i have an 02 wrx slightly tuned , vf34,walbro,550's straight exhaust system . im buying parts at the moment ready for a rebuild as its not gonna cost anythin to fit uprated parts when puttin it bak together but im not sure to go top mount intercooler or front mount ? im turning towards the top mount option at the moment , but another choice to make is keep pipercross panel or fit induction kit !! what combo do u lot reccomend ?? thanks

 

Hi matey just upgrade your TMIC to STI 7/8 TMIC,this TMIC is good for 400BHP.Stick with panel filter and STI TMIC,.

 

Personally i would have a fmic - lower charge temps every day of the week

 

what power level do you want, I would go with the FMIC however if your keeping the target low ish then a sti TMIC would be a cheap and effective way to go.

 

All depends what you intend to use the car for, mine was running 370 on an STi TMIC for a while, until it det'd and threw a bearing!

If you will be doing sustained high speed runs, track or autobahn etc. than fmic is a good idea as the scoops do not draw as much air in at high speed as the airflow actually goes over the top of them!
Plus a used TMIC with STI scoop and undertray will be around £200-£300 and a new Hybrid FMIC about £350-£400 from Harvey!

 

If your only using is for general everyday use i'd say uprated tmic, if your gonna do trackdays etc then go fmic, imo fmic's give more (slightly)lag than tmic.

 

there are things you can do to keep ambients down but thats a whole new story.

 

^^^^^
Move to Sweden???????

 

lol very good

i was on about the throttle body mod and using phenolic spacers, ive heard it makes a big difference- hope so cos ive done it and i`m going to run a sti8 ic on my classic

 

Hmm..Tricky

If I lived near Harvey I'd drive down and get a FMIC as the labour rate is very sensible.......if not I'd go for the STi TMIC


Shaun

 

thanks for the help u lot i think im gonna go top mount ive been lookin on japspeeds website and they do a top mount kit at a good price 150 quid ! japspeed hav a gd name right ? plus is looks sweet compared to an sti cooler , the only thing that will bug me is that front mounts look soooooooo good and seem to finish the front end in my oppinion ! jesus it is actually a really hard choice to make lol but i do want it as every day driver , and only be makin 330-340 ish brake so front mount does seem a bit unneccisary ?

 

An sti 7/8 TMIC is probably more efficient than a japspeed one, however which ever one you buy you will have to get a sti air splitter and also a scoop.

 

i nalready have the scoop , is the air splitter like a grille that fits to the underside of the scoop ? if so, i have that also !

 

front mount all the way, no question about it. with a vf34 you'll see an improvment over a top mount.

at 300 it starts to help, at the 340ish you'll be aiming for with a 34 you'll be well into the front mount range.

 

At 350 bhp and what you will get out of a VF34 on STi pink injectors your OE top mount intercooler is probably at the limit of what is satisfactory. If you want to go beyond that level of tune you should go for an efficient front mount. Yes the STi 8 intercooler can operate at 400 bhp but you want the most efficient setup per £ spent. When I went from an STi 8 TMIC to a Hybrid FMIC I picked up 9 bhp out the box, just from changing from STi 8 TMIC to Hybrid front mount and another 9 bhp from mapping.
It is not just the air charge temperature that should be of interest to you but also the pressure drop across the intercooler core.
You will very much get what you pay for and the price you propose to spend on a top mount intercooler is substantially below what you would have to pay to do the job properly with an efficient top mount.

 

Harvey.........should your last sentence end with "Front mount"

Shaun

 

In Australia its a no brainer - FMIC and I have water spray as well.
Lots of data around comparing the reduction in charge temps when compared with a top mount.
AND your correct it does finish off the front of the car!

 

No. What I mean is that a £150 top mount is not likely to be of great quality or particularly effective.
If the O.P wants to go for a better intercooling system he may as well go straight to a Hybrid FMIC and be done with it.
I also have air charge temperature guages. £82.50. If anyone wants to discuss the benefits of top mount or front mount and how one brand compares to another then they need an accurate means of measuring ACTs (and pressure drop across the core).
Without that information and carefully testing the change from an STi 8 top mount to a Hybrid front mount I don't know how you can argue which would be better.
For me there is no doubt that beyond a certain level which varies with each different model and turbo combination the best course of action is to go straight to an efficient front mount once that particular point has been crossed. Generally if air charge temperatures can be reduced by 16-20 degrees from fitting a front mount then there is no contest and it makes sound financial sense.

 

so how much is a hybrid ? 4-600 quid ? aint really got that much cash sadly !! surely the japspeed top mount and front mount are both an improvement over standard wrx though ? thanks for the advice by the way peeps ebay is a **** sometimes just recieved my front splitter i ordered , nothin like the picture , gutted

 

the hybrid front mounts are 300 quid i think.

dont bother with japspeed stuff especially the top mount, front mounts all work quite well because of their position but top mounts suffer. either go for a sti8 one or get a hdi fmic

 

For your car £395 and we fit same day for £185.
Have you read what I have said???