Since I have AC and despite using it three times for maybe a total of an hour in five years to prevent sunstroke , I want to keep it--unless someone wants to buy it of course. ;-)

Cheers, Jon

 

hey Jon,

MY I/C Kit utilizes a FC RX7 i/c and is made by the guy who get's starred out. If you wanna take a peek sometime, let me know.

drew

 

I have the starion with A/C

 

Hey, then you could grab your O2 socket!

Exactly what problems have people had with ****'s system. They seem awful down on it these days, which I don't remember from the past.

Cheers, Jon

 

you can fit a larger sized intercooler in there if you are willing not have it dead center.

 

Same here.

 

Probe I/C with the AC on my car

 

Saab 900 IC

 

Thanks all.

JJ

 

Probe IC also.

 

There's mine, you can see why the a/c poses a problem. Yes you can bend it out of the way, but you can only get so much clearance. However, You still have plenty of room on the other side.

 

So, what size is that thing? And looking into the nose, it almost looks like there's room to pivot the dryer 90 degrees forward for more clearance.

Cheers, Jon

 

thats a 18x12x3 intercooler. 12" is max for height. 3" is the most you'd ever want in width.

The dryer can be bent parrell to the ground, but that still only allows for about a 9" tall intercooler. Those lines are fragile as well and it could cause a split.

I took off my plastic junk in the mouth to really get up in there and measure things, it's really the only way you'll be able to figure out whats best for you.

I really wanted something to sit dead center, so I went online and found dimensions of a few smaller intercoolers that might work. I cut-out some 2D cardboard shapes to represent the intercooler to see what might work. Then the one that looked like it was going to be the winner I built an exactly 3D replica just to be certain. As you can tell it fits in there like a glove.

 

You can't tip the drier sideways because it's fluid based- internal tubes need to point down. A slight tip is ok. There are horizontal driers, custom and OE. The customs are expensive- sold mostly for hot rods. And then there's a Jaguar unit, but it required a lot of plumbing work since there was an entry one end and the exit on the other. I think the best solution is to put the drier in the engine bay. There's no need for it to be in the mouth, except for the proximity of the condenser. There's tons of OE setups done the same way. Automotive a/c shops sell all the fittings and hoses needed to move the drier on the other side of the rad. I was close to doing this, but already had an IC that would fit and it was just one more thing to lengthen project. For most Miata power levels it's just not an issue. There's plenty of room for a big enough IC with the drier in the mouth, and the IC is available "off the shelf". - rob

 

this is a perfect example of what I mean by a larger intercooler but not centered:





this is the same intercooler I'm running but in the 24-28" model. (I'm almost postive FM is buying these for cheap from the same ebay vendor everyone else is)

 

The consensus theory these days is that everything is being made in China, it's only the markups that are different...

But I don't need anything nearly that massive. The best deal would probably be like an 18 x 6 x 2.5 core model with a 25-inch wingspan. I could care less about it being centered and that's not really all that far off...

Cheers, Jon

 

Well, after reading (and seeing) all these responses and those to my other topics, it seems like the commonly available 18x12x3 seems to offer the best combo of fit, performance and allowing flow around for the RAD.

Anyone want to argue with that? I'd like to go even smaller with a newer type, but that seems to be *more* expensive.

JJ

 

12" high is going to block a ton of the rad. Lengthwise 27" is what will fit between the the bumper horns.

 

I suppose it might, but that's about the smallest cheapo I can find on eBay. Also, even at six inches high, you're already blocking the majority of the Miata's mouth and the pictures I see of the low and wide ICs seem to block more airflow than the 18x12x3 (11x12x3 core)

Trust me, if there were a smaller cheapie, low drop, bar & plate, I'd be all over it. I just want more consistent performance from my meek little 5-6 psi.

This all started simply because I blew a hole in my crossover and thought that this would be a good time to upgrade. Now I'm in waffle city.

Cheers, Jon

 

I was running a 6" high IC (spearco core 17x6x3) that blocked most of the oncoming air to the rad - which had a condenser on top of it. The rad was a Griffin that was narrowed 4", had 1" rows and was all aluminum. That was feeding the 2.3L and it never got hot at speed (98f ambient that day) with successive boost runs (maybe 8) at around 8psi, 4k-7krpm - albeit the a/c was not turned on either. Traffic was a different story- but then again that's more about what the fan is pulling through, and pushing out of the engine bay. Air is still getting pushed through whether it's right in the opening of the mouth or above it. - rob