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can you turn an fmic into a radiator?

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evobullit2017

10+ Year Contributor
36
0
Jan 11, 2009
deer park, Texas
has any one thought of this before? theoretically it should work wright> i have a spare fmic because i switched to w2a and i want a aluminum rad w/ an fittings so i would already have to weld the rad and modify it so y not use something i already have. any imput would be great
 
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A fmic core is too thick. A radiator core is tall and slim.
 
not worth it, by the time you modify it and make it fit (if you can) you're better off selling it and buying an aluminum rad
 
in my opinion... with some custom fabrication here and there im almost pretty sure it will work... correct me if im wrong..!!!
 
A fmic core is too thick. A radiator core is tall and slim.

so what your saying is b/c its too thick it wont work b/c the h20 pump cant pump the extra h20 through the thick core and it being short and thick not not tall and thin
changes the fact that air passes through the front fins to cool down the substance flowing inside in the rows?.
 
not worth it, by the time you modify it and make it fit (if you can) you're better off selling it and buying an aluminum rad

make it fit? y not keep it where it is? ill be using an fittings w/ ss lines. should be easy to run the top and bottom line.
 
so what your saying is b/c its too thick it wont work b/c the h20 pump cant pump the extra h20 through the thick core and it being short and thick not not tall and thin
changes the fact that air passes through the front fins to cool down the substance flowing inside in the rows?.

What I'm saying is go to a damn junkyard and get a radiatior if your that cheap.
 
Aluminum radiators arent that expensive. Sell your front mount on ebay and buy a damn mishimoto aluminum radiator haha
 
I think an intercooler mikght allow too much liquid to flow through it too quickly, and it might not allow for heat to be removed from the coolant. This is only theory though. But I'm willing to bet that the added overall thickness of the intercooler as well as the thicker tubes, will help prove my theory correct.
 
why not just make the inlet and outlet smaller...

looks like this one would work...!!!!!!


id say if you have a way of custom fabricating it, then go for it...!!!!
 

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A fmic core is too thick. A radiator core is tall and slim.
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What I'm saying is go to a damn junkyard and get a radiatior if your that cheap.
= FAIL

99gst racer has the idea b/c he knows the questions being asked,will it work ,why wont it work

since im going to w2a and there not exactly cheap money is no issue i can get an alum for 150 shipped w/fan but it was just something i though about wanted to know if it could machanicaly be possible not if its cost/time worthy just do you think it would work.
 
+

= FAIL

99gst racer has the idea b/c he knows the questions being asked,will it work ,why wont it work

since im going to w2a and there not exactly cheap money is no issue i can get an alum for 150 shipped w/fan but it was just something i though about wanted to know if it could machanicaly be possible not if its cost/time worthy just do you think it would work.

"Do I think it will work?" is a very broad question.
Do I think it will fit? If you fab & measure correct, then yes.
Do I think it will hold the coolant? Yes.
Do I think it will be a heat tank? Yes, I think it will be subject to heat soak.
Do I think the efficiency will be close to an actual radiator? No.
 
why not just purchase yourself a readiator from a junkyard, or in the classifieds instaead of going through all that trouble and work. i mean if you like the idea that much go for it.
 
although possible, i think your greatest issue would be surface area for heat dissipation.. I mean look at the fans and how much CFM they need to flow through a typicalk radiator to keep the car cool. Now try and get fans small enough to fit that can still move the amount of air needed to remove the heat and the price is already shooting way up again. then we get back to surface area.. you're going to have a lot less square inches of surface to pass air over , and going off of the fact that each square inch at "X" amount of airflow from fans or vehicle movement will remove so much heat, then you'll have to figure over and convert to find out how much air you'll need to move tp get the same cooling with many many less square inches of surface raea on the face of the core... now it's the 4th and i'm hung over a tad so forgive my lack of technical terms, but although it could be done , as in a FMIC COULD be made into a radiator, i dont' think it would cool your car worth a crap.. just muy opinion, but i don't think you'll keep it if you do succeed in hooking it all up because you'll probably have massive overheating issues
 
I wouldn't even waste my time trying.

1. Efficiency. Look at a radiator. Thin passages for coolant, large passages for air to move through. It takes a lot of air to remove the heat from a little bit of coolant. Your w2a intercooler core should be built the same way, because a little cold water can cool a lot of air.

The actual term is "Volumetric Heat Capacity". Water at about 212* has a VHC of 4.2160 J/(cm3·K) while air at ambient temperature has a VHC of about 0.001297 J/(cm3·K). You see? It takes a lot of airflow to cool the fluid. It takes 33,000 times more energy to raise a unit of water 1* than it takes to increase that same volume of air 1*.

