Well, several questions, actually.

I watched an episode of Top Gear recently and the presenter proudly
proclaimed that the Mercedes he was driving employed a supercharger which
consumed 120hp. IOW: My partner's Telstar would not even kick the
supercharger over! This left me with several questions:

* I understand that, beyond the issues of turbo lag, lack of responsiveness
at low RPM, etc, a turbo charger does not consume any (or at least very
much) energy from the engine, since it operates on the waste products. Does
that mean a turbo charged engine is more efficient than a supercharged
engine? Or am I missing something very fundamental in my understanding of
such things?

* Does current turbo technology substantially ameliorate the problems of
turbochargers: Multiple, small turbos, low boost pressures, etc? Would such
technologies come pretty close to that of superchargers?

It is because of the layout, the oil passages get choked up, and the
hydraulic lash adjusters start to go.
and from there, it's all downhill.
If you get the oil changes done on time, no problem.
Google it for more info, not easy to find but it's there.
-mark