A31 Arc Turnflow Intercooler

[rayj]

hey,

i can get my hands on one of these intercoolers. it's a turnflow design, and it's a kit specifically made for the a31.

just wondering if anybody on here uses this intercooler, or has in the past? any info? all i know is ARC is very high quality...

i was also hoping somebody may have some pics they could share showing fitment.

i have an autech front bar and have been thinking how this intercooler will fit behind the bar... i dont want to start hacking away at it, but the more i think about it, it seems i might have to. due to the return pipe it looks like this intercooler will have to sit quite high up, which means i might have to cut off the section which holds the number plate in order expose the intercooler...

anyway, if anybody knows please let me know.

cheers

Edited May 18, 2010 by rayj

[Nic_A31]

If its made for A31 it won't need hacking.

A31 Specific intercoolers are hard to come by, I'd imagine it'd be to suit the Autech bar, not the regular bumper, as the Autech is more suited for an intercooler.

With that said, the Autech leaves MORE room below and around the reo-bar, so odds a little-to-none that you'll be needing to cut anything up.

I'll have a search around for pics later on, there are some on this forum (or another one?) somewhere...

[rayj]

this the cooler on my car now. as you can see it sits just above the very bottom of the bar. its a just jap core the previous owner put on, its very narrow (approx 200mm wide) which means it fits right within the bar really well. but the opportunity to have this cooler is very tempting.

now if i install this arc cooler, it will mean the actual arc core will be sitting much higher due the return flow pipe.

wont that mean ill have to cut out the section that currently holds my number plate? i dont really want to do that, it will leave this giant hole in my front bar, and make everything much more conspicuous.

[Nic_A31]

Firstly...that Cefiro is quiet possibly one of THE hottest I've seen yet.

The cooler should mount from the top and hang. Like I said, if its to suit A31 it should have brackets so little-to-no cutting is required. Typically with left side return flow, it doesnt sit higher, the return flow pipe sits lower. This might be awkward as you've cut the bottom section of your bumper.

Measure it up and compare it to your current intercooler

[rayj]

Firstly...that Cefiro is quiet possibly one of THE hottest I've seen yet.

The cooler should mount from the top and hang. Like I said, if its to suit A31 it should have brackets so little-to-no cutting is required. Typically with left side return flow, it doesnt sit higher, the return flow pipe sits lower. This might be awkward as you've cut the bottom section of your bumper.

Measure it up and compare it to your current intercooler

cheers man, thanks for the compliment. i havnt got the cooler yet, its on its way from japan.

and yeh the front bar has been cut quite a bit so the pipe will be very obvious... ive been looking at the series 2 autech front bar and it seems to be much more 'cooler friendly' haha, but chances of finding one in australia will be very slim, probably slim in japan too...

so in your opinion i wouldnt need to cut out that number plate part and the two little parts on either side of it?

ill guess ill find out in about 2 months anyway...

im gonna take a good look thru those 56 pages of pics and see if i can find any examples of turnflow coolers with autech bars.

thanks for your help

[Nic_A31]

This thread might be of some use to you

http://www.skylinesaustralia.com/forums/Ph...-W-t143426.html

[toffy]

+1 for tuffest ceff ever , you should swap me your meisters for my kf's . that pic in the thread nic posted of my old car (the return flow cooler) was of an apexi/hybrid which was fairly small , i have that exact bar ob the front of mine with a gtr cooler which doesn't go any lower than the pipe out of the old cooler. pic:

[rayj]

+1 for tuffest ceff ever , you should swap me your meisters for my kf's . that pic in the thread nic posted of my old car (the return flow cooler) was of an apexi/hybrid which was fairly small , i have that exact bar ob the front of mine with a gtr cooler which doesn't go any lower than the pipe out of the old cooler. pic:

cheers man, and ill be hanging onto the rims haha.

so you reckon that arc intercooler will fit ok with the way i have my autech front bar now? or do u think to take full addvantage of the intercooler i might have to cut the number plate section out?

[Nic_A31]

Don't cut the bar up man....it'll still be getting air flow, and plenty of it.....it doesnt need to be exposed/visible to be getting air through it, it'll be fine I say.

