Fmic question..
 

I just took delivery of my jcw mini and I noticed that the fmic on this car is huge?

It extends from the base of the radiator to half way up. I was under the impression that this would have the same tiny unit that was on my 07 r56???

I am curious to know if the other r60 cooper s have this large fmic or is it only with the jcw option?

Btw part number is 17517632764
Base r60 cooper S is 17512751277
R56 cooper s is 17512751277

Looks like an fmic upgrade is not required?..

http://www.realoem.com/bmw/showparts...=17&fg=05&hl=4

Based on this picture it looks the same as what was stock on my 2012 R60S. Do you have a picture of yours?

DKIKK77 I did the same as you must've done and went to RealOEM to look for the differences.
..
I have the feeling they don't make a priority of changing the part diagrams if they can help it; just the numbers.

It does look like it has its own part # so they probably are different.

The pictures on real oem is identical that's why I started to look for a fmic upgrade but when I was tooling around with the car I noticed the fmic to be much larger.

When I get home tonigh I will take the dimensions of the core. It's basically the same width as the opening of the grill but extends from the bottom of the lower grill to the bottom of the top grill.

Looks to be a 2" or possibly a 2.25" core thickness either way a good upgrade for the r60s

Any updates? There will probably be some interested owners (not just R60) if they can get a larger OEM intercooler.

Confirmed...

Only draw back is plastic end tanks but its better than not having a fmic at all.

Dimensions +/- .5"
11" high
23" wide
2" thick
Made by bher South Africa.

These are rough dimensions because its tucked behind the front bumper but it is indeed much larger than my r56 IC. Looks like jcw took it into consideration to fit a proper fmic to help the jcw turbo perform much better.

The move from Copper Cores to Aluminum has led to more composite end caps / tanks on FMIC's and rads in general. The composite is more foregiving to the increased thermal expansion. Flexing with the core prevents leaks by reducing strain on the end cap to core joint.

I tell bomb ass stories bro!!

Check this out...

The one in the back is the factory jcw IC like the one in my story:popcorn:

And the one in front is a thick monster..

http://www.mini2.info/forum/attachme...3&d=1361464518

I don't remember my r56 having a large skinny IC like the one pictured above.

I recant my post from earlier that was posted in the wrong thread.

I looked at mine the other day when I took the grill off a second time to redo the plasti dip on my grill and the FMIC is huge compared to my old R56. About 1/2-2/3 the size of the radiator. Guess there's no need to replace it with something else.

I'm just disappointed that mini didn't give us the mono block brembo's like the other JCW's or the upgraded JCW intake.

On the R56 MCS, circa 2007 the FMIC was about the size of the dark area at the bottom of the JCW unit shown. And while the new OEM unit is bigger than the original, it's still much smaller the the Helix unit. Maybe Helix could supply an internal cubic measurement plus total surface area for their unit vs. the OEM units for us Motor Heads to ponder over.....:lol:

Interesting... that back cooler looks a lot bigger (taller) than the regular Countryman S cooler, perhaps that would be a good upgrade for the R60S owners as well...

Forge FMIC = around $900
R60 JCW OEM = around $375

The JCW OEM being taller, so the top section of the cooler will be blocked by the bumper without direct air going straight in, but with extra surface area, shouldn't that be extra cooling?

Kevin

If that's true, it would be an amazing oversight since no one has gone that route - but the savings would be reason enough to go this way vs. aftermarket.

I'm going to research some more and confirm the dimensions, then give it a try. Will keep post updated.

For fellow members, please post your feedback if you have any info on this. Much appreciated :)

Kevin

RealOEM shows what looks like the same intercooler on the non-JCW R60:

http://i60.tinypic.com/2d9oiv8.png

did anyone try this?

No that I know of, but I did confirm with Sewell MINI that it would indeed fit. Not sure what the gains would be.

Sticking with OEM quality but beefing it up to the JCW fmic is a gd upgrade. Besides, still got warranty and is OEM and most likely be undetectable when and if you go in for service. Also if is a direct fit, thats even better since aftermarket ones almost always will need some trimming in order to fit

Just be aware that just because it has the 'JCW' stamp of approval doesnt automatically mean its a good upgrade. The JCW intake and exhaust both come with a premium but have no gains....and that's a fact.

True but if the core and everything is bigger and thicker is worth looking into

hi guys,
another izzue i face. as pic shown the silver one is forge IC for r60 only.
but i want to order on forge IC for r56 for its cheaper price.
i have emailed the forge but reply is not sure!
have anyone tried?
BTW, i have checked the factory IC, it has the same part No. so it's surely can be mounted.
question is,will there be any problem when putting the front pumper back on?

hi guys,
another izzue i face. as pic shown the silver one is forge IC for r60 only.
but i want to order on forge IC for r56 for its cheaper price.
i have emailed the forge but reply is not sure!
have anyone tried?
BTW, i have checked the factory IC, it has the same part No. so it's surely can be mounted.
question is,will there be any problem when putting the front pumper back on?