hi all, i have a intercooler in the shed and was just wondering if it was worth useing on a non turbo'd engine. sounds strange i know.. but with cold air making a bigger bang over warm/hot air i was wondering if it would make much of a differance to power in warm conditions.
m20 2.7 stock intake system..
intercooler question
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Mikey_Boy
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Nope - that won't work! The reason an intercooler works for a turbo is because the air is compressed. Compress air and it gets hotter, so air coming out of a turbo towardsthe intake is really warm - up to 150 degrees. Pass that air through the intercooler and the cooler ambient air passing through the intercooler will cool the higher temperature air before it goes into the intake. Cooler air is of course much more dense than hot air so you get the double hit for better power...
The intercooler is a heat exchanger, so if you are passing non-compressed intake air (at ambient temperature) through the intercooler, using ambient air temperature to cool it, there isn't really any temperature difference or heat to exchange so hopefuly you can see that it's not going to be worthwhile...
Best off getting enough fresh air from the front of the car for a non turbo application - keep your intercooler for when you do fit a turbo!
Cheers,
Mike
The intercooler is a heat exchanger, so if you are passing non-compressed intake air (at ambient temperature) through the intercooler, using ambient air temperature to cool it, there isn't really any temperature difference or heat to exchange so hopefuly you can see that it's not going to be worthwhile...
Best off getting enough fresh air from the front of the car for a non turbo application - keep your intercooler for when you do fit a turbo!
Cheers,
Mike
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GeoffBob
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If the temperature of your inducted air were substantially higher than ambient, then the answer would be yes. Because it isn't, the answer is no.
Keep in mind that, at best, an intercooler can cool your inducted air down to ambient temperature, and no cooler than that. That makes a big difference considering the air coming out of a turbocharger or supercharger can get extremely hot. But on a normally aspirated car, definitely not. best way for you to induct cool air is to ensure your engine is drawing air in from outside the engine bay.
BTW, your idea is not such a bad one and has been put to good use on normally aspirated engines on the Bonneville salts flats in the US. The difference, however, is that a chiller unit (typically a heat exchanger immersed in a solution of dry ice and alcohol, or similar) is used. In this case the density of the inducted air is most definitely raised, thus producing more power. Not practical on a daily driver though.
EDIT: Sorry Mike, we must have typing at the same time. Didn't mean to repeat what you just said.
Keep in mind that, at best, an intercooler can cool your inducted air down to ambient temperature, and no cooler than that. That makes a big difference considering the air coming out of a turbocharger or supercharger can get extremely hot. But on a normally aspirated car, definitely not. best way for you to induct cool air is to ensure your engine is drawing air in from outside the engine bay.
BTW, your idea is not such a bad one and has been put to good use on normally aspirated engines on the Bonneville salts flats in the US. The difference, however, is that a chiller unit (typically a heat exchanger immersed in a solution of dry ice and alcohol, or similar) is used. In this case the density of the inducted air is most definitely raised, thus producing more power. Not practical on a daily driver though.
EDIT: Sorry Mike, we must have typing at the same time. Didn't mean to repeat what you just said.
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Mikey_Boy
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Great minds Geoff! 
Expanding on Geoff's words above - there was some work carried out a long while ago to look at using air conditioning refrigerants for chargecooling intake air on turbo and non turbo applications as a supplement to an air con system fitted to a car. It works fairly well on turbo applications and for non turbo applications but the extra weight involved outweighs any power gains - you need a massive condenser and compressor to shift the extra heat!
Best left for the Bonneville boys...
Expanding on Geoff's words above - there was some work carried out a long while ago to look at using air conditioning refrigerants for chargecooling intake air on turbo and non turbo applications as a supplement to an air con system fitted to a car. It works fairly well on turbo applications and for non turbo applications but the extra weight involved outweighs any power gains - you need a massive condenser and compressor to shift the extra heat!
Best left for the Bonneville boys...
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mrb27
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ok thanks for the advice. guess ill be puttin the intercooler on ebay 
had it for 2 years now.. not going for turbo now so ill just pull in a few quid for it and use the ££'s on sortin the niggely bits wrong with the car. i.e dodgy switches etc
had it for 2 years now.. not going for turbo now so ill just pull in a few quid for it and use the ££'s on sortin the niggely bits wrong with the car. i.e dodgy switches etc-
Gunni
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I´ve tried it, and it helped, but only in traffic.
i.e instead of warming up the intake air like you´d normally get from a cone filter within the engine bay the air temps remained ambient at all times. no loss of power either. Overall, not really a use if you put your air filter in the right place to begin with
i.e instead of warming up the intake air like you´d normally get from a cone filter within the engine bay the air temps remained ambient at all times. no loss of power either. Overall, not really a use if you put your air filter in the right place to begin with