I've been thinking of getting an aftermarket intercooler for a while now (ARC most likele, change my mind everytime I come close!!).

Can someone tell me what sort of gain I can expect _without_ a retune and everything else stock?

Before everyone goes ape, my car isn't stock but I'm trying to get some bearing on what we're talking about here.

If you really want to know:

Evo VIIIMR
Tomei Blow-off, turbo outlet, front pipe
Mine's Straight converter (test pipe)
Greddy Extreme Ti
Ralliart ECU, sprk plug cables, earthing cable, ss brake lines, mater cyl. stopper
Volk Te37
K&N replacement filter
Project Mu Level Max 900 pads

Coming soon Tomei Poncams

The idea here is that I don't really want to make crazy hp, I'm trying to keep things as stock as possible and not putting too much stress on the engine (it's a daily drive too).

Thanks in advance guys....

 

some will say it adds no horsepower, some will say 15 whp. you will need a boost controller though as adding a bigger IC will make your boost drop by about a pound or so so your car may seem a little slower. I say go for it, it certainly cant hurt.
For my money I'd go alky injection, cheaper, more horsepower.

 

dont buy a bigger intercooler until you buy a bigger turbo, you wont get any noticeable gains with the stock turbo

 

Buschur has seen gains up to 15whp on the dyno.

I would say a MBC and tune would be needed, though.

 

I would say 10 to 15 whp, depending on tuning (even on the stocker).

 

humm...

about the boost pressure, I'm thinking more of a sort of intercooler that doesn't cause too much pressure drop; i.e. not a giant one. Is there any data on this out there?

thanks...

 

It depends on the environment you are driving in. If you are road racing in the summer, yes there will be a gain. Really, there are better bang for the buck mods at this stage. I am running 117mph traps with the stock intercooler and stock turbo.

 

Are you running meth, or is that like a C-16 tune?

 

pretty much every intercooler that is better than stock is going to have some kind of pressure drop, because usually it is a bigger core, will flow more, so in turn you have a slight pressure drop. shouldn't need a tune though because you only need to increase your boost with an MBC.
Like i said, everyone will say either none, or 15 whp. although i think the warmer your climate, the more it should help.

 

If you live in a hot place, it is a worth upgrade. It may not pose as a restriction to the stock turbo, but it does heat soak WAY faster than an aftermarket FMIC.

 

At 21 PSI we actually saw an 18 WHP difference between the stock core and our new unit. Gains will be better as you increase boost or upgrade the turbo.

 

How about the aftermarket IC pipe? any gain?

 

/\ +1

The upgraded intercooler is supposed to have increased volum which in turn lowers the charge are temperatures (in theory). I know Buschur has done some intense testing and has showed 15 or so hp with just a new fmic...

 

Thanks for the input, everyone.

It's very hot where I live and by the sounds of things, the new I/C should improve matters.

With a little research, I wonder:

1.) If the flow channels in the I/C are very large, as in there's physically more air in the intercooler, will that slow down the spool? My reason for this is that there will be more air to move and therefore more intertia and so forth. The Buschur you mentioned, prolly fits this catagory.

1.5) If you have larger flow channels, would that not reduce the surface area:channel volume ratio and thus reduce effciency?

2.) In another case, if the intercooler causes less presusre drop than stock, then there will be greater flow through it and therefore causes an _increase_ (conpared to stock) in the temperature of the air coming out of it. With greater intake air flowrate and same cooling air (same vehicle speed), the temp. drop in the intake air should be less.

3.) I guess what I really want for a stock turbo is an intercooler that is similar to the stock unit but with better efficiency.

Obviously, most intercoolers is some combination of 1) and 2). Has anyone done any test on these things?

Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying large intercoolers are bad. What I'm looking for here is one that is suitable for a stock turbo and boost.

Thanks

 

I'm facing the same questions.

The problem with some of the "tests" that people cite is how identical were the atmospheric conditions before and after the install? A difference of 5 deg temp and slightly different humidity can all make a difference. Accurate private testing would be very difficult. Dyno shops that are going after the proof would seem to be more trust worthy, particularly ones that have been around a while and rely on their good reputation for business. It's hard to argue with shops like AMS, Vishnu, Bushur, and plenty I haven't mentioned. I don't think they'd even look crossed-eyed at a component that slowed them or their customers down for very long. While I might personally choose a different fabrication, their results are better than any I could hope to measure.

I have heard 10 hp described as the difference between having the AC on or off. ("all power to the bridge Scotty") but I bought a $225 AMS lower IC in hopes of 7-10. The benifits from that mod were noticable, but not as much as my hotside mod. (That was WAY worth it in my case! Changed the cars personality with the 272/264 cam set up that I had in place, but it was a roll of the dice at least in my mind)

It looks from your post above like you are viewing things as a system, as opposed to a go-fast part.

hmmmm, I may have just talked MYSELF into a new IC !


Good Luck let us know the results, if you do it.