Inter cooler or downpipe

[Zmc Money]

What would you pick next? I have cobb stage 1 and injen intake.

 

[envyist]

Downpipe hands down imo. Unless you know your gonna do a turbo upgrade? Then I'd say ic first and get a dp to swap with the turbo upgrade all at the same time.

 

[Colin1337]

Why not both? Could buy both of mine haha
But really, I'd say IC. That's what COBB thinks the next step should be since to use their stage 2 tune you need an upgraded FMIC

 

[CanadianST]

I was just pondering this question myself, then had an intercooler pop up for next to nothing which made my decision much easier. If you can also find a good deal on an intercooler *cough* Colin's part out *cough* I'd go with that, might as well save some money while bettering your ride

 

[Harvick]

If you have to chose one get the downpipe.

 

[Sekred]

Downpipe for me too.

 

[COBB Tuning1]

In our testing, upgrading the FMIC first helps to make the most power. Then when you add the downpipe/full TBE later, you'll be able to take full advantage of it. Our Stage 2 (Intake + FMIC) and Stage 3 (Intake + FMIC + downpipe + catback) maps will be available at the end of this month for the Accessport. But if you want to modify in a different order, you can always have a custom map made for your Accessport as well.

Ian

 

[orpamoc]

I've been wondering this myself too. What is the point of an upgraded FMIC? I don't think I'll ever do a turbo upgrade on this car. Would it still be recommended to upgrade to a better IC even if a turbo upgrade will never be done?

 

[CanadianST]

In our testing, upgrading the FMIC first helps to make the most power. Then when you add the downpipe/full TBE later, you'll be able to take full advantage of it. Our Stage 2 (Intake + FMIC) and Stage 3 (Intake + FMIC + downpipe + catback) maps will be available at the end of this month for the Accessport. But if you want to modify in a different order, you can always have a custom map made for your Accessport as well.

Ian

I'm rather surprised to see the numbers. I would have figured we'd be in the same boat as the FoST guys and make crazy power with an intercooler and piping then a slight increase with the downpipe. Guess we know where our bottleneck is

 

[Ghostwhite]

I'd go intercooler forst just because how the stages work on our cars. Usually for another car id say downpipe because that's the normal stage 2 but intercooler is our stage 2, I know weird

 

[justgotFiSTed]

I'm doing intercooler BEFORE I do anything else. Even with stock boost, a nicer intercooler makes the system more efficient. Even in daily driving, I can feel a big difference as the daytime temps climb and the car starts pulling boost/timing. A better intercooler just makes everything work better and, I'd even argue, last longer. Tiny turbos at high psi make LOTS of heat, and heat is the enemy of power and longevity. IC FTW!

 

[SecretSquirlTuned]

If we had a OTS E85 tune for these cars we wouldn't need a IC upgrade, just charge pipe upgrade and stock intercooler + E85!! Also could eek more power out of the motor due to being able to add some timing to the motor.
I would get the DP first

 

[justgotFiSTed]

Why would you NOT add a bigger intercooler with e85? Sure, the higher octane means you can run more timing/boost, but that doesn't mean you aren't generating loads of heat and higher intake air temps...

 

[envyist]

I would think because e85 runs cooler and is a denser fuel?
So interesting just a little while ago it was said the fist had a much better stock ic then the fost and now it's changed?

 

[justgotFiSTed]

e85 is a denser fuel? Really? Elaborate...I was under the impression that you had to burn more to get the same amount of energy...

 

[justgotFiSTed]

Keep in mind, I live in Phoenix, and it's summer, so I'm at the extreme end of the heat equation.

 

[envyist]

http://www.gearhead-efi.com/Fuel-Injection/showthread.php?1226-E85-and-Ethanol-in-depth-information
Some interesting e85 insights here^

 

[justgotFiSTed]

Ah, I think we meant two different things. Cool.

"The stoich ratio for 100% ethanol would be around 9:1 air:fuel with 100% gasoline being 14.7:1 air:fuel. E85 requires around 9.8:1 air:fuel, which is roughly 50% more fuel. The short and simple reason is that ethanol contains less chemical energy than gas. This equates into reduced fuel economy, but actual fuel consumption is not increased by 50% due to many factors that are about to be addressed."

Higher fluid density (specific gravity?), lower energy density...

 

[SecretSquirlTuned]

1300 HP non-intercooled 383 SBC on E85 @ 29PSI!!!!!

I think if this monster works with no intercooler on E85,, our lil 1.6 motor will maybe survive!!!
Not to mention we have already built several NON IC E85 turbo track cars that are very strong runners and have had 0 issues with the setup.


http://www.theturboforums.com/threads/350621-1300-HP-non-intercooled-383-SBC-on-E85

 

[SecretSquirlTuned]

Don't forget the weight savings from not having a huge IC hanging off front bumper or the IC pipe plumbing mess.