VRSF Intercooler Review and Install 135i

[vivanapoli806]

Had my 5" installed along with dci and vrsf charge pipe and tial bov. Switched to cobb map stage 1+ fmic. Local shop put my car back in dyno after they installed all this and my coupler on driver side where the discharge pipe meets the elbow keeps popping off. I hope they get it sorted out for me. Anyone have this problem also?

[135iam]

I could see how that could be an issue.

When I did mine I wedged something above the charge pipe to hold it down (it would push up an inch or so on its own) when installing the 2 tbolt clamps on that side. The play in the charge pipe made the install difficult at first.

With the play removed from the charge pipe it was easier to adjust the hose and clamps from below.

[dcaron9999]

Does the VRSF FMIC come with some instructions, as to exact cutting, etc? Can some one share the best DIY or bundled PDF file maybe (a la COBB FMIC)?

Thanks.

[edisapimp]

Originally Posted by vivanapoli806

Had my 5" installed along with dci and vrsf charge pipe and tial bov. Switched to cobb map stage 1+ fmic. Local shop put my car back in dyno after they installed all this and my coupler on driver side where the discharge pipe meets the elbow keeps popping off. I hope they get it sorted out for me. Anyone have this problem also?

yes.

[m4xm1l10n]

Originally Posted by edisapimp

yes.

Wtf what happened here ?
There isn't really a wait to fuk up the install, I did mine nice an tight and nothing ever popped out .
Sorry to see that

[m4xm1l10n]

Originally Posted by dcaron9999

Does the VRSF FMIC come with some instructions, as to exact cutting, etc? Can some one share the best DIY or bundled PDF file maybe (a la COBB FMIC)?

Thanks.

Best DIY is sticking your head under there and you'll see what to cut off
Piece of cake really.

[135iam]

Originally Posted by edisapimp

yes.

Ouch, looks like the skid plate did a number on that IC while running over it.

[edisapimp]

Originally Posted by 135iam

Ouch, looks like the skid plate did a number on that IC while running over it.

I think that is actually the differential.

[sour97]

Originally Posted by edisapimp

yes.

OUCH THAT HURT

[jbarzelatto]

hello guys, and sorry for reviving an old thread.

My connection that goes from the turbo to the passenger side of the intercooler keeps popping out. in your pictures I see there is a metal tube in between the intercooler, and the turbo outlet pipe. i don't have this... from the intercooler, a plastic elbow connects to the plastic tubing that comes from the turbo. this connection keeps popping out. any one had this problem?? thanks!

[Freon]

The N54 is a metal pipe coming from the turbos. The N55 (your 2011) has a plastic pipe.

You probably just didn't get the clamp on properly. The pipe coming from the turbos should have some sort of knurl or bump around it and you need to make sure the clamp isn't actually ON that bump or it won't seal. Or you may not have tightened it enough.

[BMWX1-35i]

Ouch, man that must have been painful... WOW

[jbarzelatto]

Thanks for the answer guys.

The thing KEEPS POPPING out damn it.

attached is a picture of the plastic tube. the circled part I removed becasue I want told I had to for my set up. Am I wrong?

i dont know what to do. i retorqued al the clamps and if i pressed any harder, i would bend the plastic and the ring inside it. it just seems like the silicone coupler is too short. By the way, i have a stage 2 vargas turbo.





Please helpppp

[Hellkite]

I got rid of the circled part also. I had to cut the metal band off to get the coupler to come off

[Freon]

Originally Posted by jbarzelatto

You can see there is a small rolled edge on the pipe. If you can at least pull the silicone coupler over that by about 3/4" (or about 1" total including the rolled edge) you can get the clamp on the side of it. If you tighten that clamp there's no reason it should pop off.

You can also see a wider area on the hardpipe formed for the clamp to clamp to. Make sure the clamp is square to the surface (not crooked).

Make sure the hose is on straight. If it come on an angle it won't hold as well either.

See my post and picture above.

[jbarzelatto]

Originally Posted by Freon

You can see there is a small rolled edge on the pipe. If you can at least pull the silicone coupler over that by about 3/4" (or about 1" total including the rolled edge) you can get the clamp on the side of it. If you tighten that clamp there's no reason it should pop off.

You can also see a wider area on the hardpipe formed for the clamp to clamp to. Make sure the clamp is square to the surface (not crooked).

Make sure the hose is on straight. If it come on an angle it won't hold as well either.

See my post and picture above.

thanks for your answer man. i did it this way the day you told me, but again last night it popped off. i upgraded the turbo to a vargas, and im thinking maybe the placement of the turbo is a bit farther then the OEM, so the silicone coupler that unites the pipe to the intercooler is too short. When I attach it the wa you say, 1 inch past that curve, there is barely any silicone left to attach it to the intercooler. i am thinking i wil need to make my own piping, and remove this plastic pipe from the turbo.

Is there any aftermarket tube for this part?

If I want to attach my own tube with a silicone coupler to the turbo, how should i hold it? the turbo outlet is really small and i dont think a coupler will get a good grip. this sucks balls, and i have a td this sunday...

[jbarzelatto]

Also, being that this thread is for the intercooler review, please checkout my log. My IAT still rises, even with the meth and the intercooler. anyone have any ideas? or is this rise normal for my set up?



