Talk me out of it.....
 

I am seriously considering using this: Water to Air Intercooler for my 1.6 T3 project. Any input is welcome.

Thanks
-Rouphis

Do it!

What turbo kit or DIY plans do you have for a set up?

have fun

try not to let any gays toss their poz-load into you.

I'm still getting all the parts together but, here is my current build list:

T3 .60 intake .48 exhaust
RX8 550cc injectors
DIY MS
Cast fleabay manifold
DIY downpipe
and The above intercooler

do it then hate it then replace it with an air/air just like meeee

Air/water is heavier, more complicated, and has more numerous ways in which it can fail.

What advantages do you perceive air/water having over air/air?

Better air flow over the radiator, very simplified charge pipe routing, and less heat soak while in slow moving high boost situations.

-Rouphis

Explain.

Like climbing a mountain?

^^ More thermal mass in the water than in the air-to-air's aluminum.

I am not expert.... But it seems that, in an A/A, it is only effective at times in which there are large amounts of air flowing over it.

In the kit I'm looking at, the water would absorb the heat, while the fan on the heat exchange would cool the water. Water holds about 4 times the around of thermal energy that air does.

Not completely true. The thermal mass of the aluminum comes into play. Even with no airflow, a non-heatsoaked IC will reduce the inlet temps significantly, at least until it gets hot.

You will need significant amounts of airflow through the watercooled heat exchanger as well ultimately. There will just be more damping due to the additional thermal mass. But, until heat_out = heat_in the temperatures will continue to rise. You still need an effective heat exchanger with good airflow to get the heat out of the water into the air.

That is about as brief as I can explain it without going into the Engineeringspeak.

I meant explain when you would ever find yourself in a "low speed high boost situation".

Smoky burnouts?

So you're looking to maximize your intercooler performance for burnouts to the detriment of other situations?

Lets break down your understanding of A/W vs. A/A:

Better airflow over the radiator - You still need a heat exchanger for A/W, and where do you plan to put that? In front of the radiator right?

Simplified charge routing - Kinda, you'll have simple air piping, but then by the time you add water lines, pump, and fan, what have you simpified? Which do you think weighs more, also?

I'm not trying to flame you, just trying to put a bug in your ear before you blow money on something which doesn't work like you had hoped. y8s had one and even he is trying to talk you out of it, that should tell you something. The only time I can think of to use a A/W system is for a drag car where the AWIC is filled with icewater as a one-shot deal. This allows them to do without the need for a heat exchanger, and improve the car's aero. You don't need this type of system.

until your water heatsoaks and you're running an interheater.

Not quite. You asked me for an example not a real life example. These W/A systems can't to to bad, as they are OEM on many applications.

If this system can perform on par with an A/A, than it is what I would use between the two on a Miata.

What keeps it from being perfect in my mind is the electric pump.

It would be quite bad ass, to mount a belt driven water pump where the idler pully is on the ac belt.

-Rouphis

So you'd introduce another source of parasitic drag?


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