Yeah. It was. I could 100% feel ABS fighting with me there. (And alot more in the previous run when i had the shagged tyre on the front left). I havent really noticed ABS before in the dry. And i think it was due to 1 - the tyres at end of life, and 2 - because as my experience grows im braking harder. So yesterday was the first real time ive felt ABS interfere. Although it probably would have been worse without it haha.

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Doing it for all the wagons out there

So, my new intercooler kit has arrived. Hybrid Power GT2 kit for GD. Hopefully should be easy enough to make fit on an SG with the STi front bar. Just waiting on the special clamps that go with the kit. They were nil-stock on them. But they should be here shortly.

Initial thoughts are it is a very well made kit. It certainly looks alot better in person than its price point would suggest. After much reading online trying to pick usefull technical info out of the mass of non-sensical opinionated excrement that is found with a google search on the subject of intercoolers, i decided this kit was the right one for me.

The core sizing is a fairly large 600x300x80. (Also a pretty common sizing for kits designed for Subaru models) The core design is a tube and fin. Without going into the argument over tube and fin VS bar and plate. I decided this cooler would suit my needs. As i needed a cooler that was only going to see maybe 400whp. But be-able to take it sustained for a few minutes at a time. And do it with out hindering airflow to the radiator. Obviously different manufactureres are all gonna say thier core is the best and dismiss thier competition. And they will never back up these statements with any real data. Even finding decent pictures of the inside / outside of the various cores offered on the market was difficult. So even informed with a little bit of basic intercooler theory, making the choice is still extremely hard as you can not even look closely at the various cores available to try and guess which would work best. I have also been recommended the GT2 core as a good core so that aided my desicion.

The fins exposed to ambient airflow are somewhat sparse. There is alot of debate online about whether a dense fin count that doesnt allow much air through is better than a thinner fin count that flows and contacts alot more volume of air.

The inside boost passage ways are packed full of alot of fins. I was worried that it would be quite loosely packed, as this tends to be how alot of tube and fin designs are. But i was pleasently surprised looking into the end tanks. There are plenty of fins inside. Shining a very powerfull torch in the other end, i dont get any direct light through the core. So im thinking this should cool the charge air well.

The piping kit looks pretty decent construction. Although a pretty long piping run. Even considering the derp flow that is a subaru fmic intake and exhaust plumbing, this seems a bit excessive. But i was always planning to mod the piping layout any way to try and take advantage of my cars setup. Maybe look at under the mani plumbing because no AC or reverse mani maybe. Plus future plans to go rotated. All this means a pipe kit designed for a stock car is never going to be the most direct. And even considering the long run. It shouldnt matter bugger all anyways. After reading some figures on MAF grams a second of a modified suby like mine, vs grams required to fill fmic plumming at boost. I dont think it will make bugger all difference. Maybe add 1/10 of a second to fill the piping up. The piping has almost all of the connections a special oringed clamp setup. So very little silicone couplings to blow out. Although its yet to be seen whether these special joins perform well. The few bits of silicone included with the kit is pretty thin and crap looking. So perhaps ill look at upgrading it. It is also blue, and im much more of a fan of black.





This one is with a torch on shining into the opposite side.




I have also started procuring parts for future turbo plumbing upgrqdes.
Turbosmart Vee Port Pro. Turbosmart 45mm Hypergate. And also some Vband flanges to match a Tial GT30 turbine housing.



Also heres some bits to rebuild the rear end. I suspect i have a bent upright, so this will confirm (or deny) my suspicions once swapped in. Once done, i will be fitting the Volk / Yoko goodness.

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Doing it for all the wagons out there

Oh yeah. I a few weeks ago i bought a Uni-Mig ACDC 200 TIG welder. So the plan is to practice like buggery this year, then hopefully weld up my own twist mount V-band setup with external gate screamer during the end of year break.

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Doing it for all the wagons out there

Im pleased you followed my advice on the intercooler. They are very very good cores and I know several cars running north of 700Hp on them.

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605whp
Quarter Mile in 10.9 seconds @ 135mph /217kph
0-100 kph 3.2 seconds

Good luck with the FMIC. I have been looking at that kit and thinking it can't be any good at that price. I want to be proven wrong.

I will be watching to see your thoughts on it. Let's hope it punches well above its weight.

Yeah. As i explained. Its very difficult trying to choose a intercooler as the manufacturers dont supply much info to compare with one another. They mostly dont even supply close up photos of thier product so the customer can make an semi informed decision. Even getting 'informed' is very difficult as their is soooo much mis-information and un-substantiated opinions on how intercoolers work online, and very little fact. So wading through all the bullshit is very difficult. So hearing some positive feedback on a particular product does definitely make the choice a little easier. I was a little worried that the kit was priced too low. But after seeing the kit in the flesh, im pretty happy with it.

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Doing it for all the wagons out there

what was the kit worth?

You're right in that its not got that many fins, but as you mentioned this allows more flow to the radiator which can be just as important on a track car (and one reason why i'm still TMIC)
Benefit of "over speccing" the FMIC means that you can get away with the above rather than pushing its limits.

Keen to see how you go with power and the feel on the track.
Are you able to log IAT's?

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'02 STI

Local motorsport pics and other photos: https://www.facebook.com/photosbyblakeparry
http://www.zenfolio.com/photosbyblakeparry

The kit is 707 delivered.

I cant log IATs yet. But long term plan for the car is an aftermarket ECU and MAF-less tune. So once that is complete then i could measure intake temps.

As far as bum dyno goes, i can feel a massive difference with the TMIC on a cooler day like sunday VS hotter days like the previous 2 MC Sprint days. No hard data, just i know it feels a lot more perky cooler. Im hoping the FMIC will help a bit with that decline with hot days.

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Doing it for all the wagons out there

Heres 2 of the hydro handbrakies I tried on the weekend. Still need a bit more practice haha. Only tried 2 out of my 4 runs as I couldn't really afford to lose any more time to practicing the hydros after the second attempt, as all 4 runs counted to round placings. They do do this course latter in the year and its not crucial to get 4 good runs, so that may be a better time to practice laying down some skids.

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Doing it for all the wagons out there

Are you trying to power out in second gear?

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Fuck your signature