Below is a datazap.

http://datazap.me/u/jbarzelatto/fmic...ata=1-4-5-6-16

[Freon]

IAT will slowly rise as the heat mass of the intercooler slows the system's climb towards equilibrium. A bar and plate intercooler has a lot of mass so that process takes longer. You can see in your logs it is tapering off around 160F. The more the intercooler heats up, the more total heat it can reject to ambient air. But when it is cool some of the heat just heats up the several kilograms of aluminum which make up the intercooler.

It's hard to say if that is bad or not without knowing the ambient temperature and the temperature of charge air coming out of the turbo. How hot is it in Chile? If it's 32C or higher and you are running ~14psi out of the poor little stock turbocharger maybe that's not too bad. That would be horrible for me in Indiana right now where it is about 0C!

[jbarzelatto]

Originally Posted by Freon

IAT will slowly rise as the heat mass of the intercooler slows the system's climb towards equilibrium. A bar and plate intercooler has a lot of mass so that process takes longer. You can see in your logs it is tapering off around 160F. The more the intercooler heats up, the more total heat it can reject to ambient air. But when it is cool some of the heat just heats up the several kilograms of aluminum which make up the intercooler.

It's hard to say if that is bad or not without knowing the ambient temperature and the temperature of charge air coming out of the turbo. How hot is it in Chile? If it's 32C or higher and you are running ~14psi out of the poor little stock turbocharger maybe that's not too bad. That would be horrible for me in Indiana right now where it is about 0C!

thanks for your answer! well in chile its around 30 during the day but it cools down to about 20 or less. As far as my set up, im sorry i should have mentioned it. I have upgraded turbo vtt stage 2+ targeting around 21 psi. i have a 5" intercooler VRSF installed, and running meth on the CP. Terry tells me that my meth is not spraying, because if it was then the temperatures would not be this high. i have a TD this sunday and wanted to solved so I can drive safely.

any help is greatly appreciated.

[Skotcoop]

Originally Posted by SfValley335i

It's been a couple years since I owed my 335i which was FBO and made 400+whp. I recently got a 135i and within a month Im FBO again Things have changed since 2007/2008, mainly prices of parts have come down.

I recently purchased a VRSF 7" intercooler for my 135i. The purchase was quick and smooth, I had the intercooler shipped to my buddies house since thats where I planned to do the install. I opted for the free shipping and received it in 6 days (West coast). The intercooler was packaged really well, it was wrapped in bubble wrap, it had hard foam all around and then popcorn. The supplied hardware included quality t-bolt clamps, mounting brackets and thick hoses.

I've had experience with Helix intercooler back in 2008, I had Long tran aka LTBMW do the install but failed because the intercooler was not a good fit. Eventually after a few phone calls to Helix, they refunded me some money and I had to do a lot of trimming/modifications to make their intercooler fit. The Helix intercooler did work great once it was installed and helped me break 400whp.

The install on the VRSF intercooler is pretty straight forward. You need to trim off a few plastic pieces and the intercooler slips right in. I did not remove the bumper off my 135i, nor did I have to adjust/move the radiator fan.

After the install of the VRSF IC, I can say the engine has a deeper sound, the car pulls better than it did with stock IC but best and most important part of all, is that after numerous runs from a stop the car continues to pulls hard. I will get logs this week once the weather warms again. I took logs of the stock IC when the temp was in the 80s.

Comparing the VRSF IC to the Helix IC I had previously, going off memory, I can say both feel about the same throughout the power band and dealing with heat soak. I can say for a fact that the Helix IC did weigh more than the VRSF IC.

At the end of the day, I'm really happy with my purchase, I did PM VRSF to ask a few questions prior to purchase and received replies within a couple hours . I do not think you can find a better fitting and functional IC for a cheaper price than the VRSF IC. I without a doubt will make future purchases from them on their exhaust/charge pipe.

One thing I did not like is that the fins on the VRSF IC seem to bend easily.



Below are some pictures from the install.

Stock IC on top and VRSF IC on bottom




Fins and lower plastic bar removed


VRSF IC mounted


Fitment is nice and snug


Passenger side IC Hose



Driver side IC Hose

Man I really wish those pictures showed up because I don't know how this is going to get installed. Did yours come with 3 silicone couplings? Or 2 like mine did. I can sort of see how the cold side will come together but it doesn't look like there's enough room considering the bend radius of the lower charge pipe and the long straight coupler. Anyone have other pictures? I have the VRSF chargepipe as well. I think I figured out the orientation of each coupler but I still don't see how its going to fit. The lower chargepipe wont even come close to the upper one with the VRSF 45 degree elbow that was included with the charge pipe. I'm guessing the 90 degree goes right to the intercooler then to the lower charge pipe included with the IC. I can't see it coming together and I've found nothing helpful online showing how those connections are made.

[Petro135]

The 3rd silicone sleeve is the one that comes with your chargepipe. So it would go ic to silicone boot to lower cp to 45 degree boot to cp.
Or if using oem clips, and oem lower cp, the bellows type boot connects to ic, then lower cp. Then 45 degree boot to cp.
I tried to post a pic but it wont let me.

[Skotcoop]

Originally Posted by Petro135

The 3rd silicone sleeve is the one that comes with your chargepipe. So it would go ic to silicone boot to lower cp to 45 degree boot to cp.
Or if using oem clips, and oem lower cp, the bellows type boot connects to ic, then lower cp. Then 45 degree boot to cp.
I tried to post a pic but it wont let me.

I got it figured out. Some directions would have saved me some time and frustration but once I figured out the orientation and coupler location.