i was wonderin if v-mount intercoolers and radiators can increase the reliability enough for daily driving?

 

well since you get an aftermarket radiator and it clears up a lot of space under the hood, I would say that yes it does. But their are a lot of other mods that will increase the reliablity of the car also.

 

CAREFUL: I went down to Ricks Rotary (my car is in for a rebuild) and we were discussing intercooler options. Coincidently, he had a car in the shop with a V-mount installation. Ironically, the engine over-heated. When you do a V-mount installation, the fans for the radiator are placed right under it to draw air through the radiator. I cant remeber what Rick said it was, but there is someting right under the fans that prevent them from discharging the air properly, causing the engine to easily overheat. Check into this

 

that particular vmount has the fans on the outside (in front) not on the backside like usual. Maybe that's the reason...

I think to go v-mount effectively you car pretty much has to be a race car.

1. aftermaket front fascia (w/opening)
2. custom ducting work to move the air
3. removal of things like a/c condensor etc
4. vented hood would help

normal stock car, w/ the fans blocking and a/c condensor blocking is a recipe for overheating.

 

Niiice, I think he may have been refering to the undertray? That should be taken off with the V-Mount.

 

how many degrees can v-mounted intercoolers n radiators lower the engine?

 

i always thought v-mounts were great especially if you drive in a lot of traffic, unlike front mounts...?

 

V-mounts do a lot of nice things... but make the car MORE reliable? Probably not. How can it be more reliable than an aftermarket radiator and smic?

But V-mounts should be better performance-wise.

 

I don't understand.

I always thought V-mount is greatest setup for 7

in performance-wise and in reliability-wise, because

it gets more cold air than any other setup.

So, it reduce heat in the engine bay.

That's why I sold my aluminum radiator to get V-mount setup.

I didn't get it yet, though.

Do I have to get just Koyo+SMIC?

I got confused.

 

I have been running a V-mount for about three years, it significantly lowered my temps. I would say it was probably the best mod I did to my car overall as far keeping an eye on temps and what not, it was the way the car should have came in the first place.

 

My temps stay pretty low. Water temps usually are at around 85 C. Air temps are usually 10 degrees above ambiant when cruising. I love my setup wouldn't have it any other way.

 

how can vmounts be anything but better? it is exactly like the stock setup except the radiator is angled the other way.... you get cold air to the radiator, and the intake... and the intercooler... how could your car overheat???? doesn't make sense to me guys.......

 

Niiice: If you're referring to my car (silver) which is currently at Rick's, it did not overheat, take my word for it. I have more guages in there than you need for 5 cars. If Rick told you that (about my car), he had no basis for saying it. Tom

 

so for you guys with v mounts how long has it been since your engine detonated (if it has) ?

 

bump

 

????

Simply changing your intercooler setup won't reduce detonation (and may in fact, increase the chances). BTW, if you NOTICE your car detonating, it's pretty much already too late....

If you want to keep the car as safe from detonation as possible, do the reliability mods (including a downpipe), and leave it otherwise stock. And it may STILL happen.

There are no guarantees with these cars. If you expect an engine that will last 120k+, I would choose a different car if I were you.....

 

There were two silver FDs at his shop. One was on the lift, the V-mount set-up was on the ground. If im not mistaken, its also the car with oil inside the rotor housing and all over the rotor. I could have sworn Rick said the engine over-heated (or maybe I thought that was it because he said the sudden heat wave killed a bunch of cars.) It made sense when Rick explained it The radiator is flipped around. Instead of angling up and forward towards the front of the car pulling air up through the radiator, the V-mount angles up and back towards the rear of the car drawing air DOWN through the radiator. The fans are placed on the underside of the radiator, but something sits right below the fans preventing them from being able to discharge the air, which causes the engine to over-heat.

 

Uhh, why wouldnt it? Detonation occurs because the charge air is WAY too hot and ignites without a spark inside the combustion chamber on one side. When the other side receives its spark, it ignites as well. When the two explosions meet, detonation occurs and eats engines alive. Cooler charge air (i.e. intercooler) prevents detonation becuase the charge air is not hot enough to ignite on its own.....or do I have this all misunderstood.

 

Technically that would be called pre-ignition, but most people call it detonation as well.

Detonation can also happen when you get too much air and not enough fuel. By more air I mean more air molecules (cooler air = more air molecules). Your mixture will be burning lean, and a lean A/F ratio is hotter. That lean (hot) A/F mixture will also cause pre-ignition/detonation. So a lean mixture could also be prone to pre-igniting.

...or something like that.

 

No. WAY too hot? Spontaneous combustion?

No.


No. Not hot enough to spontaneously combust?


Somewhat.

A too lean mixture can result from too much O2, not enough fuel, or a combo. The correct ratio is attained by carefully calculating capacities, not just slapping on a big tubo and a downpipe. A pinched system will load heat and induce detonation, particularly if fuel delivery has not been adequately addressed. A fat system won't boost properly, which is a set of problems with only a few proper fixes but also many non-fixes that usually make things worse.

Detonation is a "propagating wave front" in the dynamic environment of the combustion chamber, according to Corky Bell's book on turbocharging (search Amazon.com). That's a slightly more complex process than the engine eating "handshake" of sparked and non-sparked combustion fronts as you described it.

And an intercooler can help prevent detonation (in principle) by simply lowering the temperature of the combustion gases relative to ambient temp. Cooling the charge makes it denser, more compressed, more fuel rich, and thus a more steadily burning energy source. But that in itself is not a guarantee against detonation.

At least that's how I understand it. Now watch Jimlab or somebody tear me an new bung hole!

Nat

 

As far as V-mount reliablity is concerned, it has to be better than stock, particularly with a vented hood and mods in the underbelly.

At D1 at Irwindale a few weeks ago, I saw that two of the FDs competing had v-mounts. That would include Calsonic's car, which unfortunately parked hard under the Judges' stand, and the white Apexi FD that took 4th. It's hard to imagine a more brutal heat/detonation inducing scenario than a drift competition. If they are running v-mounts, it's got to be a better way to go than stock. I am planning on such a conversion on "Mr. Silver" when I get to it.