Turbo intercooler plumbing

Indy Lonnie

Well-Known Member
How do you plumb the intercooler so it can be bled?

My kit came with the 2 pipes, heat exchanger, A2W intercooler, mounts, formed pipe, 5’ or so of 3/4” hose, 2 elbows and a T. I have the heat exchanger mounted and plumbed to the back. How are you supposed to plumb it so it can be bled properly? Next question. How to wire?
 

Briann1177

Goblin Guru
I can't answer for the plumbing since I didn't use the stock DF parts. But as far as the wiring, I used an existing HVAC circuit that was no longer used after I thinned everything out. The key is to use a circuit that goes on/off with the key. A couple of ideas would be ABS and heated seats. I'm not at home so I can't look to give you the exact pin locations if you want to go that route.

The fan pulls about 4A so you shouldn't need anything larger than a 10A circuit.
 

Lonny

Administrator
Staff member
IMG_20180724_122928_01.jpg

The plug is inserted into a 3 inch long piece of vertical hose. To fill the system you will need to remove the plug and pour coolant into the hose while the pump is on. As the system circulates, air bubbles will work their way to the top so you will need to keep adding coolant to the vertical hose until it stops disappearing.
 

Lethalcast

Well-Known Member
Heres how I did mine. I bought a rubber cork from ace and a 10-24 bolt with two washers and a turn knob with nut and then you can just twist the knob to expand the cork.
20181225_194603.jpg
 

Briann1177

Goblin Guru
How does one accommodate for coolant expansion with this setup? I know you can install an overflow or expansion tank so I was just wondering how it works in the stock setup. I would think that if you fill it up completely and cap it off tightly something is going to leak or come apart when things get warm.

My previous setup had a radiator cap and I was constantly finding coolant drips from the overflow along with the coolant always looking like it was low after a few days. It was very annoying to me so I just went with an overflow can.
 

Lethalcast

Well-Known Member
It doesnt get hot and is under very little pressure. I haven't had any leaks and I have completely topped off.
 

Briann1177

Goblin Guru
I run a 13 lb cap and found that it would vent itself just from the ambient temperature swings. If I filled it up on a very cold day, I would find drips if the temperatures in the garage warmed up a day or two later. It didn't take much either. Maybe 10 degrees or so.
 

Lethalcast

Well-Known Member
Weird, I havent gone in to it in depth. I just filled it up one day and noticed it was a little low the next and filled it up then capped it and havent messed with it since. I just check it and it's still topped off.
 

Lethalcast

Well-Known Member
That's actually going to make things harder for you, sorry lol. I would just run a simple elbow off the tee that comes with it. I cant see how that fill will work without a bunch of extra work and hose.
 

Indy Lonnie

Well-Known Member
This will mount over the fuel tank as the high point in the system. I figure I can mount it with 2 coated clamps. A simple hose from the intercooler to the “fill kit” and then a hose to the pump.
I think it will be a cleaner install than the tee. It should allow easy top-off and bleeding.
 

Christopher Sanchez

Well-Known Member
Does anybody feel that the intercooler "coolant" system needs more volume? I have yet to plumb my intercooler lines but I have read that some have had high air temps. My build will be used for mostly for weekend cruising and the occasional road trip and drag race. Will it be enough? I have thought of adding a 1-2 L reservoir just for piece of mind and seems like it will "finish" off the system nicely. Any comments would be appreciated.
 

Christopher Sanchez

Well-Known Member
I’m plumbing mine with an aluminum resorvior, which will be mounted at the highest point and allow it to self-bleed.

You can use an existing relay for pump/fan, or add one that triggers with key on. Just make sure the circuit is fused prior to both hot sides of the relay.
What size is your reservoir? I was wanting to add one but want enough volume to really bring down temps on hot NM days. I feel that the reservoir really Completes the system nicely. Do you feel that it will be in the way of the air filter? are you using the kits piping or your own stuff
 

Lonny

Administrator
Staff member
The volume of water does not control the cooling capacity of the system, how well the system cools is directly related to the surface area of the heat exchanger, volume of air moving across the the heat exchanger and temperature of the air.

The OEM supercharger fill tube that Lonnie purchased is a good idea and is also what ZZP replicates using 3/4 heater hose standing straight up with a plug in the top. When we installed the supercharger kit on Adam's first goblin this is what ZZP told us to do and it worked very well. No leaks from expansion. So we used this idea for our systems and have not had any leaks.
 
Last edited:

Briann1177

Goblin Guru
Are you mounting your heat exchanger in the stock location behind the radiator? Another thing to consider in super hot climates such as AZ and NM is the radiant heat that comes off the roadways. If you're stopped, then it's just going to sit there and bake because it's only about 6" or so off the ground. Also, I think this is a situation where having ducts can make it worse since there is no flow at all when you're not moving.
 

Lonny

Administrator
Staff member
When the weather gets better we all need to do some similar drives and compare IATs on different set ups and compare notes. It would be really cool to have this data.
 
Top