Lightest IC for upgrade

[mankind_]

Hey everyone,

I looked though other threads, and didn’t find a definitive answer, but apologies if I missed it.

Simply put, the stock IC is ~6.5lbs and most upgrades seem to be ~20-30lbs. Therefore, for someone trying to keep their nose as lightweight as possible, which IC upgrade would tick this box?

My pony is a 2020 HPP + HP - many thanks

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[robvas]

Mass transfers heat. Why would you want the lightest one? They're also way bigger than the stock one. You want the one that doesn't the best job cooling, not the lightest

 

[mankind_]

Mass is definitely a factor in cooling performance as you say, but I read that sheet aluminum is also lighter than cast aluminum, so that’s another factor in the equation of how an IC is designed. What I want is an IC that adds as little weight as possible, while doing a better job than the stock IC. Doesn’t have to do the BEST job of any IC, because then I understand the compromise goes back to bigger mass, which is heavier. Just something better than stock but still lightweight.

 

[robvas]

I would wonder:

How many of those intercoolers use the same core?

Can you trust the manufacturers data on those?

Has anyone independently tested a couple of those?

It's easy enough to weigh them but determining how good of a job they do cooling (the important part) is another thing.

 

[Wolfys11]

Sheet aluminum wont be strong enough for ic, sheet aluminum is thinner hence lighter. You want the best cooling, 20lbs wont be noticable, however the power gain from cooling will be noticable in the summer temps

 

[AcceptableNebula]

This is not complicated at all.
Mass stores heat, has nothing to do with transfer rate. Mass can absorb and store burst of temperature increases. Think of a dry block engine. Just because it can go 1/4 mile without coolant doesn’t mean you can go forever. M X C X DT = Q

Weight reduction does help with acceleration.
With enough power it’s not as noticeable. Eventually aerodynamics become a bigger factor than weight. This is an EB tho…

Thermal conductivity and surface area are the main factors that reduce temperature. If you have sometime coating the inside passages that can reduce it also.

Cast aluminum can hang with sheet aluminum in the transfer rate category if done correctly. The end caps are not the main source of heat transfer/surface area here so cost and creation of complex shapes usually makes cast better for mass production.

Sheet aluminum can most definitely handle 30+ psi if designed correctly.

 

[Wolfys11]

This is not complicated at all.
Mass stores heat, has nothing to do with transfer rate. Mass can absorb and store burst of temperature increases. Think of a dry block engine. Just because it can go 1/4 mile without coolant doesn’t mean you can go forever. M X C X DT = Q

Weight reduction does help with acceleration.
With enough power it’s not as noticeable. Eventually aerodynamics become a bigger factor than weight. This is an EB tho…

Thermal conductivity and surface area are the main factors that reduce temperature. If you have sometime coating the inside passages that can reduce it also.

Cast aluminum can hang with sheet aluminum in the transfer rate category if done correctly. The end caps are not the main source of heat transfer/surface area here so cost and creation of complex shapes usually makes cast better for mass production.

Sheet aluminum can most definitely handle 30+ psi if designed correctly.

All true
Except this is an eb, which means nobody spends serious money or engineering on it, which means nobody will make a god tier intercooler for it as no one will afford it.

Eb needs better cooling than factory, the stock is hardly good enough. Adding a few lbs is worth the reliability, let alone the hp retention from not losing hp to heat soak.

Mass in theory is not important however mass is important as you need a heat soak, there isnt an intercooler big enough to simply take wot pulls back to back to high speeds and keep up with the heat from the turbo so you need something that cools and heat soaks enough to keep you cool for your use

 

[AcceptableNebula]

All true
Except this is an eb, which means nobody spends serious money or engineering on it, which means nobody will make a god tier intercooler for it as no one will afford it.

Eb needs better cooling than factory, the stock is hardly good enough. Adding a few lbs is worth the reliability, let alone the hp retention from not losing hp to heat soak.

Mass in theory is not important however mass is important as you need a heat soak, there isnt an intercooler big enough to simply take wot pulls back to back to high speeds and keep up with the heat from the turbo so you need something that cools and heat soaks enough to keep you cool for your use

Heat soak is never good but some is necessary as you would need an insane amount of surface area to keep steady state operation at a near ambient outlet. Therefore we have to live with some heat being stored in the intercooler to effectively increase the transfer rate into the ambient air without taking too much of a penalty in reducing transfer rate from the air charge. Storing thermal energy can’t be beneficial both ways.

The challenge is to have an economical balance point. Typically for effective heat transfer, it’s usually a 10-20 degree delta T from Ambient.

FYI, 10 lbs of aluminum can absorb 43 btus when increased 20 degrees F. That’s effectively 2 seconds of WOT 600cfm of a 400hp forced induction engine with a temperature drop of 80F in the charge air temperature. That’s assuming that all of that additional weight is in ideal heat transfer areas. .231 Btu/lb x 10lbs x 20 degrees = sensible heat storage of the mass increase. On an overworked EB turbo, 80 degree air charge drop is likely too small.

Adding mass in the form of heavy cast elbows is not the answer for efficiency but I do agree the added mass does make it more resilient to stresses.

 

[Buldawg76]

I would recommend this one for best bang for the buck and this company actually test its products on street driven cars that they own and use as test mules.

STEPPED CORE ALUMINUM (RACE) INTERCOOLER UPGRADE (MUSTANG ECOBOOST 201 – EUROCOMPULSION (shopeurocompulsion.net)

BD

 

[Joshinator99]

All true
Except this is an eb, which means nobody spends serious money or engineering on it, which means nobody will make a god tier intercooler for it as no one will afford it.

Eb needs better cooling than factory, the stock is hardly good enough. Adding a few lbs is worth the reliability, let alone the hp retention from not losing hp to heat soak.

Mass in theory is not important however mass is important as you need a heat soak, there isnt an intercooler big enough to simply take wot pulls back to back to high speeds and keep up with the heat from the turbo so you need something that cools and heat soaks enough to keep you cool for your use

I think the better question is, who makes a better turbo for the EB? And what octane fuel can the OP run (E85 or is it just crappy pump gas)? When you push the small OEM turbo outside of its efficiency island (generating much more heat) and couple that with low grade fuel that cannot handle higher IATs without knocking, that when this IC and/or IAT discussion comes up. But worrying about the IC is often times a band aid approach to the real problems at hand. Just my 2 cents.

 

[Wolfys11]

Most dont get the use out of a bigger turbo. Without e85, its pointless, and most dont go e85 in ecos

 

[Joshinator99]

Most dont get the use out of a bigger turbo. Without e85, its pointless, and most dont go e85 in ecos

Depends what the OP’s power goal is. If he wants more power, that means more airflow and a turbo matched to the increase airflow and pressure ratio makes much more sense than pushing the OEM turbo to a spot on its compressor map where it’s not effective. E85 is a godsend for any boosted engine of any size compared to pump gas (as most on this board know) so that’s always a solid recommendation.

 

[Buldawg76]

Sadly, E85 is not available to all of us in the states at the pumps.

BD

 

[Joshinator99]

Sadly, E85 is not available to all of us in the states at the pumps.

BD

Buy a drum and have it shipped to your house. Run 93 for routine driving and run E85 when you need the power and cooling. Just a suggestion. It’ll really depend where you’re trying to get to power wise.

 

[Buldawg76]

I don't have a need for E85 at this time but was just stating that it's not readily available at the pump for a lot of the US. Not everyone is willing to buy it in barrels and have no place to store it if they did buy it by the barrel.

BD

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