So I recently purchased an AMS FMIC. My current mods ( going on in days ) are a Ti Tomei IC pipe, Tanabe Medalion CBE, ETS SRI, and a Cobb AP. My question is this, would the FMIC even be beneficial to install as I will NOT be upgrading my turbo any time soon. I have heard from buddies that it's really only necessary to upgrade your FMIC if you are upgrading your turbo because you will be running higher boost levels. Any input would be appreciated!

 

An upgraded intercooler is definitely beneficial to even a basic stock turbo setup.

 

Really? So even if I don't plan on upgrading the turbo any time in the next few years, it's still worth it to put it on being that the stock IC is pretty much just as big as the AMS? What exactly are the benefits?

Anyone want to chime in on this?

 

Lots of views.. no comments?

Let me give you some incentive, if you can show me valid proof that an upgraded IC without upgraded turbo wouldn't be worth the hassle an AMS IC will be up for sale soon. lol.

 

Well... Lets put it this way..

Its not going to hurt anything. There are no cons in replacing the stock IC with the AMS one. If anything it might flow and cool better.

If it was me and i had the money to do it without sweating it. I would replace the stock one. But it isnt a necessity to do so, unless you start punching up the boost, bigger turbo, ect.

Remember heat = Bad

You want to keep that thing as cool as possible, so if the AMS IC does the job better then why not..

 

-less pressure drop
-cooler intake charge
-less chance of heatsoak in warm weather

Only real con is it adds ~10 lbs. over the front wheels. AMS uses a much larger core than stock though, compare the actual volumes not just the frontal surface area.

 

If you bought it, put it on.

If you are thinking about buying I could see the confusion, but it sounds like you have it already so just put it on. The only real downfall is as Kracka pointed out, a bit more weight up front. You can lose that by doing other things though.

 

Well, the real dilemma is just deciding on whether to sell it and put the money towards something else I really *NEED* or just install it for down the road when/if I do upgrade my turbo. And, like I said, if the juice is worth the squeeze, so to speak.

 

Actually I don't thing you gain or lose any weight if you car has the big counter weight that you have to remove when installing the AMS FMIC. That weight alone will make up for the added weight of the IC. I believe 10 AWHP was shown with no other mods and tune on AMS's website. Worth it imo if you live down south were the temps can get pretty hot.

 

it depends on your goals with the car, and what other mods you need or want. The AMS IC is a good chunk of change. It will have benefits if you install it, but maybe not as much as sways and springs if your looking to track the car, or e85 conversion if you want more power.

 

2010 has no weight to remove.

 

This might help you decided whether or not its the best mod for you right now.

https://www.evolutionm.net/forums/ev...ed-camera.html

I have not done a ton of research myself on whether or not a FMIC is the absolute best mod given minimal bolt-on's. It is something that obviously needs upgraded down the road.

I am not sure what your availability of E85 is in your area or how often you are going to be driving the car but if its is readily available, my personal choice would be fuel pump and injectors with an E85 tune.

Roughly speaking you would probably make 325whp with that set-up and I think most would agree that although the stock intercooler would not be as efficient as the AMS intercooler it still would not be harmful in anyway to the car.

Good luck deciding, I think either way you can't go wrong.

~Ryan

 

against heat soak, especially if you drive it hard

 

When I upgraded to a ETS 3" FMIC on my previous 9MR I noticed that the boost stayed more constant and just made the car much more fun to drive..