Rotary93

Which do you guys think is the best FMIC for the 3rd gen stock twins?

Apexi
Greddy
Blitz

Which one is the best fit and quality?

thanks
Anthony

MattZeeTerror

I would go with a medium or large stock mount from m2.

DK

iTrader: (5)

Fit and quality, eh? BLITZ. It's so shiny and since it enters and exits from the top, the endtanks are wedge shaped allowing for air to pass around it at the base and that's great for my car. But no one else here ever advises to get it and since everyone else cares what everyone else thinks, I say you don't get the BLITZ and get what everyone else will say -- A'PEXi/RX-7 Fashion -- otherwise you might have an indentity crisis and get some strange looks from people.

hapa

I agree with DK the blitz is an excellent front mount. I personally don't like the rx7fashion, it's a cheap copy of the XS front mount, and it's end tanks are a bad design (in my opinion). If XS was still making their front mount kit with the Apexi core, then thats what I would recommend. But the Blitz is an excellent kit. I don't like the Greddy, because what if you want to run higher boost than 15lbs??? then you have to upgrade to the 3 row? but what if your running 12lbs on the street and 18lbs on the track? Too many variables to me.

eric

Mach2

I agree with DK on this one. The Blitz is probably the nicest looking, best performing fmic out there that doesn't require hacking up the entire car. The A'pexi has a very ugly and rough finish to it(this might not be important to some, but to me it is), and the multicolor pipes are just ugly. Another negative aspect is that it makes the AC practically useless since it requires you to lay the ac condensor flat on the under cover under the engine bay(again, this might be important to some, but to me it is VERY important). As for the new Greddy I think it is a very nice unit and it looks great too, but I don't like the fact that you really have to hack up the front bumper and support alot, and I think it sits too far out front(longer pipes = more pressure drop). The Rx7 Fashion has the same problem when it comes to how far out it sits, and the length of the pipes. I don't really like the endtanks of it either. Now if you take a look at the Blitz, you don't have any of these problems. The IC sits where the A'pexi sits, but it doesn't require the relocation of the ac condensor since the outlet and intake are on the top of the endtanks and not on the back. The finish on the IC and pipes is second to none. The positioning of the IC allows shorter and more direct(less curves) piping. The size of the IC is also as big, if not bigger than the rest, with a greater surface area than the A'pexi. I think that the main reason why people never consider the Blitz, is because of cost. The Blitz IC sells for $1400 at the Rx7store, while the A'pexi includes an intake system as well for the same price. I plan on purchasing a fmic very soon, and I am definitely leaning towards the Blitz. To each his own!!

jimlab

Ditto, with the exception of the large... there's no need for the extra size or weight. Testing has proven that the core of the medium IC actually has slightly less pressure drop and cools just as effectively as the large IC. Choice is simple.

Install a FMIC if you want the "look", but if you're performance minded, the best thing you can do is *NOT* put something directly in front of the air path to your radiator. Even if you have an upgraded radiator, a FMIC will still choke off airflow, and you will also be risking damage to the IC from road debris.

In drag racing, a FMIC is desirable because it does not sit directly above the radiator, and will therefore heatsoak to a lesser degree when the car is sitting in the pits. From a road racing point of view, the underhood IC is desirable, because it cools just as effectively (after all, without an air-to-water IC, you can't get any colder than a few degrees above ambient anyway) and doesn't block air flow to the engine or radiator.

For most people, the underhood IC is a better solution, unless you're just going for the "look". But if you do, get the Blitz frount mount, just so DK won't feel lonely.

Zoomspeed

So how much hacking does the Blitz FMIC require?

Devilish

If I did it all over again, I would get the Blitz or 3" Greddy, and then get a big *** Griffin Ford racing radiator ($181.95 from Summit) with electric fans to stand up behind it. But I didn't, dammit. Maybe on the next 3rd gen I buy which will be a track car.

JoeD

i actually like the Apex FMIC. it has a different style core which lets air through it to get to the radiator, and it comes with intakes. the blue pipes dont bother me that much.

ive heard from some people that the AC will not be functional, but some people said that it was just fine.

Apex FMIC owners, how is the AC now after the install of this kit??

JoeD

also, is the Blitz big and efficient enough to handle 17ish PSI with a single?? not many people have this kit (that must mean something) , so i dont know that much about it.

anyone have pics of this kit installed?? (i searched but found nothing). what kinda intake do you have to run with this FMIC?? im assuming Blitz SUS.

JoeD

ooh...found a pic of the Blitz FMIC installed. (A-Spec's car)

DK

iTrader: (5)

Oh my gosh, people are agreeing with me! OK OK ... wow that's neat!

I think the Blitz can handle whatever. I saw the numbers on it two years ago when I bought it and while I don't remember them, nothing alarmed me so it must can handle some big boost. 28 comes to mind, actually, but please DO NOT quote me on that. I *think* the core is something like 19 X 11 X 3.5, but again my numbers are fossilized and of course my car is on the other side of the state. I think it's thicker than most, but it's not as popular because it's harder to come by and it's not as wide so it's not as showy (a lot of people like that for some reason, but I like air passages!).

And the only cutting that I remember is hacking off the radiator mounts from the swaybar bracket, just for friendly reference!

