# Intercooler suggestions wanted... mk1



## deathhare. (Apr 1, 2008)

Normally I post in the mk1 forums but thought some people in here might be able to make some great suggestions.

What I have is an oem plus turbo diesel running in my rabbit. I really like the factory look of it at the moment and want to keep it looking subtle and clean. Nothing race looking or too radical but I really want/need to add an IC into the system.

There isnt a lot of space in these cars in front of the rad (2.25-2.5") without moving the rad back some. Ive considered an AWIC or an Air to Air. Either one would be fine as long as it can look decent. Most things I see look way too over the top and not something Id want set up in my bay.

Any suggestions would be great and well appreciated. 
Pic of the bay as it sits now...


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## Gear_Dog (Aug 11, 2006)

It looks like you could probably put one from a Corrado next to the radiator. I did a qiuck search and came across this one on ebay 28x7x2.5 
There is also Bell Intercoolers but they are a bit pricey


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## TIGninja (Mar 21, 2010)

You should check out what I did on the attack rabbit


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## deathhare. (Apr 1, 2008)

Gear_Dog said:


> It looks like you could probably put one from a Corrado next to the radiator. I did a qiuck search and came across this one on ebay 28x7x2.5
> There is also Bell Intercoolers but they are a bit pricey


Thanks. Have checked out and ruled out Bell for that reason.

I like the ebay link. Need to do some measuring to see how that might work out.



TIGninja said:


> You should check out what I did on the attack rabbit


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## TIGninja (Mar 21, 2010)

http://forums.vwvortex.com/showthread.php?4829923-The-super-slappy-attack-rabbit.


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## Gear_Dog (Aug 11, 2006)

TIGninja said:


> http://forums.vwvortex.com/showthread.php?4829923-The-super-slappy-attack-rabbit.


That would def fall in the over the top category


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## deathhare. (Apr 1, 2008)

TIGninja said:


> http://forums.vwvortex.com/showthread.php?4829923-The-super-slappy-attack-rabbit.


Yeah Im sure that works well for you but I would never put something like that in my car.


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## slcturbo (Apr 19, 2010)

Gear_Dog said:


> It looks like you could probably put one from a Corrado next to the radiator. I did a qiuck search and came across this one on ebay 28x7x2.5
> There is also Bell Intercoolers but they are a bit pricey


I'm running that CXracing 28x7x2.5 in my Corrado. Probably making ~400whp and running 11.5's. Works for me although I think it's on the smallish side for that power level.


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## TIGninja (Mar 21, 2010)

deathhare. said:


> Yeah Im sure that works well for you but I would never put something like that in my car.



Im kinda curious as to why?


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## wantacad (Apr 4, 2003)

If the archive ever come back there was a thread in the MK1 section started by Blown020 when he wanted to turbo his rabbit. I kinda took over the thread when i bought the kit from him. Anyways early in the thread there was somebody talking about intercoolers that fit very well in front of the radiator. The 2 that really stood out was one from a SRT4 neon and a 9-3 Saab. I found the srt4 style local and it's not as good as fit as I would have liked it to be. With moding it would work.


Anyways the Saab one looked alot more slick and with the in/out on one side it looks like it would fit your needs pretty well.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/99-0...ptZMotorsQ5fCarQ5fTruckQ5fPartsQ5fAccessories


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## notsoslow (Nov 5, 2009)

here is one I just picked up for my Rabbit 20vbt. It barely fits but will work with the rad moved back an inch. i will post dimensions later.


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## deathhare. (Apr 1, 2008)

So im realizing after much research and much measuring that I cant come across an IC that will fit without modding my core support or relocating my battery. Both of which I dont plan on ever doing. 

So whats the smallest IC that is 2.5" or thinner out there?


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## TIGninja (Mar 21, 2010)

I run a 3" core and have the battery,radiator,and radiator support all where they are supposed to be. I did have to bend over the center of the support that goes up to the hood latch to clear everything. I ended up with a nice stealth intercooler that will support 600whp.


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## deathhare. (Apr 1, 2008)

TIGninja said:


> I run a 3" core and have the battery,radiator,and radiator support all where they are supposed to be. I did have to bend over the center of the support that goes up to the hood latch to clear everything. I ended up with a nice stealth intercooler that will support 600whp.


 Thats nice but Im shooting for less than 100hp.  
Ive measured and only have room for a 2.5" core at maximum. This may be due to my radiator being the thicker old ones. Metal end tanks and all. 

Its looking like I need a custom IC or no IC. :banghead:


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## 16v lover (Feb 17, 2007)

you could allways go air to water you can fit them into some tight spaces and they cool the air better at low speeds.


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## VDUBIN (Jun 28, 2001)

have you considered a twin or single side mount intercooler like the 1.8ts or the audis?


