MrDude_1

ok, i have a intercooler im putting infront of my radiator.

my question is, should i force all of the incoming air to go thru the IC first, or should i leave a gap behind the IC for the radiator to get air thru?

note: all pics are on a spare junk car, not my car. lol

ok, look at these two pics.



in the pic, you can see how the intercooler is back, so almost all airflow must go thru it, before it reaches the radiator... will that cause a cooling problem?
also note the lines. the green line is about where the normal airdam is... do you think i shoudl move it forward, to where the redline is? this would force all incoming air going under the car thru the intercooler more effectively, and as far as i can see, that would increase the amount of air going into the radiator too.. right?

heres a different pic:



notice the gap between where the radiator is(or would be), and where the IC is.
would this be better for cooling? would the intercooler still be as effective?
in this case, i would continue to run the stock airdam (green line) but i would possibly add a 2nd airdam for the intercooler.... any problems? ideas? anyone done this before? lol.


ok, going back up top:


here you can see how i have the intercooler tipped forward... this has no effect on the frontal area seen by the grill, however, it forces all the air coming up from under it, THRU it, instead of over or around..... does this seem like a ok solution?

OOOR:


should it be more like this... where there's a big airgap infront of it, and i could potentially see air going above it somewhat....





basically i dont want to have the engine overheat in the summer traffic because the intercooler is there.... but at the same time, i would like the intercooler to be as effective as possible.
any help would be great.

MrDude_1

ttt

FSTFBDY

iTrader: (33)

Is your friend.

There are so many FMIC pic's on this site its not funny.

but heres now mine is going.









I have a griffin rad. and twin electric fans. Im also making a custom sheetmetal fiture up front to force the air thru the fmic and rad.

MrDude_1

yet none answer my question. go figure...

theres a ****load of pics, and no info... and your car isnt much help unless you got it together, ran it, and found out if there are cooling issues from doing that or not.... no offence, your input is still appreciated, but im sure you see my point.

FSTFBDY

iTrader: (33)

Just do it and find out. Its not hard to move aFMIC forward or back a few inches.

ask TTA850 or JoeBoy. I know they both run big FMICs and havent heard of em complaining about temps.

PETE

iTrader: (1)

Firebirds are tricky, big intercoolers do block the air. Wire both fans to kick on at the same time or go back to a larger 16" high cfm single. Didn't have mine running for long but 200*210* was normal.

Mine is right up against the radiator straight up and down.

If you are open to suggestions ditch that IC and go for the newer style ones. Here's a pick of the one in the car..

Sorry not a great shot you can see it's just inside the radiator support after trimming.

More to follow

PETE

iTrader: (1)

pipe 180*'s around bottom through Z28 air dam then 90* up to TB.

PETE

iTrader: (1)

both pipes under front sway bar.

PETE

iTrader: (1)

sorry for the blurr. That is the setup in there now. I plan on going with this IC on either the TTA or my next project. I picked it up on EBAY for $260. The deals are there look for the place best offer auctions and try to get your best deal.

This FMIC is a 4in. core and 90* bends already fabbed. You just have to have your uppipe and turbo outlets bent. I used aluminum on the pics you see and wouldn't do it again. Too flimsy and dent like no tomorrow. A very mild thin walled steel powder coated will be my choice....

Here's a pic..

PETE

iTrader: (1)

NEW FMIC..

PETE

iTrader: (1)

Very nice construction....

BBSDesigns

If it helps, the intercooler on the project GTA is mounted just before the front facia, you'll notice two custom made grills that where made to get air for the intercooler. The intercooler and all the pipes are not going to be used anymore so we are thinking of selling the whole setup, so if anyone is interested give us a call.
Edgardo

89ta383sc

Me and a friend talk about this same thing. We found that you make sure that you seal around the rad.and make sure all the pulled in from the fans pass the rad. cores. if you don't you waste the coming in cause it looks for the least resistance. I am looking at mounting one facing down with alum. ducting forcing air staight to the rad. if it is still running hot, I am going to add some dual fans that flow 4500 cfm in place of the stocks. if it still get hot, i'll add some on the intercoolers. my buddies car ran fine in texas with the a/c off. when he ran a/c in traffic it started to over heat with an alum. rad.

305q_ta86

iTrader: (1)

I think gap = good, simply because of heat conductivity. Forget airflow to the rad, think about heat transfer. If you have them real close, your air-air intercooler just became a air-metal-really hot coolant interHEATER.