Why are Intercoolers are so damn expensive?!?!

[bboyt3nsk]

sorry for these crazy posts all the time.....but i wanna know why the hell intercoolers are so damn expensive?!?! what kind of technology goes into these things that im paying a grand in a half for?!

[GRiDRaceTech]

Well, they have to be efficient enough not to drop much boost and yet to cool the air properly.

And why on Earth are you paying $1500 for one? Your local race shop could probably weld one up including piping for around $700.

[Ghost of Duluth]

If you are paying 1500 bucks for one then you are getting ripped. also, keep the cussing down. It's against the rules and won't be tolerated.

[Raziel]

The core is whats expensive. I got mine for 800. Greddy 2 row FMIC. Now whats really expensive is a V-Mount set up. For my car its around 2000+. I really wanted to go that route but its just too expensive.

[ankyle62]

because people will pay for them.

[Craftsman]

I have no clue why intercoolers are soo expensive. They shouldn't be that expensive.

I could design my own air to water intercooler for under 300 bucks.

Air to air intercoolers do look expensive as the amount of fins and the size of the cores are very large.

Matt.

[clay payton]

Why are Intercoolers are so damn expensive?!?!

supply and demand

[CRASHDRIVE]

Because they are handmade. Theres actual people that makes them vs. machine robots like a car factory.

[mranlet]

Originally posted by Raziel
The core is whats expensive. I got mine for 800. Greddy 2 row FMIC. Now whats really expensive is a V-Mount set up. For my car its around 2000+. I really wanted to go that route but its just too expensive.

Hey man, your FD looks really clean.

Totally right about the core being the expensive part - the engineering that goes into an efficient intercooler is a lot more than goes into the average radiator.

For the V-mount, I'd bet that you could do one yourself for a third of what it would cost to have a shop do it. Of course, it could take some time and a lot of patience with those crammed FD engine bays, and the saying in my sig holds true here.

You do have other alternatives to buying a factory-made unit:
- I've seen a turbo KA S14 (Tony Schultz's black one, which I believe is now yellow) that used the A/C condenser as the intercooler rather than paying a grand for one of equal size. It wouldn't be quite as effective and you won't have A/C, but it's essentially free and quick. If you're not running much boost it's one alternative to consider, but if you're at anything past 10psi, a real intercooler may be better.
- You could always use the ever-popular Starion FMIC or even one from a Volvo, Saab, or Ford Probe Turbo.
- As mentioned before, having a shop make one will be cheaper than buying a new unit, especially if you have the core or two cores that they can combine - Eclipse turbo and stock SR20 SMIC's are good to fuse together because there's so many of them floating around that have been pitched and replaced by aftermarket pieces. With a skillfull welder making you endtanks, you could have a piece that fits just about any car.
- The "Heat Sponge" is a little-known heat exchanger system that used to be very popular on old hot rods and is still made by a dwindling number of craftsmen. It consists of a honneycomb of "flutes" that are 1" to 2.5" long and are flared at both ends. They nest together and are welded to each other with enough room to let fluid or air pass between them cross-wise and cooling air pass through them. Heat Sponges can be expensive for large units like the size of a '32 Roadster grille, but the heat sponge has more than 50% higher efficiency than conventional heat exchangers.

Good luck in whatever you decide to do, and I hope this post helps.

-MR

[Ghost of Duluth]

Npr intercoolers work well. They are large and you will have to cut them down but you can get 2 intercoolers from that one core. Tig your end tanks on and you can get a decent intercooler for pretty cheap.