2. Weight. Since it's thicker, it's probably going to hold a lot more coolant than a radiator would. This extra weight causes 2 problems: mounting and handling. Your mounts have to be strong enough to hold it as your car bounces down the road. The extra weight in the front of the car will hurt handling.

3. Cost. You'll need:
-The large holes welded closed and new fittings added.
-New brackets to mount.
-Longer hoses.

Not worth it IMHO.
 
Try it, you'll have the same effect with running no thermostat. It will flow too quick and not have enough heat dissipation.
 
Dude, there are aluminum radiators in the classifieds going for $100-$150 this idea does not sound worth it even if it is "original". Plus I wouldn't be wanting to put my motor on the line to see if I would be able to use a intercooler as a radiator..
 
sorry i cant read every reply and make sure its not already answered because they are to many,

but while it technically will work meaning it will flow coolant if setup to do so, it will not fullfill the purpose of a radiator, this is because a radiator has smaller passages to enhance the cooling process for a continuing flow of matter qnd because liquid is obviously denser than air it would need to be smaller passages do cool it properly,

whereas an intercooler has wider passages to cool air and air only because air is not as dense/nor can u confine the passages to much for better cooling because you will drop/loose PSI too much

therefore there is a sacrifice in using better flowing intercoolers (bar and plate), u send more heated air than a more restricting intercooler where cools better but loose about .8 psi (tube and fin type intercooler)

1st pic: high flow radiator

2nd pic bar n plate intercooler

3rd pic: tube n fin intercooler
 

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thanks to all those who took the time to read the question i.e
99gst_racer
rEclipserGST
turboglenn
knochgoon24
Lofty
born2tune
also i just relised the the passages on the intercool flows sideways unlike a rad goes verticle so i would have to A get side mount and flip it or B cut the one i have and flip it. wounder y no one sad that in the response oh well great responses most of you and thanks for your time
 
also i just relised the the passages on the intercool flows sideways unlike a rad goes verticle so i would have to A get side mount and flip it or B cut the one i have and flip it. wounder y no one sad that in the response oh well great responses most of you and thanks for your time

i feel like i wouldn't have completed my job if i dont show u this:

maybe this is why no one mentioned the vertical or horizontal issue, look at the radiator flow path, and look at this intercooler flow path!

i will explain the difference right here on the spot just in case for u and everybody else thats reading and is now wondering why is it different and which one is better.

the only reason an intercooler would be vertical, or horizontal, up, down, would be 1-for cosmetic looks
2-for a more clean or improved flow path, depends on how the routing for the piping is, will determine what type of intercooler he will use, whether is on a budget or wether is going for maximizing the performance of the cooling system.:thumb::thumb:
 

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+

= FAIL

99gst racer has the idea b/c he knows the questions being asked,will it work ,why wont it work

since im going to w2a and there not exactly cheap money is no issue i can get an alum for 150 shipped w/fan but it was just something i though about wanted to know if it could machanicaly be possible not if its cost/time worthy just do you think it would work.

I understood your question. I told you why it wouldn't work. I understand that your trying to be innovative and everything, but there are some things that you don't mess with. Cooling is one of them. Radiators are shaped, the way they are for a reason. I could make a timing belt, fashioning belts together but why would I????
 
You can, but it will probably work poorly for the opposite reasons that a radiator makes a bad front mount. The passages are likely too big to provide good heat transfer. If you think about cooling off a tube, the outside cools off first then the inside. It takes more heat removal to cool off water, so for a given tube you'll want smaller passages to expose more of it to the cold ambient air. The inlet and outlets are gigantic. The End tank positions and design are setup for maximum flow rather than heat transfer.

I would probably rather see you use an AC condensor as the front heat exchanger. I think the design is more suited for it than even a radiator, but I've yet to test one. I have tested the radiator and it's not optimal.

All that said, I can't stop you from ruining a perfectly good front mount and getting poor efficiency out of your water to air to satisfy your curiosity by saying "no it will never work". It will just work poorly. Have fun if you're gonna do it : )

OH YEAH! If it winds up sucking you can turn it into a massive water air core. I've got an old dodge one I'm doing that to, it's going to be sweet!
 
I wouldnt do it for the simple fact that fmic and radiators are made to contain two different things. yes, there is pressure in the fmic, but the pressure of water expanding when it heats is probably far greater than any amount of pressure being forced in by the turbo... correct me if im wrong
 
Radiators are generally only pressurized to about 14psi...I dont think it matters if thats 14psi of gas or liquid...the liquid is just trying to turn into a gas anyway.
 
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