Mach2

I have to disagree with the comments about the smic being better than the fmic. I know this is a very delicate topic, but "in my opinion" the smic would become practically useless after a few minutes of daily traffic, where as the fmic would not be affected at all. I won't deny that it has its' drawbacks as well, but unless you are racing on a track for extended periods of time, I don't think there is any chance of overheating the car. You have to keep your eye on the water temp gauge anyway in a 3rd gen, so why not do it a little more often? No IC is perfect, but I think that fmic's have a few more benefits.
JoeD,
There are a few guys in the single turbo section that have the Blitz and are verry happy with it. I think one of them is "LongRx7"(he set up the group buy on the carbon fiber hoods), and there is another guy which I don't remember his name. I think that the Blitz is just not as "popular", but that has nothing to do with its' performance.

SilverR1

Here's a pic of the Apexi being installed.

jimlab

1) These cars overheat even when people aren't driving on the track. Overheating is the second most common cause of engine death, more than likely. The cooling system is substandard by anyone's measure, it needs all the help it can get, and that includes not stuffing a front mount intercooler directly in its air path. Go ahead and do it, but don't whine about the consequences, should you end up facing them.

2) The SMIC intercoolers are very effective in daily driving. If you were sitting in gridlocked traffic for a length of time, they will heat soak, but you're not using boost at that point, are you? The minute you get free, they will again cool down very rapidly, and my ASP Racing (now M2 Performance) large intercooler was always very cool to the touch, even on the hottest of days. Many degrees below anything else in the engine bay.

If you're going to worry about heat soak, worry about the aluminum intake manifold (and intake elbow, if you've got one) sitting directly over the heat pump, er, engine...

Jetlag

The Greddy I/C is an excellent unit. As far as the install goes, it is alittle more time consuming than the others, Apexi, M2, and Blitz unit. Someone mention that you have to hack up the bumper and core surport in order to install it. This is not true. You do have to trim the bumper skin and the fiberglass bumper.

As far as lag goes, it's hardly noticeable from stock!

link to my unit: http://communities.msn.com/Meko/phot...oto&PhotoID=41

DeNguyen

if your sitting in traffic, air isnt gonna get to your radiator any better than if theres somthing sitting in front of it. unless there a real strong headwind or somthin... but thats not likely to do much for cooling anyhow.

and if you driving arund in the city, the smic will more than likely be heat soaked.

i dont do much track racing. maybe once or twice a year, but so far, so good. i have fmic and i leave the radiator fans on all the time. stock radiator, no probs.

i think people forget that fmics flow fairly well.

RotaryKnight

I would say that the HKS Type-S, GReddy 3 row and the Blitz are all very similar and share similar core design and installation.

Rotary93

I was mainly concerned about how the radiator has to be relocated. How is it with the Blitz? How close to the front of the car is it located? any trimming?

wptrx7

so in all honesty there isn't much of a difference with these fmic and smic? if you have it you like it and it works for you? i am also in the market for ic and i was always told thd that the fmic was better than the smic. out of the fmic the apex was the best overall because the greddy fmic have to be purchased according to how much boost your looking to run. i have not heard much about the blitz, but i hae seen different pictures and i like how the piping sits (almost factory). why is it so expensive?

luigi

Mach2

Jimlab,
I agree with your first point about these cars having an inadequate cooling system, but that isn't an issue except under extreme conditions like racing or on a car that isn't maintained properly. Even the basic fan mod makes the car run much cooler. Then you can upgrade the rad and it gets even cooler. On my car with the fan mod and stock rad, under "any" driving conditions I never see higher than 190deg except in heavy traffic where it'll reach 200-210deg. In this situation there is no air flow to the radiator therefore even if there were a fmic there it wouldn't affect the temps at all. As for the smic being very effective for daily driving, I have my doubts. You said that it isn't important that it heatsoaks in traffic cause your not boosting, but this isn't entirely true. If the IC reaches a "hypothetical" 100deg while sitting in traffic and then you start moving and boost (air at 100+ deg) comes on, you will continue to heat the IC and it wouldn't even have had time to begin cooling down. See my point? As for the IC cooling "very" rapidly, I have my doubts here as well. I read an article on scuderiaciriani(I think) which clearly stated that an IC that is heat soaked requires a very long time to return to normal temps while sitting in the engine bay. Again, this is just "my" opinion and no one has to agree with me.
Rotary93,
choose whichever suits "you" best for the kind of driving you plan on doing!

Dragueur

maybe cause of the...
"BLITZ" name....

Zoomspeed

So does the BLitz FMIC need relocation of anything?

Which one is more of a direct bolt-on, the Apex or the blitz?

A-Spec

Hey that looks like my car~

the blitz is great, I like how everything is nicely polished and also it sits lower than the Apexi so more surface is exposed. It is very nice, it includes everything you need, wire loom, wires to extend the fan harness, wire ties, battery tie down bar, new powersteering loop, lower radiator hose and I got it for only $850

The only problem I had with it was that I couldn't bend the A/C pipes so I just took it out, and because I had a fluidyne I had to cut the cross bar which the battery tray sits on. I also had to extend the bracket since the fluidyne was thicker.

you have to relocate the a/c bottle and condensor, radiator, and modify the battery a little. The radiator will sit behind the fmic and the condensor at a slight angle.

Dark Side

It looks like you've done a HID conversion as I see a box that is probably the external ballast, but how exactly do your lights look? I can't tell from the pictures posted but it appears like you have the individual lights poking out Can you post another pic with the hood down, frontal view?