Vrsf 7" intercooler question

[Tiago@VRSF]

Originally Posted by Freon

Finished my install. I saw a bit of a gap with the factory IC and no weather stripping. With the VRSF installed it looks about the same. The gap is definitely smaller than the picture Angerman posted. I did not choose to remove the front most honeycomb so I could not measure. I think this is a non issue.

There is one row on the intercooler that is below the fan shroud. That 1/2" or so is also the total height difference between the factory and VRSF.

Originally Posted by foghat

I just had mine installed on Friday. I too cannot measure due to the honeycomb, but it looks to be about the same as it was before with stock ic. I'd say about a 1/4" gap or so.

Thanks for taking the time to clear this up guys

Originally Posted by Pig Farmer

The car definitely comes with a piece of weather stripping that slide on to the bottom edge of the radiator. They are not attached with adhesive so they sometimes come off at speed. I noticed this before replacing my FMIC when half the weather stripping was pushed back and chewed up by the radiator fan. I order a replacement (part# 17117793752) for around $10 and super glued it to the edge of the radiator. It has stayed put ever since. They sent two so I just measured the extra piece. From where it attaches to the the bottom edge of the radiator, it hangs down 10mm. In other words, it would fill a 10mm gap.

This. On most installs I've personally done, the weatherstripping always needs to be re-seated due to the lack of an adhesive when installed. It can be pretty easy for them to dislocate. It's definitely a cheap/easy item to have when installing an intercooler for the sake of sealing the fan alone.

[Wescuddles]

Originally Posted by Tiago@VRSF

Thanks for taking the time to clear this up guys

This. On most installs I've personally done, the weatherstripping always needs to be re-seated due to the lack of an adhesive when installed. It can be pretty easy for them to dislocate. It's definitely a cheap/easy item to have when installing an intercooler for the sake of sealing the fan alone.

Between the two quotes you chose to use one person says 1/4" and one says 1/2"? Mine is 3/8"? Lots of variations here....

[Freon]

Wes, I didn't say the gap between the radiator and intercooler was 1/2". Try reading again... You really should just buy a $2 piece of weather stripping and move on with your life.

I still have yet to see a picture of the gap. Angerman is the only one who has posted a picture in this thread that could actually show anything, and his was of another brand. The rest are from angles too high to see the gap or bottom of the radiator, or too dark. The only other picture that comes close is the one of the 1M with the entire bumper removed, but it is still hard to see the gap from that angle. The rest of the pictures are completely useless.

I'll take a well lit and proper angle picture of mine later tonight and post it.

[Wescuddles]

Originally Posted by Freon

Wes, I didn't say the gap between the radiator and intercooler was 1/2". Try reading again... You really should just buy a $2 piece of weather stripping and move on with your life.

I still have yet to see a picture of the gap. Angerman is the only one who has posted a picture in this thread that could actually show anything, and his was of another brand. The rest are from angles too high to see the gap or bottom of the radiator, or too dark. The only other picture that comes close is the one of the 1M with the entire bumper removed, but it is still hard to see the gap from that angle. The rest of the pictures are completely useless.

I'll take a well lit and proper angle picture of mine later tonight and post it.

I did read it wrong sorry about that. It's not much of an issue I can shave tabs. I'm out of town for work and can't take pics. When I get to shaving the tabs ill take a better picture.

[Freon]

Ok, so upon further investigation there IS a small piece of foam weatherstripping in there. It is further back and hard to see. The radiator and VRSF intercooler both touch it. Whatever gap between the radiator and IC may exist is covered by the foam weatherstripping piece.

On the right side of the picture you can see the weld bead on the driver's end tank pushing up into the weatherstripping slightly. Hard to really see, maybe just a shadow, but from my own eyes blasting a flashlight in there it looks good. Best I can tell there is no real gap for air to go through.

On the downside, I'm almost certain I have a boost leak. Very certain I carefully tightened all couplers, so I'm back to pulling the tray off to look again. Quick inspection doesn't seem to indicate any problems with my charge pipe. Did the soapy water trick on every I could get at without putting the car back up. Doh!

[Colt]

When are these going to be available again, I need one before May 20th..

[Tiago@VRSF]

The 5" models are in stock

The 7" models are not going to be in stock by May 20th.

[nukezero]

Aside from that gap, can you guys check to see if you also have "THIS" gap ?

This gap is between the radiator fan and radiator. When the intercooler is too fat, it will push the radiator fan out a bit at the bottom. This is because the bottom of the radiator fan is secured by the two tab mounts.

Can you guys check to see if the VRSF also has this problem?

Thanks

[Tiago@VRSF]

Our intercooler doesn't have this issue, that's a pretty large gap.

[Freon]

I have yet to see an aftermarket IC that has a latch that grabs the tabs like the factory intercooler. The factory setup is very secure and tight.

For my VRSF install it looks fairly tight. There is a problem where the huge weld bead on the inside corner of the "hook" part of the IC doesn't quite let the plastic tab of the fan shroud seat. It's a somewhat haphazard fit depending on the size and shape of the weld bead. I ended up removing the factory tabs because it appeared the fan shroud was being push up by the hook and weld bead. The weld should be on the outside...

[Rockstar1487]

I have the 7" vrsf fmic. I installed a few weeks ago and cannot recall this gap on mine. I will check again though. But honestly i would be more concerned with how well it performs over a small gap.

[b1aze]

I still completely fail to see here what the problem is? Aside from you may have 1/4" difference in spacing when you look at it with your dick in the dirt. You purchased one of the least expensive FMICs on the market and you expect 100% precision on dimensions that are quite trivial.

Why is everyone wasting their effort on this stupid shit?

[Wescuddles]

Originally Posted by b1aze

I still completely fail to see here what the problem is? Aside from you may have 1/4" difference in spacing when you look at it with your dick in the dirt. You purchased one of the least expensive FMICs on the market and you expect 100% precision on dimensions that are quite trivial.

Why is everyone wasting their effort on this stupid shit?

LOL fair enough. It's not a huge deal or something that can't be fixed - the issue (yes an issue only a picky person like me would dislike) is MY IC fits 3/8" lower than stock. Apparently this is isolated to the IC I received as it doesn't seem to be there on other VRSF IC's. not a huge issue.

[str8shot]

Originally Posted by Wescuddles

LOL fair enough. It's not a huge deal or something that can't be fixed - the issue (yes an issue only a picky person like me would dislike) is MY IC fits 3/8" lower than stock. Apparently this is isolated to the IC I received as it doesn't seem to be there on other VRSF IC's. not a huge issue.

Again, not to nit pick, but that's less than a half an inch.

[Pig Farmer]

Originally Posted by nukezero

Aside from that gap, can you guys check to see if you also have "THIS" gap ?

This gap is between the radiator fan and radiator. When the intercooler is too fat, it will push the radiator fan out a bit at the bottom. This is because the bottom of the radiator fan is secured by the two tab mounts.

Can you guys check to see if the VRSF also has this problem?

Thanks

I just removed my Wagner last weekend to flush out any oil residue and spent a few minutes making sure everything lined up perfectly. I did not have the gap shown in your cartoon (nice job by the way). That being said, when I originally installed the Wagner, I cut off the lower cross-brace which was pushing the bottom of the intercoole back so much that my OEM hose connections did not line up properly. With the cross-brace removed, everything lines up perfect. Did you install the Wagner without cutting the plastic brace? It's understandable if you did, but if you choose to remove the brace, you should be able to pull the intercooler forward and get rid of the gap. At most you will need to elongate the hole in the mounting bracket.