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Intercooler Upgrade

eMsta

By eMsta,
in Engines & Forced Induction

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eMsta Grand Master

eMsta

Posted
Posted (edited)

Hey all,

Im looking for an intercooler for my car at the moment. But I have been thinking, because I will be putting in a pod, would it be better off if i put in an r34 side mount intercooler? Would this fit the R33? And most importantly would this be legal (considering that I am going to have a pod filter running too)? Obviously the power gains wont be as good as a FMIC, but roughly what will I be looking at if my car was running an aftermarket turbo back exhaust, pod and the r34 side mount intercooler?

Thanks all for your advice :D

Edit - is there any other decent side mount intercoolers that are worth looking at (as well as legal)?

Edited by emsta2003
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https://www.sau.com.au/forums/topic/128419-intercooler-upgrade/
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Kinks Grand Master

Kinks

Posted
Posted

R34 intercooler is supposed to be a good mod for mild power increases as it's thicker than the R33 item.

As for legality, you'd run into more problems with the pod than the R34 IC - you can't pick it as different from stock. A pod will suck hot air in anyway, get a heat shield.

dezz Grand Master

dezz

Posted
Posted

you're allowed 1 intake mod...so technically even with the R34 smic, you'd be breaking that rule...chances of getting caught for it however are slim to nil, as its a side mount, and they wont look for it...

as for power gains, there wont be any. an intercooler doesnt increase power, it allows you to increase the boost while keeping the intake temp down...

having said all that, if im not mistaken, R34 smic's are good for 200rwkw, so if thats the limit of you're power goal, it'll suit you fine.

eMsta Grand Master

eMsta

Posted
  • Author
Posted
as for power gains, there wont be any. an intercooler doesnt increase power, it allows you to increase the boost while keeping the intake temp down...

having said all that, if im not mistaken, R34 smic's are good for 200rwkw, so if thats the limit of you're power goal, it'll suit you fine.

Hmmm....is that right? Man, i been told the wrong information then! I was told to get the intercooler to get more power out of it....atleast thats what the guy who was trying to sell me an intercoolr told me.....lucky i didnt buy it! :D

In that case - how much power can the stock r33 cooler take? I am only looking for around 200rwkws - so my plans for mods (aside from teh exhaust that i already have) was to put a pod and a decent sidemount intercooler. I havent started looking at the ecu yet - but I think with those 3 mods it shoudl easily get up to 170/180rwkws right?

dezz Grand Master

dezz

Posted
Posted

well the guy was either spinning shit, to make a sale/profit, or you misunderstood what he was saying...

a fmic is a supporting mod...in order to increase the boost, you need to improve the cooling side of things...

R34 side mount will be right for 200rwkw from what i've read...

the mods you listed (exhaust, pod and an upgraded cooler) you'd be looking at around 160rwkw, as the cooler wont increase power on its own, and the pod wont really add power either...

the cooler is there to allow you to increase the boost while not melting stuff :D

having said that, with the stock ECU, you can't really go past 10psi without an safc etc at the least...the stock ECU will go into spastic mode above 10psi, and you'll probably end up losing power ;)

paulr33 Grand Master

paulr33

Posted
Posted

id be interesed in the airtemp in and out when using the r34 smic @ 200rwkw

has anyone done any testing to find out what the values are? id be interested for curiosity purposes. i think one of the bottlenecks could be ducting to the smic in the stock lcoation.

dezz Grand Master

dezz

Posted
Posted

also, for the cost of a fmic these days ($349 from more than 1 trader) is it worth getting an r34 smic?...say you decide one day you want to push past 200rwkw....you're going to have to replace it again anyway...

id be getting a fmic, and ditching the pod in exchange for the stock airbox and a hi-flow panel filter.

dezz Grand Master

dezz

Posted
Posted

well id say you can answer it paul

my cars stock bar a 3" exhaust....

in general though, add a 3" from turbo back, a fmic, and an safc in order to override the fact that the ECU doesnt like going over 10psi, and you can expect 180-190rwkw...

might want to start thinking about supporting mods before going for that sort of power...simple things like an upgraded fuel pump to lessen the chance of your car going boom ...

with a pfc, dont expect much more max power, but better driveability and a more complete tune...

eMsta Grand Master

eMsta

Posted
  • Author
Posted
who is "you guys"

"You guys" meaning yourself and michael (dezz) :P

well id say you can answer it paul

my cars stock bar a 3" exhaust....

in general though, add a 3" from turbo back, a fmic, and an safc in order to override the fact that the ECU doesnt like going over 10psi, and you can expect 180-190rwkw...

might want to start thinking about supporting mods before going for that sort of power...simple things like an upgraded fuel pump to lessen the chance of your car going boom ...

with a pfc, dont expect much more max power, but better driveability and a more complete tune...

Jeez, thats a lot to do my friend! Maybe I shoudl wait till end of the year and have a good look at things, or just not modify anymore. I mean, my plan was to get max 200 rwkws. But I didnt know that other upgrades have to be done. Im now thinking whether or not its worth inputting money into a 10 year old car (as i said i might wait till end of the year till i finish my uni and all that before goin for the mods).

rev210 Grand Master

rev210

Posted
Posted
"Im now thinking whether or not its worth inputting money into a 10 year old car (as i said i might wait till end of the year till i finish my uni and all that before goin for the mods).

Hmmm.... you are starting to sound reasonable. Stop it at once !

But, really taking some time to think it through is worth alot of time and money in the long term. There are plenty of quite slow R33's out there mainly due to owners being 'bolt on boys'.

eMsta Grand Master

eMsta

Posted
  • Author
Posted (edited)
Hmmm.... you are starting to sound reasonable. Stop it at once !

Hmmm...I hope you are not my brother! Cos thats almost exactly what he told me! hehe...yeah, i guess the only thing I want to fix are those stupid speakers!

Edit - the only thing i want to fix asap are the speakers - thats what i meant :P

Edited by emsta2003
lastlineofdefence Experienced

lastlineofdefence

Posted
Posted
Another one to consider but is on the pricey side is an ARC side mount.

Also I was wondering if you added a 34 cooler to a 33 how much more boost could you wind into it? Would 12psi be OK or would it suffer heat soak?

Chris

or an avo turbo front mount, using the original intercooler pipes, its dead easy to fit and no holes to cut!

paulr33 Grand Master

paulr33

Posted
Posted

ive got the usual bolt on crap

pfc

3" split dump exhaut

boost controller

fmic

fuel pump

heavy duty cluctch

for those saying the r34 smic is ok for drags, have you done testing to see what the in and out temp is on the core? ie: is it actually doing anything useful to 60deg temp air passing through it. i wouldn't expect a great deal of airflow to it, air usually takes the path of least resistance.

Munna1 Proficient

Munna1

Posted
Posted
well id say you can answer it paul

my cars stock bar a 3" exhaust....

in general though, add a 3" from turbo back, a fmic, and an safc in order to override the fact that the ECU doesnt like going over 10psi, and you can expect 180-190rwkw...

might want to start thinking about supporting mods before going for that sort of power...simple things like an upgraded fuel pump to lessen the chance of your car going boom ...

with a pfc, dont expect much more max power, but better driveability and a more complete tune...

Dezz is on the money here.

If you plan to keep the stock turbo the R34 intercooler is your best option for 3 resons

- price

- ease of installation

- thottle responce

If you plan to upgrade your turbo down the track you may wont to go for something bigger

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