Intercooler options. Don't want to cut bumper
03-10-13, 08:44 PM
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Intercooler options. Don't want to cut bumper
Hey guys,
Well as the title suggests, I am looking to upgrade the stock top mount intercooler on my 10AE. I am really trying to restore/modernize the car. My goal with the project is to build a top notch RX7 the way mazda would have if the could have back in 1988! So here is my current situation and question. What intercoolers are you guys running? If front mounted, did you have to cut the bumper/body to make it happen? To what extent did the body work go? I am not afraid to do the body work ( but I would rather not). I also don't know if that's how mazda would have done it.?? OPINIONS??? I was thinking upgrading the top mount, but that is also not that efficient.. So I started thinking V mount. I have read good things, it would go hand in hand with upgrading the alternator, and installing electric fans. I know the E fans are debatable but that's not at question here. My question for you VMount guys would be, could I keep a/c and power steering? Let me know what you guys thing and what products you would suggest.
Thanks!
Well as the title suggests, I am looking to upgrade the stock top mount intercooler on my 10AE. I am really trying to restore/modernize the car. My goal with the project is to build a top notch RX7 the way mazda would have if the could have back in 1988! So here is my current situation and question. What intercoolers are you guys running? If front mounted, did you have to cut the bumper/body to make it happen? To what extent did the body work go? I am not afraid to do the body work ( but I would rather not). I also don't know if that's how mazda would have done it.?? OPINIONS??? I was thinking upgrading the top mount, but that is also not that efficient.. So I started thinking V mount. I have read good things, it would go hand in hand with upgrading the alternator, and installing electric fans. I know the E fans are debatable but that's not at question here. My question for you VMount guys would be, could I keep a/c and power steering? Let me know what you guys thing and what products you would suggest.
Thanks!
03-11-13, 02:19 AM
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The original FC design team first met in early January of 1981, and decided on a design in the middle of 1983, not 1988. If you truly want to make your car like the designers intended, then you will need to convert to a non-turbo drivetrain, install a larger rear glass window with no frame, and remove the rear center brake light. You can contact Mazda USA to see if they can send you a picture of the original 1983 design. The original design also called for a 4-spoke steering wheel, which was replaced with a 2-spoke wheel after testing, so you may or may not want to install a 4-spoke steering wheel depending on your interpretation of what the engineers wanted.
As for the later turbo models, Mazda engineers used the top-mounted intercooler on purpose. Mounting it in that manner reduces the amount of internal volume in the system, allowing for less boost lag vs. a front-mounted intercooler. The smaller stock intercooler works just fine for the boost level of the stock engine. Another advantage of the stock intercooler is that it is mounted closer to the center of the car, which gives the car a better static weight distribution and polar moment of inertia vs. a 30-lb front-mount or v-mount intercooler located near the front of the car. It is OK if you want to change the intercooler location, but doing so is NOT what the engineers wanted.
Sure, you can keep AC and PS with a front-mount or v-mount intercooler. You can do anything with enough skill and/or money.
It is good that you don't want to cut or remove the bumper. We had a forum member remove the internal bumper in order to feed a front-mounted intercooler. He is now dead.
There is plenty of room for a front-mounted intercooler in front of the radiator, but if you want a really big intercooler then you will need to remove the hood latch and install hood pins. You will need to decide what you want to do. I recommend making a cardboard mock-up of the intercooler and plumbing before you order anything. Below is an example showing the space between the radiator and the bumper. You will get more examples by searching the 2Gen forum than you will in this newbie forum.
As for recommendations, I like Spearco intercoolers because I like bar & plate construction better than tube & fin, they sell cores if you want to make your own end tanks, and they actually publish data that I can use for designing a system. I get my aluminum pipe from Burns Stainless, and I like Spal e-fans. These are all just personal preferences, and I am not a mechanic.
As for the later turbo models, Mazda engineers used the top-mounted intercooler on purpose. Mounting it in that manner reduces the amount of internal volume in the system, allowing for less boost lag vs. a front-mounted intercooler. The smaller stock intercooler works just fine for the boost level of the stock engine. Another advantage of the stock intercooler is that it is mounted closer to the center of the car, which gives the car a better static weight distribution and polar moment of inertia vs. a 30-lb front-mount or v-mount intercooler located near the front of the car. It is OK if you want to change the intercooler location, but doing so is NOT what the engineers wanted.
Sure, you can keep AC and PS with a front-mount or v-mount intercooler. You can do anything with enough skill and/or money.
It is good that you don't want to cut or remove the bumper. We had a forum member remove the internal bumper in order to feed a front-mounted intercooler. He is now dead.
There is plenty of room for a front-mounted intercooler in front of the radiator, but if you want a really big intercooler then you will need to remove the hood latch and install hood pins. You will need to decide what you want to do. I recommend making a cardboard mock-up of the intercooler and plumbing before you order anything. Below is an example showing the space between the radiator and the bumper. You will get more examples by searching the 2Gen forum than you will in this newbie forum.
As for recommendations, I like Spearco intercoolers because I like bar & plate construction better than tube & fin, they sell cores if you want to make your own end tanks, and they actually publish data that I can use for designing a system. I get my aluminum pipe from Burns Stainless, and I like Spal e-fans. These are all just personal preferences, and I am not a mechanic.
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