Has anyone taken off there intercooler grill? I took mine off (stock intercooler) and am wondering if anyone has done the same? Any dangers? Anything i should watch out for? Clean more often? Leaves or snow going to be a problem?

 

you talking about the metal mesh screen? if so, i wouldn't take that off if i were you. the intercooler gets beat up enough with rocks and bugs, etc. with the screen on. it would probably be alot worse with it off.

 

i could have sworn iv seen alot of evo's that way? for instance with after market front bumpers? am i wrong?

 

don't forget about road debris...

 

The Factory screen is pretty thin anyways, I never thought it was that noticeable. You can always see that the intercooler is clearly there. Besides, you wouldn't want to have your intercooler fins all bent up and dented.

 

never really paid attention. i know a guy made a thread about putting screen door screen over the mesh grill cause he was getting so many rocks etc. hitting the intercooler and denting the coils. it was a good idea. haven't done it yet though.

 

It'd probably be best to leave it on there. Personally, even if I were to replace the stock bumper/IC with an aftermarket one (cwest/ARC?), I would definitely put my own black painted mesh grill there to help protect the IC.

 

+1 Most people go out of their way to put a grille on for protection. You're going the wrong way

 

back from the dead:

I'm trying to find some information about snow packed and stuck tight between the grill and my stock IC. Last night my STi buddy and i went plowing through snow drifts and now all my grills are caked with snow. Anyone know if it's a problem having snow stuck in there or does it really matter? I'm sure it's keeping it cold, but i don't think it would be AS cold as 0 degree air (Minot North Dakota) blowing through the fins? Also, what if i sprayed it out with high pressure water? I thought about doing this, but then once i pull it out of the car wash the water in the fins will freeze in about 30 seconds still not allowing any flow for air. My only other option is spraying it out, then pulling it into my buddies garage for an hour or so and let the ice melt. Can anyone tell me if it really matters to wash it out or not? It's not like i'm drag racing or hitting high RPM's alot. Too much ice on the road doesn't leave much room for spirited driving around these parts.

 

I say just let the snow/ice melt.

 

Yeah, but the snow could be blocking some flow to the radiator.

 

Which is why you should let it all melt and go away.

 

Yea, i was thinking the same thing. I was and have been watching the temp gauge, but i think i should pull into the garage and just let it melt off.. That'll give me the perfect time to install my boost gauge and MBC