Thread: What kind of Intercooler

Is most running? The ebay specials? What dimensions?

You want your intrcooler to be sized pretty much as big as possible without being to big to avoid having alot of lag. Thats pretty much all there is to it. But then you also dont want to be upgrading your intercooler on every turbo upgrade. So make sure its big enough to handle what your ultimate power goals for the car are also

Precision.....600hp rated cooler for me. Not big on the ebay specials. Just have one custom made for like $600, worth it IMO

eBay Motors: CXRacing INTERCOOLER 27x12x3 CIVIC B18 B16 ACCORD CRX (item 370101221393 end time Oct-28-08 18:41:02 PDT)

Ditto on what Andreas said. As big as you can fit as long as it's bar-and-plate (no one sells tube-in-fin anymore) and the end tanks are relatively curved. $100 giant eBay intercoolers all day long. Easiest purchase you'll ever make.

As for Johnny wangwang's comments about lag. I'm glad he brought it up, because it gives me another opportunity to educate, and debunk this horrible myth. Johnny, can you quickly explain why you would experience slower boost onset ("turbo lag" isn't really correct here) with a larger intercooler?

eBay intercoolers and intercooler kits FTW! I thought everybody was up on this by now? I'll probably get a this one.

eBay Motors: ALUMINUM HIGH FLOW FMIC INTERCOOLER MEDIUM 28X9X3 (item 150275451057 end time Nov-22-08 08:27:08 PST)

Option #1?

eBay Motors: FMIC TURBO INTERCOOLER 24x9x3 RX7 FC FD SRT4 PRELUDE (item 250312210823 end time Oct-23-08 13:26:56 PDT)

Option #2?

eBay Motors: CXRacing INTERCOOLER 27x12x3 CIVIC B18 B16 ACCORD CRX (item 370101221393 end time Oct-28-08 18:41:02 PDT)

^Option #3?

^It seems that 9" in height with about 24" in core length would be good enough on 450-500 SR20 turbo builds. Should I go 12" in height?

I went 24" x 12" x 3" core (32" x 12" x 3" with end tanks) and I'd recommend it if you're willing to do what it'll take to make it fit. See Andreas comment below about 20" core being a better fit.

eBay Motors: Greedy Intercooler Turbo/Supercharger setup, 24x12x3 (item 160292839968 end time Oct-24-08 11:44:13 PDT)

Use the one I listed, in my opinion you will be able to have more space to run piping properly. 12 in tall is not a problem. I woud go with a taller intercooler 12 v 9 because you would have less pressure drop across the core, there will be more runners for the air to travel acroess easier. Less work by motor means more HP to the wheels. Again it is my opinion.

Andreas, yours is a 20" core where mine is 24". You know what that means.

The core lenth on BeFenners is 18 in

The core length on the one I posted is 20 in

Both are great.

Stay away from the ones with the 24 in cores that come out to a total length of 32 in with endtanks on