[toffy]

nah don't cut the bar unless you really have to. one of the more appealing things about your car is the fact it doesn't look molested like most with bars chopped to pieces etc

[rayj]

thanks for all your advice guys

you both have been really helpful

cheers

[daisu]

I had a turn flow behind my autech bumper and it was a regular 600*300 sized core. There was a fair bit that sat above the mouth of the bumper but like the others said it was no need to cut the bumper to suit. The return pipe at the bottom was behind the lower lip of the bar, so it your case it might show a bit, just paint the piping matte black and it should hide with the colour of your bumper.

Another reason not to cut the bumper, is that you'll then have to cut the same shape out of the bumper reinforcement bar. I found this out when I bought a 2nd autech bar that had been moulded with the larger mouth (doesn't look it's been hacked up when it was moulded this way).

[rayj]

thanks daisu, great info and pics. so thats good then, i wont be touching that front bar anymore, i wish that bottom part of my bar wasnt cut out so low either...

just out of interest, where did u find that wider mouth autech bar, yahoo japan?

[daisu]

Got it off a guy here in QLD, don't know where he got it from though.

[rayj]

UPDATE.

Intercooler arrived from Japan, and I have fitted it onto my Cefiro. This ARC intercooler kit is specifically made for the A31.

Fitment is awesome, no modifications had to be made. It's just a simple bolt on job. All brackets fit perfectly.

So everything went great... until I started to fit the front re-bar. I have a slight problem and wanted to get some opinions.

The front re-bar doesn't completely clear the intercooler on the right hand side. This is because the i/c sits right of center on the car.

The re-bar will still bolt on if I push it in, but it makes contact with i/c on the right hand side and pushes the i/c back about 1cm when I push the re-bar on. It's not really a big deal or anything, but the contact is there. See this pic:

So, is slightly modifying the re-bar illegal? Say I get an angle grinder and shave off a little bit from the area where it makes contact... so there is clearance between the i/c and re-bar.

Have a look at this pic, it shows how the i/c fits from the front:

From the 2 pics above you can clearly see that half the i/c sits behind the re-bar.

So basically my question is, should I modify my re-bar to accomodate the i/c a bit better, or should I not worry about it and leave it alone?

With the way everything is now, will my i/c still function properly or be hindered a lot?

Thanks for any suggestions and help

[works 510]

In Vic modding the reo bar is illegal, best to check with your local transport authority.

I say give the reo abit of a trim, who's going to see it when the bumpers on anyway?

Just out of interest, how does the cooler core mount up to the shell?

[chuckie]

Hi I fitted one to my Stagea,

i had a Small Mod on my REO so you don`t need to REMOVE METAL,

Just slot it & fold

Gool luck,

Cheer`s Chuckie.

[rayj]

In Vic modding the reo bar is illegal, best to check with your local transport authority.

I say give the reo abit of a trim, who's going to see it when the bumpers on anyway?

Just out of interest, how does the cooler core mount up to the shell?

I'm fairly sure it's illegal to remove the bar here in SA, but just not sure about small mods, like grinding small bit (20mmx30mm) off.

the cooler connects to the shell by 4 brackets supplied in the kit. 2 from the top of the cooler. 1 on the left, and another at the bottom. it holds the cooler nice and firm.

[rayj]

Hi I fitted one to my Stagea,

i had a Small Mod on my REO so you don`t need to REMOVE METAL,

Just slot it & fold

Gool luck,

Cheer`s Chuckie.

i was never thinking of removing the reo, i just wanted to know if i should modify it, and whether mods to the reo are legal.

that mod you made is a great idea.

i could just cut a small line into the reo, about 20mm, and then bend the steel back from the cut. that would give me the clearance i need, and if anyone ever kicks up a fuss about it, i could bend it back into place and weld it it up.

cheers man

[V28VX37]

Hi I fitted one to my Stagea,

i had a Small Mod on my REO so you don`t need to REMOVE METAL,

Just slot it & fold

Gool luck,

Cheer`s Chuckie.

i was never thinking of removing the reo, i just wanted to know if i should modify it, and whether mods to the reo are legal.

that mod you made is a great idea.

i could just cut a small line into the reo, about 20mm, and then bend the steel back from the cut. that would give me the clearance i need, and if anyone ever kicks up a fuss about it, i could bend it back into place and weld it it up.

cheers man

+1 to slot & fold, check pics 11-13 here: R34 Gtt Front Mount Intercooler Installation - Some tips for a Trust vertical/turnflow kit

Awesome looking cooler the ARC!