating head is always difficult but to compare a bagged vacuum with a bagless one is even harder.

When I think back to it, the DC01 was a bit simpler to use - no adjustment needed for hard floors even if at times it meant a heavier weight to push but a lighter gliding factor almost guaranteed on carpets the lower the owner stoops!

But when it comes to pick up, I think I'd settle for the TP2 & TP3 series. They have far more power and also due to typical Hoover manufacture at the time, a lot more noise to contend with versus the slightly quieter Dyson motor used in the DC01. But then I didn't like the fact that it was impossible to get the DC01 to clean under low furniture unlike my old TP2s.

 

[gsheen]

I love them , I have a few older ones in need of some restoration before they go on display.


They cleaned very well, My mom had the turbo master. Very little on the market at that time came close to its carpet cleaning ability.

That said Their build quality was horrific. I spent my time as a young boy haning out at the local vacuum shop and got to see many getting new back casings. Later on I replaced many myself. The handles were also prown to breaking and the bottom cord winder.
I often chuckle when I hear the misinformed complaining about how poor the build quality of Hoovers are now that they are made in China, those peope obviously never owned a turbo power. They rattled and vibrated from day one.


Motors got very noisy over time but this was cured by new bearings and a new fan.

I love the sound of the motor , something that is missing from today's high powered vacuums. That low wattage hum of a dirty air motor

 

[vacuumlover]

"I love the sound of the motor , something that is missing from today's high powered vacuums. That low wattage hum of a dirty air motor"

Thought that was just me! I love listening to them all

 

[vacuumlover]

@themostelite

This is what I was talking about. Although ours were more red. I'm starting to fancy an Elite now!

Thank you to the owner of this picture.

 

[vintagerepairer]

At the time, the original Turbopower cleaners were very much up to date. I was always confused about the softbag Turbopower cleaner however, because even as far back as 1983 when these cleaners were launched, softbag cleaners were beginning to look old fashioned, even if there was still SOME market place for a softbag cleaner. But hardbag uprights vastly outnumbered the softbags, and whilst I do take the point that softbags did ironically offer a level of filtration which the hardbag Turbopowers lacked, the weave of the softbag held so much dust that it could pump it out in clouds, unlike a hardbag where it would have at least dispersed it somewhat more evenly.

At the time the Turbopower softbag went on sale, Hoover had one mainstream regular Junior, two Seniors (one with dustcup) plus whatever exclusive Junior and Seniors they were turning out too, all of which were softbag. To that end, the need for a Turbopower model was, in my world, redundant. The actual success of said cleaner would have been down to many factors, such as price and what the shops were stocking when those who bought it did so. I cannot beleive that someone who genuinely wanted the familiarity of a softbag cleaner would also have demanded the up-to-date styling of that type of cleaner too. Maybe they did. Certainly they didn't when a Turbomaster hardbag hit the shelves as that never sold well at all.

The point about the tools being added to the Turbopower is quite correct and indeed one that I made myself before - the hose caddy overhung the side of the cleaner in a way that was most inconvienient. It was of course designed for the Turbomaster and then adapted for the Turbopower shortly afterwards. I would be very interested to have seen what cleaners the public would have bought had a Turbopower Total System not been an option.

 

[sebo_fan]

One other reason to why softbags were deemed old fashioned was the fact that Hoover didn't exactly stock the original spare parts for years when the zips sometimes broke. Many Juniors and Seniors had to make do with whatever soft bag replacement was available at the time rather than the original design.

 

[citroenbx]

hoover turbopower 1200w/1000w because of narrow vacuum tubes

I would say with a new bag in it the same a dc04

 

[parwaz786]

Thanks I'll stick to the DC04 then

 

[vacuumlover]

@citroenbx

"Because of narrow vacuum tubes."


 


This is not necessarily true. It  depends on the motor wattage and if the bag is brand new or not. Plus the pre-filters.


 


If the bag has been re-used(This only applying to re-usable bags),say 2 times,then the pores will be clogged thus reducing the suction. Even with a normal disposable bag. And if the pre-motor filters have not been regularly maintained,thus,leading to a clogged filter,will again reduce suction.


 


Oh yes,lets not forget he Permabag. If that hasn't been cleaned then again,the pores will be clogged,thus again,leading to loss of suction.

 

[citroenbx]

thank you for that info

 

[vacuumlover]

No problem.

 

[turbo500]

only soft bag Turbopower was the Turbopower Junior

Ah, not quite true Emma. We had the Hoover Turbolite in 1988-89 as a replacement for the Junior. Didn't last very long, but it essentially is a US Elite.

Credit to Alex for the photo.

 

[turbo500]

Anyway, Turbopowers.

Whilst I've always felt that the Turbopowers were excellent carpet cleaners (and even more so with the Turbomaster), compared with what Hoover made previously and with what was on the market at the time, it wasn't half over priced and very flimsy. Pretty much everyone was offering something more sturdy at the time. You'll hear many models being refered to as "glass" models because the plastics were so britle, they were forever splitting, cracking and shattering. Most notoriously, the TOL 2nd generation U2336.

I always found that the Softbag TP's cleaned better, due to the outer cloth bag giving a larger surface area for the exhaust air, so it kept the airflow more constant in comparison with the hardbag models.

Everyone seemed to be copying eachother in the 1980's - the Turbopower was essentially a rip off of the Moulinex Major and the Goblin Commander was a rip off of the Turbopower (although less so, since it was designed by the same person). It's amusing looking at the catalogues and brochures of the time, watching them all try to out-do eachother.

However, despite being flimsy and overpriced, they sold and sold and sold and sold in their millions. The rarer models tend to be between 88 and 91 when Hoover sales were in decline, but after the Free Flights fiasco, they were common as muck. People were buying the cheapest Turbopower's that they could just to get a free flight ticket, so they were absolutely everywhere once again.

I was never a fan of the Turbopower 2, 3 and 1000's. I loathe the autosense feature with a passion and the cleaners were very top heavy to use. Even though they were far sturdier than the TP1, they seemed to have more issues with narrow hoses and air channels blocking and the bag doors splitting. They didn't groom as well either - the activator was much better when attached to the slower 400w motors of the TP1. It span too fast to actually groom on the TP2/3/1000 and instead just skimmed over the carpet fibres.

 

[turbo500]

<blockquote>
Adding onboard tools to a cleaner that was never originally designed to have them always seemed like such an afterthought to me


</blockquote>
That's because it WAS an afterthought .


 


The "total system" only came about as a solution after Electrolux and Panasonic had huge succcess with their on-board tool models. Hoover were, once again, 2 steps behind the competition and the Turbomaster Total System launched in 1989 (I imagine) didn't quite sell in the numbers that Hoover were expecting.


 


Despite being awkward, added weight and not that nice in appearance, the first total system's - the U2798 and U2602 - were VERY popular models.  

 

[vacuumlover]

@turbo500

*Facepalm* I feel so stupid for forgetting that now!

I completely forgot about the Turbolite. Sorry! Thank you for the correction.

I agree with what you said about the 2,3 and 1000,on the Activator.

Also ~ Personally I think the Total Systems look quite nice. But everyone is entitled to their opinion .

 

[turbo500]

Fast forward to 1983 when the TP came out, knowing what I know now, I would much rather have had a Moulinex Major, Hitachi CV50, Lux 550 or even a Junior or Powerplus. They were all much better built.

The Turbopower is another example of how an eye catching ad campaign can really determine the success of a product

 

[turbo500]

 

[turbo500]

 

[vacuumlover]

Thanks for the videos. It's nice to watch them again when I've not seen them for ages.