SMIC vs FMIC

[mb7050]

From what I gather, your "proper" comparison would be to use a single smic in the front... or use two giant fmic cores on the side. Is that correct?

yes ... and same/similar sized IC pipes and similar sized IC cores this is important for a fair comparison ...

of course a setup utilizing considerably smaller ICs, IC pipes and smaller IC cores have more pressure drop

[i3igpete]

if you can set that up, I would love to see it.

[mb7050]

So people how could we improve exhaust air flow path in smic configuration ? Mr2 you had some ideas ? please share . I think that widebody vented fenders can be functional afterall since the air from behind smics leads inside the front fenders too..


shitty cameraphone pics sorry about that

[mb7050]

that's EXACTLY the point. he had the two most common configurations available to a 3/s owner. a dsm fmic with factory piping, or the greddy fmic. You don't just buy the cores, you buy the cores and pipes.

I really like the last post, it pretty much sums it all.

I think I have to disagree with OP and this testing procedure.

Also the comments about 10 feet of 1.5" pipe creating a certain amount of restriction regard a STRAIGHT pipe. Every bend kills flow. Then take 1.5" pipe, add bends, you have a a terrible outcome.

Measuring right after the turbo and then at the intake manifold is just a terrible test. Make all the excuses you want but its a terrible test.

Now on a FMIC with 3" piping, yeah, its not a big deal on a 400-500hp car.

To explain how stupid the comparison is, the total flow area of a 1.5" pipe is 1.7 square inches. Two of them is 3.4 square inches.
3" piping is 7square inches.

Is anyone seeing how stupid of a comparison this is?

Weld 2.25 in and out on these things and replace all the piping with the proper size before saying the intercooler CORE has anything to do with the restriction.
As someone else said, a restrictive core can be caused by a high number of turbulators which help remove heat.

Then you come to the reality of core sizes.
Two DSM cores = about a single 16" tall 3.5" thick FMIC. More flowpath then a 12" tall 4" deep FMIC.

So when it comes to actual flowpath, the sidemounts have more flowpath. If they have more turbulators then that means superior temp drop.

THEN still, the sidemounts have a shorter core length. Having 12-18" longer tubes does NOT increase cooling ability, it just increases restriction. Its always better to double flowpath instead of double length of the core. Long intercooler cores are pretty much a bling item that hurts power.

So i disagree on the usefullness of the test results except in showing the obvious. A bad combination of parts = bad result.

People use DSM cores to build custom intercoolers, and not because they are junk. I want to find 3 or 4 of them myself....err did. I can buy a normal long core and cut it in half for nice and cheap and "double" the flowpath while still having 11" long tubes which is plenty.

[i3igpete]

I still don't quite understand what your point is. he is testing the system as a whole: pipes and cores. this is most representative of what is going on in the system. larger pipes and less friction losses is one of the advantages to going FMIC. you wouldn't connect a FMIC core to 1.5" pipe going in and out, would you? similarly, it's physically impossible to feed 3" pipes to each SMIC core. So you have to take the total system change as a whole, both pipes and core.

furthermore, i don't know why you are arguing with me about core dimensions. core cross flow area and flowpath length are two different things, notice that I'm only pointing out core cross flow area is larger, which leads to lower friction losses (the exact same thing you are quoting, but he is saying it verbosely).

[mb7050]

furthermore, i don't know why you are arguing with me about core dimensions. core cross flow area and flowpath length are two different things, notice that I'm only pointing out core cross flow area is larger, which leads to lower friction losses (the exact same thing you are quoting, but he is saying it verbosely).

I don´t want to argue with you, because there is no reason..

[mb7050]

I still don't quite understand what your point is. he is testing the system as a whole: pipes and cores. this is most representative of what is going on in the system. larger pipes and less friction losses is one of the advantages to going FMIC. you wouldn't connect a FMIC core to 1.5" pipe going in and out, would you? similarly, it's physically impossible to feed 3" pipes to each SMIC core. So you have to take the total system change as a whole, both pipes and core.

My point is if your going to compare two systems you take systems that are equally comparable. Not some hacked DSM ic setup w stock pipes vs purposely build Greddy fmic kit w larges pipes it's not fair comparison at all .

[Chris@Rvengeperformance]

do the louvers in the front inner fenders really flow that well? I understand there may be a low pressure area there, but the flow path is really restricted by the inner fenders.

[i3igpete]

My point is if your going to compare two systems you take systems that are equally comparable. Not some hacked DSM ic setup w stock pipes vs purposely build Greddy fmic kit w larges pipes it's not fair comparison at all .

how is it not a fair comparison? you can't use either core without the appropriate pipes.

[mb7050]

DN hard pipe kit ... they are 2" pipes just like the hotside pipes that come with the Greddy kit (have been around for a
long time) certainly available back in 2008

you could easily use 2.25" pipes with smics if you really need to ...