just wondering if anyone has ever thought to install a small electirc fan on the stock intercooler? i live in new mexico and heat can be an issue, but for the time being an aftermarket intercooler is way out of the question, it occured to me that once i install a cold air kit, i will no longer be drawing air through the face of the intercooler (via the stock airbox).

without the stock airbox in place im affraid there wont be enough airflow over the intercooler to suffecianlty cool the intake charge. sooo.. why not install a small electric fan on the back of the intercooler? the fan itself would be reletivly cheap, easy to wire in, and probably look prety nice once installed as well,

has anyone tried this?

yes yes i know the better option is to just replace it.. but i wont have 500 plus bucks for a new one for a while..

 

Never added a fan, so I can't comment.
By design the stock airbox scavanges some of the air from the intercooler duct. Replacing it and blocking off the hole feeding the airbox should actually increase air supply/flow to the intercooler.
There are some other inexpensive things to do to aid/increase air to the IC is adding a small lip to the bottom of the intake opening, using some upholstery foam to block off any gaps around your radiator and IC ducting. Make sure your under-tray/belly pan is tight and any gaps around it are similarly blocked off.
When choosing an intake, make sure you understand the difference between an open intake and a true cold air intake. Search around on the forum for your options and shielding.

 

keep the stock intercooler in place and add an meth injection kit. it will provide plenty of cooling..and you can run a little higherr boost without poping the motor.. with a meth kit you can run 12 psi on the stock I/C and fuel system and be plenty safe.

Jeff

 

I dont know if they make fans that small

Since you dont have money to add a bigger intercooler and other devices to cool your intake charge temps down. I suggest you do what sgtblue described. I too removed the stock air box and covered the hole in the intercooler duct so all the air goes to the intercooler. I ran it this way for a while with 260whp worth of mods and 12psi. I included a picture of my old set-up with the hole covered.

 

I installed a span pull fan on my greddy smic. words : don't do it. it's not worth it and not working well as good duct and/or water injection.

 

I hooked up two smaller fans to pull air through the stock intercooler at one point. It wasn't worth it.

The problem is that the fans that are small enough to fit generally don't pull enough air to make the mod worth while. The only benefit I got from the system was when I was in stop and go traffic. But, at highway speeds the fans would restrict the amount of air flowing through the intercooler and the intake temperatures were hotter then without the fans.

 

not the stock IC...but here's my stock-mount. haha

 

One other thing.......you can also use the upholstery foam to plug the the bypass from the stock intercooler duct to the AC evaporator and battery box. If you pull up the battery it's pretty easy to stuff a little foam in the hole. I used a little silicone caulk to hold the foam in place where if I thought t might not stay by itself. That will also will increase air pressure in front of your IC. And it costs next to nothing.

 

awesome! thanks everyone saved me the trouble of experimenttaion! sweet! ill try sealing up the box with the foam and what not, maybe a trip to home depot will really get it sealed nice.