FAQ about water/air intercooling

Q: Will your water to air intercooler kits work with a turbo diesel truck?

A: Of course! The principle is the same between cars and trucks: cooling down compressed air. As long as your truck has a 12V electrical system, it will work just like on a car!

Q: Will your water to air intercooler kits work with a rugged offroad 4x4, sometimes subject to high levels of vibration?

A: Definitely! 4x4 driving in rugged terrain is a very popular use for our water to air intercoolers. The cores are designed for automotive use with high levels of vibration and up to 70PSI of pressure in mind. Because offroad vehicles sometimes use lots of power to crawl up steep inclines and over rocks very slowly, a water to air intercooler is ideal for this application.

Q: Will your water to air intercooler kits work on my specific vehicle in place of an air to air intercooler?

A: Yes! We don't keep model-specific application data. However, a water to air intercooler is conceptually the same as air to air; all you are doing is cooling your compressed intake air. Therefore it will work just fine in place of your air to air intercooler.

Q: Will your water to air intercooler kits work with a supercharger?

A: Absolutely! A supercharger is conceptually the same as a turbocharger - it's just a powerful air compressor, the only difference is it is belt driven and not exhaust gas driven. Therefore it will work the same as with a turbocharged car.

Q: Can I use your 600 HP kit if I have far less than 600 HP?

A: Of course. It's always better to have too much intercooler than not enough. With a water to air intercooler, because of the very low pressure drop, there is no drawback to using a system capable of 600 HP with a 200 HP motor.

Q: Can I use your water to air kit every day on the road?

A: Absolutely! In our shop car (a daily driver with frequent trips to the 1/4 mile track) we are using one of our own kits. The pump and fan come on when the ignition turns on. It has been working great for over a year now with zero required maintenance. The weakest point in the system is the Rule 401FC pump - however these are still rated at 1500 hours (90,000 miles at 60 MPH, if you average only 20 MPH, that's still 30,000 miles!)

Q: If I switch to water to air and mount my water to air radiator in place of my current front mount intercooler, will it fix my overheating problem?

A: Although we can't make any guarantees, I would expect the switch to water/air to fix or improve your cooling problems because the heat exchanger for the water doesn't get as hot as an air/air intercooler. We also sell thin heat exchangers (1" thick) which will allow more airflow to your radiator than a thick front mount intercooler. Finally, our kits come with a fan to be mounted on the heat exchanger which will also improve airflow to your radiator when stopped or moving slowly. You might also consider mounting your water to air heat exchanger in a new location, such as your trunk.

Q: Will mounting an intercooler anywhere in my intake system cause in improper calculation in the amount of fuel to be injected?

A: Typically the answer to that question is no because cooling down a certain mass of air doesn't actually change the mass of the air - that would be against the laws of physics. It just cools down the air. In a speed density system the sensors will show cold air being denser but moving more slowly - this will not change the air mass or the amount of fuel injected. In a MAF/MAS system the sensors will show the correct amount of air regardless of the air temperature. Therefore, you can mount the intercooler anywhere in your system without affecting your A/F ratio. Adding a Water to Air Intercooler increases the total amount of air moving through the system, but it doesn't result in incorrect sensor readings.

Q: Is a water to air intercooler kit good for drag racing?

A: Water to air systems, properly configured, really excel over air to air in drag racing. Add a cooling box to your system and fill it with ice at the drag strip to reduce your intake temperatures BELOW ambient air.

Q: Is a water to air intercooler kit good for road racing?

A: A water to air intercooler kit will work just fine for road racing. However, high-speed road racing is the one type of racing where an air to air intercooler can outperform a water to air intercooler, because you are always moving and therefore always have a lot of airflow to the intercooler. However there are several exceptions. If you have a mid or rear-engine vehicle, water to air is still better because you can mount the radiator in front. If you have overheating problems when road racing your car, water to air can fix the problem if you mount the water to air radiator in the trunk.

Q: Is a water to air intercooler kit good for tractor pulling? (AKA truck pulling, power pulling, or sled pulling)

A: Water to air intercoolers are extremely popular in this sport and an ideal solution. As you may have guessed, we don't have a whole lot of experience in this area, but we do know a few things. You probably have a whole lot of space to work with, and weight is less of a concern. You won't be going fast enough for long enough to provide enough air to an air to air intercooler system. Also, you're probably not going to drive your tractor to the event. Therefore, we recommend a very large water to air intercooler (or two) with a large supply of ice water and no radiators in the system. If you're always going to be adding ice to the system and only using the vehicle for pulls, there's no reason to have a radiator since the ice will cool the system below ambient air temperature and a radiator would only work to fight this effect.

Q: What if I live in a climate with very high and/or very low temperatures?

A: Water to air actually provides an additional benefit in these circumstances. If you run coolant/antifreeze in your water to air system, the system will be equally resistant to freezing over as your engine cooling system. Because the liquid acts as a buffer between the ambient air and the intake air, it has a normalizing effect on your intake charge cooling efficiency. This means you can tune more aggressively without worrying as much about high temperature or low temperature airflow inconsistency.

Q: Can I modify your end tanks, or cut them off entirely and use my own?

A: Yes! Please check here for more details: Intercooler End Tank Modification