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## wantacad (Apr 4, 2003)

deathhare. said:


> Thats nice but Im shooting for less than 100hp.
> Ive measured and only have room for a 2.5" core at maximum. This may be due to my radiator being the thicker old ones. Metal end tanks and all.
> 
> Its looking like I need a custom IC or no IC. :banghead:


 I guess the volvo one was too thick? Another option I recall from over the years was the one from a ford probe. maybe they are thinner?


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## blubayou (Oct 3, 2001)

I think you should stick with a/a, since a/w will still require plumbing water lines, needing a heat exchanger in front of the rad, pump, reservoir, etc. More complex system that might be overkill in your situation. 

I have a Saab Blackstone IC (all alu version) that might fit where in the space you have. The core is 2.5" thick, though the end tanks are probably a tad thicker. Both in/out are on the same end. Was going to use it on my mk2, but decided to go with the a/w setup using a bell core instead. 

Here's what the Saab unit looks like (random pic with plastic tanks) though the one I have is all aluminum. Core is roughly 8" wide, 2.5" thick and maybe 9" long. End tanks obviously make it longer overall: 










I can get you dims if you think it might work.


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## deathhare. (Apr 1, 2008)

wantacad said:


> I guess the volvo one was too thick? Another option I recall from over the years was the one from a ford probe. maybe they are thinner?


 Yeah I ran the Ford Probe one when I had the Callaway kit years ago. 
It took a lot of cutting of my core support (different car) to fit. 
Tried one recently on this car and realized one of the outlets will ram into my alt since its a diesel. Low alt.  

Ive heard those Saab ones are very bad. 
True or False?


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## Gear_Dog (Aug 11, 2006)

I also came across this one for a motorcycle on Ebay


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## blubayou (Oct 3, 2001)

I haven't really heard anything bad about the saab ones like I posted. Not sure if any bad review is based on the plastic or alu ones, or both  I'd be curious to know more about them. I'll see if I can turn anything up. 

**edit** found a couple complaints about them, mostly surrounding the plastic end tanks and their failure at higher boost pressures.


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## blubayou (Oct 3, 2001)

Found a few things about it - still looking for more as I'm curious now. I'd heard it was a good design for it's size, due to the fact that it's a bar & plate design, 2.5" thick and dual pass. 

link 1 

link 2 

this thread has a mk1 diesel running the same intercooler (plastic tank version) 

He had to scoot the radiator to the driver's side a bit, I think:


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## deathhare. (Apr 1, 2008)

That thing looks ok. 
Thanks for posting the pics. 

Sadly, from the pics I can tell that it would not only hit my inner driving lights but the plumbing for it would also be right into my washer bottle and fuel filter. :banghead:


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## wantacad (Apr 4, 2003)

Well you just arn't happy with anything are you? :sly::laugh:


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## deathhare. (Apr 1, 2008)

Yeah Im spoiled.  


Surely something will come up. Just gonna keep hunting.


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## Gear_Dog (Aug 11, 2006)

what about a callaway I/C that mounts to the bottom on the bay? Looks like you can run the pipes underneath and it wouldn't be that noticeable


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## VWtuner-nl (Jan 29, 2007)

You can use an intercooler from an Mercedes-benz Vito turbo diesel it will fit right between your chassis and in front of the radiator, you only have to place the radiator a few holes to the other side. 
for pictures look at this build, you probably can`t read it, but pictures tell more then thousand words. http://www.driving-fun.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=12668 

Martijn.


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## deathhare. (Apr 1, 2008)

VWtuner-nl said:


> You can use an intercooler from an Mercedes-benz Vito turbo diesel it will fit right between your chassis and in front of the radiator, you only have to place the radiator a few holes to the other side.
> for pictures look at this build, you probably can`t read it, but pictures tell more then thousand words. http://www.driving-fun.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=12668
> 
> Martijn.


 Thats pretty nice but I wanted to keep my battery in the stock location. 

I think I found an IC last night that will work perfect... 
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/CXRa...Q5fTruckQ5fPartsQ5fAccessories#ht_5403wt_1167


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## jeffs vw (Apr 29, 2007)

mishimoto.com they have a small intercooler :thumbup:


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## blubayou (Oct 3, 2001)

deathhare. said:


> That thing looks ok.
> Thanks for posting the pics.
> 
> Sadly, from the pics I can tell that it would not only hit my inner driving lights but the plumbing for it would also be right into my washer bottle and fuel filter. :banghead:


 Oh well, we tried! Glad to see you might have found a solution :thumbup:


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## deathhare. (Apr 1, 2008)

jeffs vw said:


> mishimoto.com they have a small intercooler :thumbup:


 Ive looked at their site a number of times in the past. 
They dont have a small enough one that would fit right. 

Looks like Im going with the ebay one. :thumbup:


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