hello!
i have a 2003 r53 and i have had alot of trouble with my intercooler getting heat soaked.
i have decided to custom fit a front mount onto my car.
has anyone ever done this before, ideas on supplies?
i plan on taking out my lower grill and getting a half size front mount to take its place so i don't have to take out my ac, etc. it seems to be the best way to go.

any input? if not its ok, i will post pictures of the progress when i get it underway!!!

 

There isn't kits being sold, even after all those years, I think it says a lot! From what we've seen over the years, you get a pressure drop from running a front mount and the advantages weren't that great, otherwise they would be all over the place. I know there's a couple threads about it and that there's datas about front mounts on R53s, but I'm too lazy to search.

 

i feel like the temperature benefit is going to outweigh the pressure drop. it cant be too significant. after-all, the air only has one way to go.. and with the 19% pulley, i don't feel like any size intercooler would keep from getting heat-soaked

 

Several have tried , none have succeeded .


Besides the pressure drop the amount of movement of the motor during acceleration and deceleration makes it very difficult problem fabrication wise. While the IC is mounted in some fixed manner the engine rocks back and forth and trying to keep the IC piping connected proved to be a real issue. Good luck with it but there is a reason its not been done in twelve years even with a good deal of interest from time to time .

 

All the time and money that you spend on moving the intercooler, you could just buy a Water / Meth kit and solve the problem with no major modifications.

I would suggest a AquaMist HFS 2 or 3 but if you are on a tight budget even a Snow will be a better solution than moving the intercooler.

 

Get proper meth injection. Intercooler upgrade is minimal at best. I'd recommend going howerton aquamist 3 or 4 with dual tank.

70 or 80 ait temps in 100 degree florida weather is mint any way you look at it. Basically 40 or more under ambient without a problem. Not heat soak, no cutting timing.

 

Ha! we had the same idea at the same time!

I agree totally I am in Orlando with 90+ Degree ambient temps and at the track 290+ degree coming out of the supercharger and only 78 degree going in under boost. Yes, that is right less than ambient temps going into the motor!

 

+10000000000000000000000

it just was not worth the effort...was usually a LOSS...not a gain....done right it was a huge laggy mess...with lots of connections to leak...

IMO what you want is a w2a intercooler....aka a Water To Air intercooler....
Simpler...and more effective.

 

Slightly off topic but I had an Alta top mount on my last MINI. Does anyone make a larger top mount anymore?

 

If you must have a bigger Intercooler the GP is the only real one to consider

 

forge makes a very large one, to the point where you have to remove your hood liner to shut the hood.

 

id like to look more into this option, i'm very mechanically inclined, just don't know much about it.

 

http://www.c0op3r.com/images/Emma/An...o%20Water.docx

http://www.c0op3r.com/images/Emma/Water_Meth/

 

thanks!
now raises a few questions.
1. does this require a tune?
2. does the car still function properly without the meth/can you turn it on and off so you don't use it while just cruising to work or around town?
3. where do you buy the meth/ is it easy to get or do you have to order online and wait.
4. what is the price of meth and how long does it last?

 

NO, but you can tune for it if you want I did, but it is safer to NOT tune for it.


Yes you can turn it off, there is a switch on the gauge. It does not run all the time mine is set to inject ONLY once I reach an 80% duty cycle on the injectors.

Most local Speed shops sell it VP M1 is a very popular one, some people use window washer fluid. I have done this and it will work in a pinch.

I use 1 gallon of 90%Meth/10% water to every 3 tanks of fuel, but if you are not deep in the pedal you will use even less.

 

so much help, and its greatly appreciated.
im sure with temps like that, the difference is extremely noticeable!!!
im not looking to spend a huge amount, but want something decent. something i won't have to fix or mess with alot. suggestions??

 

No problem, the only way to learn is to read about it and ask questions; the water meth tech has been around since WWII, but has really seen a resurgence as of late.

The quality of the control and the pumps is worlds ahead of what was just 5 years ago.

That being said its all about what you want to do and of course what you can afford to spend.

The best of the best and the one that everyone here is going to tell you to run the the AquaMist HFS series a HFS-2 or an HFS-3 is perfect for the R53, where the HFS-4 is better suited to the DI of the R56. Note this is a 1000$ system if you get the MINI specific tank. But the big advantage is that it injects based on Fuel Injector Duty Cycle.

The other side of the coin would be a simple kit like the Snow Performance, the big difference is that it will only inject off of boost signal, and being that out cars are super charged it is very hard to get the amount of injection correct to match the rpm range that you will want. But those kits start at about 350$.

The snow will still be better than an intercooler that is larger, but if you can swing it get the AquaMist, if its a budget thing get the HFS-2 and save the 150.oo$

 

If you're on a budget - you've gotta go meth. I believe you just missed out on a group buy of the Auquamist products.

Either way, meth is cheaper to deploy and reliable in comparison to the FMIC.

There's a lot of new threads about meth on NAM right now. Perhaps start with this one:
https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...-training.html

 

I just picked up a GRS top mount and its great.

 

i thought boost signal would be easy since we have a linear boost?

 

It is very linear and that is the problem for our cars; lets say you have a pulley and make 15 lbs of boost. You make that 15lbs of boost through out the rpm range (or very close to it).

The Meth Injection Sensor (if it is boost controlled) sees that you have hit your set point, lets call it 13lbs of boost. Well you hit it at 3000 RPMs. Great!

Problem is that the system is not progressive and as you move through the rev range, at 3000 RPMs you have to much M/W, at 5000 RPMs you have what you want, and again at 7000 RPMs you have to little.

Make sense?

 

ah i never completly thought into it, i thought has rpm increased pressure increased due to the spinning SC, but engine is sucking in more, dumb me haha never thought it through since i dont have my mech boost gauge in yet

but yeah i guess we do make 15 lb boost at 2k and 7k rpm... that would be hard to use boost as injection

 

Yeap you got it, still a Boost based system is better than nothing, cause even not enough w/m at the top end is still providing a cooling effect that is just not there other wise.

That is why the AquaMist System is so impressive for our cars, as it reads the injector duty cycle, and you set it based on that. With that being said, and using my setup as an example I have mine set at 80% IDC, so if I am making full boost or no boost and stab the throttle the AquaMist controller sees an instant IDC of more than 80% and begins injecting W/M.

I run consistent track times, over and over as I NEVER heat soak.

 

http://www.aemelectronics.com/v2-1-g...lti-input-1307

this seems like a decent system since you can run off of maf or duty cycle or boost

 

That system will work fine: