"Bullet Proof" TMIC Kits

It's probably too late, no one has tested vice gripping the clamps back on and then bullet proofing it though, no guarantees would apply if you take that road. I have the same thing going on in mine at the moment, not sure what I'm going to do yet. I'll probably buy a used OEM then bp it

Spot on, thanks.

I've posted this more than once in response to the same situation...

 

Unless your intercooler has actually FAILED, that is, rendered your car inoperable, you can use vice grips to pinch the seams back together and then install the BP Mod when you have it perfect again.

 

When the OEM TMIC actually fails it blows out the rubber O-ring that is in the seam. THEN it is fubared. But if it is only seeping some oil, or is showing visible stretching of the clamps and is obviously spreading apart, you can save it. THAT IS THE CONDITION that my new 11 WRX was in when I parked it until I found a solution... the BulletProof TMIC Mod is the result.

 

Clear?

 

It probably suits everyone to mod a pristine TMIC. I doubt many can source a used one in perfect condition, but if you can, fine. But to eliminate all the intercoolers that show signs of leakage from oil seepage, or that have spreading tabs, would eliminate a lot of people unnecessarily. One thing for sure, any signs your TMIC is leaking or about to leak is a warning you better heed.

 

If you intelligently put your seam tabs back tight, and install a BP Mod properly, your intercooler is NOT EVER going to fail whether the intercooler starts out brand new or restored. Period. In fact, from the beginning, a significant number of people who were among the first to BP Mod their cars did so on itercoolers with just this condition. There are individual threads on it.

Thanks for clearing that up, Jeff.

Order with confidence. Bucko and Dobbs, if you two want to give it a shot just to be the vocal / visual proof in this thread of exactly what type of intercooler can be R&R'ed and improved using this type of kit then go ahead and order. If it doesn't work out for you for any reason just get in touch with me.

More kits shipped including another one to Canada. A couple more going out tomorrow.

Thanks everyone for the orders.

Might be a dumb question, but how does this compare to an avo or perrin n terms of cooling capacity? Thanks

This just reinforces the stock intercooler. For 90 bucks you get the same reliability of an avo or perrin or process west intercooler without paying out the ass.

Might be a dumb question, but how does this compare to an avo or perrin n terms of cooling capacity? Thanks

This type of question gets asked A LOT. I don't have access to specific test that show the cooling capacity of either the stock unit or aftermarket units.

It's generally regarded that the stock TMIC will not suffer from heatsoak due to the plastic endtanks. I believe the design of the process west also offers good resistance to heatsoak. The perrin / avo units both have heavy metal end tanks making them more prone to heatsoak issues.

As far as cooling capacity goes, it's most likely that stock < avo/perrin < process west. The real question is whether any of that matters. If the intercooler is the weak point in your setup then it might make some sense to upgrade to an aftermarket unit. If it's not, or if you expect the gains to be minimal and you are after reliability more than anything, then bullet-proofing your stock TMIC makes the most sense unless you are after engine bling.

I'd imagine that for most stage 2 and even mild stage 3 setups the TMIC is not a huge limiting factor and going to avo / perrin won't net you that much in terms of power gains. I could be wrong, I just haven't seen the back-to-back comparison.

Like bucko said, the kit offers the ability to make the stock TMIC as reliable as other aftermarket options for a fraction of the price.

It's generally regarded that the stock TMIC will suffer from heatsoak due to the plastic endtanks.

This is inaccurate. The stock TMIC is the best possible TMIC design from a heat-soak perspective, precisely due to the plastic end-tanks. Plastic is an insulator, meaning that heat cannot travel outwards from the charge air through the end-tanks (which is not an issue, because the hood scoop does not cool those areas), but it can't travel in from the engine bay either. Because heatsoak is due to heat from the engine bay, this is a good thing. There may be some minor heatsoak in the metal heat exchanger portion of the TMIC, but that would go away as soon as you started moving again.

As I understand it, the main issue with the stock TMIC is that airflow through the unit is not as good as on aftermarket models. So there is a pressure drop (somewhere between that of an aftermarket TMIC and an FMIC) from the turbo to the intake manifold. This should not be an issue for Stage 2 or (most likely) mild Stage 3 setups, though.

Well, I'm not deleting my post, because it has a good description of why the stock TMIC is so much less prone to heatsoak.

Really, from a heatsoak perspective, I'd rather have a stock TMIC than a PW. It's just that the PW isn't THAT much worse, and cooling capacity otherwise and airflow are much better.

Having had an FMIC, a PW, and a (newly) BP'ed TMIC, though, I'd definitely choose the latter unless I lived in Arizona or was trying to make really big power.

Having had an FMIC, a PW, and a (newly) BP'ed TMIC, though, I'd definitely choose the latter unless I lived in Arizona or was trying to make really big power.

Well then.

Well then.

It's not that the PW isn't a great piece, it's just that, heat-soak-wise and cost-wise, the BP TMIC is so much better, and it's not worse enough from a performance standpoint to justify spending $900 extra.

Im currently on tp stage 3 map which is basically a stage 2+ ebcs .. Pushing 20 psi..i ordered this kit and should be getting it soon. You guys think it should be enough for what i have ?

I have an avo tmic thats always been giving me problems, so i thought ill try this out.

 

 

 

Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk 2

You already have my answer, but yes--I think that a properly bullet-proofed stock TMIC will fit your needs just fine.

what does PW stand for? Sorry, new to subis. :-)

Process West.