Active Cooling

[manticore33]

I was just wondering if anyone has thought of doing active cooling on thier sidemount as a cheap way to improve performance. By this I mean affixing hi-cfm fans to move more air across the intercooler, much like a heatsink and fan unit use for your CPU. I imagine you could just run a relay or even "switch" and just have the fans run constant, or if you wanted to get technical you could have a temp sensor to "speed up" or "slow down" the fans depending on the ambient temperature. I never have actually looked into the fesability, but plan to do so when I pull the sidemount for its first ever cleaning. I just wanted to know some opinions and reactions. The goal would be to improve cooling for around $30. I just feel any more spent would be worth doing an upgrade to a larger sidemount.

[Iwishiwascool]

youd be better off constructing a CO2 sprayer or something to that effect.

Taboo on DSMTalk stands by his use of your suggested system but I dont really think, at a high speed, that the fan would be able to draw any more air than without it.

A co2 sprayer would be much more effective with only a bit more investment.

PM me if you want details of its construction.

[DQ Driver]

i would toss that 2g smic for a supra, like everyone and their mom has. toops is selling one for quite a good price in the parts trader also.


I have read about some 1g guys having some success running a stock smic with a 20g by mounting a fan. The goal of the fan would not be to draw more air into the intercooler, however to dissapate heat from the backside. Much like radiator/ac fans do. is this what you have in mind?

[manticore33]

Yes. The intercooler is pretty much just a "heatsink" for air (I am a geek so, bare with the computer comparisons). I was thinking increasing the airflow over the fins of the IC, thus the heat it dissapates would be "blown" off by the fans ( like blowing on a hot object to cool it). Or even possibly seal the area to create a "tunnel" effect moving through that portion of the car (IE in from the front, out at the wheel well). Keep in mind this is my speculation, and I have not pulled the IC or looked heavily at the area.

The CO2 sprayer sounds interesting and very promosing. CO2 comes out figid as hell, I've chilled my hands many times tinkering with C02 pellet guns.

With cooling you have three major options to improve air-cooling (meaning no water, nitrogen or etc.) increase the surface area of the heatsink for more dissapation, or increase airflow across the heatsink, or a combination of both.

[MrBlunt]

water injection is also an alternative. spraying a fine mist of cold water into your post intercooled air is a sure fire way to cool the air down alot. this is becoming increasingly popular. may be something to shake a stick at.

[Iwishiwascool]

I actually mentioned that to him in pm. To do it right though is gonna cost about $300

[DQ Driver]

what you are saying is actually the opposite of what i am saying. Let's get our orientation correct..

My method:
-place a fan behind the SMIC
-the fan draws air from the back of the IC and dispells it in the same path/direction that it travels
-dissapates heat by drawing air AWAY from the IC

Your Method:
-blows air towards IC (side or front)
-dissapates heat by introducing cooler air onto the hot surface


Computer anaology: some people orient the direction of the fan on their heatsink differently (blowing on or sucking air out) with varying results.

Car analogy: The radiator fan resembles the my method. It draws heat away from the back of the radiator. The shroud around the fan is not only for protection but to help the fan draw air effeciently away because fans pull air from the sides, not the back!


</geek off> most colorful POST EVA
next post = diagrams

[manticore33]

I know about air flow (whether to suck or blow :D ). I was mainly looking at a way to "generate" more air to moving across the IC. I was thinking of trying not to suck air from the wheel well, but to "dump" hot air there and some how get incoming air from the front. Which, if possible, there might be a way to route that air in via (and not even require an active fan) a "duct". Typically optimum cooling is reached from creating a definate enterance and exit point for the air to travel.

[DQ Driver]

- remove fog light that obstucts air flow to IC (more significant on 1g's)
- remove the lining of the wheel well behind the IC
- upgrade to something front mounted
- cut the right side of your bumper off