Looking for a good intercooler
 

I am looking to get an intercooler. I would like to get a front mount, but I am afraid that the radiator won't get enough air for everyday driving. Anyone have any suggestions?

People run front mounts all day long on FD's without any real issues. My temps are about 15 degrees lower with the FMIC than a stock car...but the FC thermoswitch, single conversion, vented hood, and wrapped exhaust helps that a lot too.

V-Mount

http://www.rotaryextreme.com

I have my Old V-Mount setup for sale, everything you need to hook up to Stock Twins...
P.M. me if interested....

The engine is already a thermal time bomb, and unless you have installed a huge radiator and never track you car, stay away from front mounts.
Go with a good stock mount or a V mount you will be far better off. I know people say they don't have issues, but just by block the flow to the radiator increases the water temps which shorten the life of the engine and the seals.

ASP Med/Large:

https://www.rx7club.com/3rd-generation-specific-1993-2002-16/real-world-comparo-ait-water-temps-smic-vs-fmic-373078/

you can read the pro and cons all day long on this subject. everyone has their own ideas.

after consideration i chose the stock mount position. i road raced for 22 seasons and putting 20 plus pounds in the absolute worst place on the car didn't make sense to me. a front engine rear drive car needs as much weight as possible on the rear wheels. my very streetable fd has 53% rear weight and it really hooks up in the corners.

i am also concerned as to cooling. blocking the flow to the radiator is NOT going to make the engine run cooler.

i did an interesting experiment last summer. i placed instrumentation immediately behind my intercooler. at 60 miles per hour guess what the speed of the air was exiting the intercooler core....

with my louvered hood providing additional exit for the air it was.... 6 MPH. with a non louvered hood it was 4 mph.

so you put your FMIC in front of your radiator and what do you get thru your IC to the radiator?

you live in OK? i read where it gets pretty hot down your way.

and finally, i just finished straightening the fins on my 2 oil coolers. i am going to install screens as they really get bashed up being low and in the front. i would guess the same would happen w the FMIC. although you could install a screen. i have one in front of my water radiator.

as to ICs. i run Kevin Wyum's large ASP ic... also produced for a period of time by M2. it is amazing how much heat it dumps. the medium size also works very well and allows you to run the battery in stock location.

finally, being a closet engineer, i revere the stock front nose aerodynamics. again, i realize we can't all be divorced from the same woman, but the concept of putting more, alot more, drag on the front of the car when mazda worked so hard to minimize frontal area so as to make the car go faster to me is, uh, nuts.

so that's my story and i am sticking to it. good luck in making the right choice for you.

howard coleman

I have seen more than one SMIC soak pretty badly, especially on the dyno. I've even tried it myself, after going the route of fabbing extensive functional ducting. Putting an IC directly above the radiator just lets it act as a big heat sink, absorbing heat from both the turbos and radiant heat from the radiator, but without the ability to dissipate all of that heat.

^lol

yay or V - mounts

the asp fiberglas duct insulates most of the radiant radiator heat from the ic core. i grant you the engine compartment heat does effect the overall core temp. i have monitored the heat into the core v out and while i don't have the numbers at hand there is a huge heat loss thru the smic ic. as far as heatsoak on the dyno... i don't drive the dyno, i drive the car on the road and track. i also have enough instrumentation that i tune my car on the road. the police haven't yet caught up w me:)

howard coleman

Extruded Tube and Fin
 

What about using an Extruded Tube and Fin intercooler in the front? If I replaced the stock radiator with one from koyo do you think this would be a good setup? I don't like the idea of the stock mount because it will draw to much heat from the engine bay. Is there somekind of ramair hood you can use in conjuction with a good intercooler mounted in that area?

Does anyone have any old kits they are trying to get rid of in the U.S.?

stock mount or vmount

I was thinking of picking up a FMIC from www.extremeintercoolers.com, because you don't have to relocate the battery or radiator, Where can I find the XS Power smic? Does noone know of a intercooler kit that matches some kind of hood scoop? A setup similar to the WRX STI. I believe that would be the best way to get performance from both radiator and IC.

Your lost.....
First what are you going to do in your FD ?
1) Daliy driver
2) Road Race
3) Drag Race

What type of power are you looking for ?

Once we know what your plans are then you should get some direction.

I ran a PFS SMIC for a few years with stock twins. SMIC do soak up heat but the air flow to your rad is good. If I wasnt going to drag my car I would go with a V-mount , its the best of both worlds. Now I have a huge FMIC and sealing it off below and on the sides improves air flow to the rad.

Old : 325HP
http://i22.photobucket.com/albums/b3...Picture005.jpg

New:425hp+
http://i22.photobucket.com/albums/b3...ine/AG8015.jpg

That is one awsome engine bay!

I plan to stick with the stock twins for now. What intercooler do you have on that second picture. And Where did you get that radiator? I have Greddy intake on stock twins, and I was wanting to put in a better than stock intercooler before I buy a Power FC and get the car tuned. Oh yea do you guys know where to pick a a Power FC and commander cheap?

Oh, and I plan on using this for a daily driver, maybe with a few races.

Check the for sale section, I see PFC's sell around $700 used

MY IC is a Greddy 3 row , its a big sucker isnt it. The Rad is a Fluidyne , I got it from Jason at the RX7 store. It was my first mod , about four years ago.

Thanks for the points on the engine bay, just wait its looks alot better now then it does in that photo.

This is my FMIC, but I would not recomend it for your application. I still think a v-mount is worth the extra bucks for your application

http://i22.photobucket.com/albums/b3...e/DSCN0902.jpg

of coarse they will heat soak on a dyno, there is no air moving. Besides, people don't drive on a dyno.

lol, I'm selling them NEW for not much more than that

Where is a good place to pick up a kit. And noone knows of a kit that fits a hood with a scoop? Like on the rally cars?

why don't you try the forum sponsors (eg; rx7 store) for good local prices?

hood with a scoop - the only hood I know with a scoop of significant dimensions is the scoot hood (or copies of) - do a search

Is there such a thing as a crappily built intercooler? I got a huge IC with my FD when I bought it, but it has no brand markings on it, and I don't want to hack up my bumper to make it fit.

M14socom, What part of OK are you in? There are several rotary nuts in the tulsa area that get together often.