Reply With QuoteDo it come with instructions??..
Look what the fedex delivery truck brought me today:
Do it come with instructions??..
Dan sent me a draft of the install guide via email, which should be enough to get me through the install (with maybe a call for clarification along the way).
I'm not sure whether the draft is complete enough for your shop to be willing to proceed. Have you contacted them for a status update yet?
As I've mentioned before, I will be painting the intercooler black. Check this out:
They just used basic black paint. I'm using special radiator paint that is designed to emit heat efficiently and spray on thin to avoid clogging the fins, etc. I'd like to see how the results with this paint would compare to the basic black paint in that video.
Here's what a black intercooler looks like. Ignore the block of wood and shiny ends of the intercooler. This was just a quick test fit. The shiny ends will be covered by the black silicone couplers.
Just got back in town this evening.. Going first thing tomorrow to the shop and picking up the jeep.. And the dyo runs. I will update tomorrow.Originally Posted by UselessPickles
Looks AWESOME! how did the install go? Pretty easy im guessing..Here's what a black intercooler looks like. Ignore the block of wood and shiny ends of the intercooler. This was just a quick test fit. The shiny ends will be covered by the black silicone couplers.
My install is not done yet. I've done some painting, and I did some of the prep-work today that makes room for the charge air pipe (new relocated coolant reservoir, and replaced power steering line).
I don't think I'll finish this week. With the way projects always go for me, I won't be able to finish in one evening after work. There's a chance of rain every day this week except Monday, and I'm driving across the state to go play on sand dunes on Friday. Too risky.
Good news is that I already have plans to go back to the sand dunes in September, so I'll get to try stage 2 out there soon after trying stage 1 there.
Today's disaster was learning the hard way that I don't know how to properly tap threads. I broke my thread tap off in the frame (for mounting the coolant reservoir). Turns out, your supposed to turn thread taps VERY slowly. I'm guessing I spun it too fast with the drill motor, causing it to heat up and either expand, or partially melt/weld itself in. I had a lot of fun drilling and hammering it out of the hole. Then the hole seemed threaded, so I tried threading a bolt in. I met some resistance about half-way in. I thought it was just a rough spot I could power through. Next thing I know, the end of the bolt is snapped off in the hole I just spent so much time clearing the thread tap out of. A lot more drilling got me back to an un-threaded hole of the proper size. Ran out to the hardware store for a new bolt and thread tap. This time I oiled the thread tap and turned it VERY slow (variable speed drill motor with low-speed setting). I could have saved myself about 3 hours had I known this.
Practice makes perfect! At least you know now. OF course..you probably won't use a tap again in the next 5 years.
(clarification: This is still about the stage 1 turbo. I have not installed stage 2 yet)
Sand dunes with a turbo is fun!
So here's some notes/observations from the weekend...
My new trailer was perfect for hauling camping gear:
It was about 210 miles from home to the dunes, nearly all freeway. Trailer is 500 lbs, plus I would estimate ~250 lbs of stuff in the trailer and the Jeep. Two adults and two small children. I basically set the cruise at 65mph (max speed rating of the trailer tires) for most of the trip. I tracked MPG on separately on the way there, and on the way back, both with the dashboard (computer) display, and the old fashioned hand-calculated way.
There: 25.5 mpg (computer), 22.5 mpg (hand calculated)
Back: 24.1 mpg (computer), 21.8 mpg (hand calculated)
The return trip had several factors that lowered economy: Pure gas on the way there, vs half tank of 10% ethanol mixed with half tank of pure gas on the way back. More air conditioning on the way back. Also got stuck in backed up traffic for a couple miles on the way back (complete stop, slow creeping forward, etc).
At the dunes, the turbo was fun. I had way more power than I had traction. I need some better tires. According to some data logging, I generally used around 50% throttle in the 4000+ rpm range when climbing the steepest dunes. The turbo was definitely spooled up during all climbs, and the wastegate singing loudly.
Engine temperature was never a problem. Coolant temp is unfortunately not logged in the data logs, but I observed that the temp gauge was always right in the center, or slightly to the right of center (after a couple repeated attempts at climbing a tall/steep dune).
Intake temps are where I had a problem. During street driving, intake temp usually settles in around 110*F. It will rise up to about 180*F during a full throttle pull through all of 2nd gear and into 3rd a bit (basically up to freeway speeds starting from about 25mph), but then will pretty quickly drop back down to around 110*F. At the sand dunes, it ended up settling to about 170*f in between dunes, and would exceed 250*F during the steep dune climbs (and sometimes trigger a P0112 code: IAT sensor circuit low). Keep in mind that this was a lot of continuous high RPM, high engine load, driving at low speeds in deep/loose sand on a humid and sunny day. This is about the most extreme abuse my Jeep will ever see.
Adding the intercooler from the stage 2 kit will definitely help with this a lot. I should hopefully find out just how much it helps when I return to the dunes next month.
If intake temps are still a concern with stage 2, then I'll consider insulating the exhaust with either ceramic coating or some sort of wrap. I think I would prefer ceramic coating.
My current thoughts are that there's no heat concern with stage 1 for street driving or easier off-road driving. Multiple hours of continuous sand dune fun seems to be too much for stage 1. I expect that stage 2 will be just fine at the sand dunes without additional heat reduction mods.
Here's a video from last year at the sand dunes to give you an idea of the type of driving. Big dunes start around 1:55:
Last edited by UselessPickles; 08-25-2014 at 03:28 PM.
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