Intercooler & Radiator Upgrade Question.

[Kevin]

Im coming up to having my engine rebuilt soon, my question is though is what should I go for.  I was originally going to go for Dragons V-Mount kit, but I also want to keep the airconditioning too.  Now I want decent parts but dont want to the cost to rocket too much with trying to maintain my aircon so it seems easier going for an upgraded rad and front mount, so here are my options:

Option 1: Dragon V-Mount - but still want to keep the aircon.  Cost (£950 + VAT) + £XXX keeping aircon rad??

Option 2: Koyo Radiator & Greddy Front Mount.  Cost £895 Delivered

I\'ve got everything else covered like small redtop battery relocated, HKS racing suction intake, so no problems regarding those areas of space.

What would you guys do?  Any opinions?  Ideally i\'d like the v-mount.

[rx7veilside]

all i can say is have had fmic and charge cooler
1/fmic good air temps but bugger all air can get to the rad as fmic then air con rad then water rad
2/charge cooler-crap
3/v mount not tested yet but shd give good flow to both rad and i/cooler but havnt got a clue howto keep aircon wld prob need a custom set up but have scrapped my aircon anyway
rotary just seems to run too hot to have a massive fmic stuck in front of rad for day to day driving ok if ur only interested in track or 1/4 mile as airflow is allways good but at 50mph its a torturous path for the air to reach the rad

[rx7veilside]

all i can say is have had fmic and charge cooler
1/fmic good air temps but bugger all air can get to the rad as fmic then air con rad then water rad
2/charge cooler-crap
3/v mount not tested yet but shd give good flow to both rad and i/cooler but havnt got a clue howto keep aircon wld prob need a custom set up but have scrapped my aircon anyway
rotary just seems to run too hot to have a massive fmic stuck in front of rad for day to day driving ok if ur only interested in track or 1/4 mile as airflow is allways good but at 50mph its a torturous path for the air to reach the rad

[Kevin]

Yeah that\'s why I want the v-mount as it\'ll be far more efficient to keeping the engine temps down. (especially seeing though it was a water seal thats blown on mine - hence the rebuild).  It\'s just the amount of work fabricating the brackets, and modifying the pipes to get the aircon working thats putting me off.  Would rather put the money to use for a street port than holding an aircon rad in place.

[marco]

why was the charge cooler so crap? i am seriosuly considering one for when i finally get round to upgrading.

Adrian

[John Yorke]

Charge coolers are great if they are plumbed in properly:yes  ran one for best part of 3 years with 400+RWHP plenty of track days, Ring trips ect, never let me down [and is still running well with new owner at 465atw].
Have you considered REworx V mount kit, IC sits where the rad did and rad sits under it to form a V so it might be possible to mount the AC rad with the IC [IC is just about the biggest thing you have seen:King ] Think they may have pictures on their site failing that have a look on FDUK under \'project testarossa\'

[rx7veilside]

well my reworx charge cooler gave me 45deg air intake temps on cruise more on boost and 89-90 water temps with large pwr rad and that was on a cool day so i wld def leave the charge cooler to one side.the pumps are not up to the job and airlocks are also an issue.v mount is def the way to go

[D1 WTF]

i am running the WGT Vmount- bigger then dragon and looks phat in my opinion.  i still have aircon.....dont think it is an issue at all.  my air con rad is almost flat on the bottom of the car though i think.

v-mounts (well my one)is very good.  intakes are always very low.  when it was really cold it was almost too low.  i was going to block a proportion of it off, to raise the intakes a little.

[rx7veilside]

dragon do 2 version i think and u prob have the bigger full width one..v mount def seems the way to go...one company fabricates these v mounts and then it is sold as another companys own brand..no trick to v mount just fair amount of development and pre fabrication after that thay can be adapted to suit twin or single set ups

[John Yorke]

well my reworx charge cooler gave me 45deg air intake temps on cruise more on boost and 89-90 water temps with large pwr rad and that was on a cool day so i wld def leave the charge cooler to one side.the pumps are not up to the job and airlocks are also an issue.v mount is def the way to go

There you go same kit...........only difference mine works:Hammer

[rx7veilside]

same kit hmm maybe mine was badly fitted as those figures were far from good as on boost intake was 45deg  min and above and water was min of 90deg as i said this was on early morning ie 7am..u can get better than that with a smic :Hammer

[gonzoninja]

I have a Koyo N-Flo Rad with an Apexi Intercooler and I have no probs with temps. Water temps hold at a steady 83 pretty much whatever speed I do and Air temps are around 25. The fans will keep everything cool in traffic.

Easier to fit than a V-mount. The only problem is my air-con had to be removed, but I\'m going to have a custom made condenser made up

[rx7veilside]

yes the fans will keep the temp down but the idea is that fans shd only be used or needed in dead stop or crawling traffic the thermostat when fully open shd keep the temp constant and with a wacking big icooler in the way of the rad airflow is naff and the fans have to work overtime to keep it all cool gonzo u prob have ur fans programmed to come on early via the pfc but if one day they fail u wont get much notice unless u have aftermarket gge showing water temp