Intercooler and A/C Condensor... making room

[DanSanDiego2000]

I wanted to eliminate the mechanical cooling fan and pick up 10 HP or more in the process. Less drag, more net power, better fuel economny, quieter, or any combination thereof will suit me just fine.

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The fan and spacer took up 3" of space..... out they go.


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Without the fan in place, you can see the football field between the water pump and the radiator.

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De-Solder the brackets on the radiator, flip them left to right, and reinstall.

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Now there is still more than an inch of clearance from the water pump to the radiator, but in FRONT of the radiator is a whole different story.

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(Before, with less than an inch clearance at the bottom, and hardly 2" at the top)

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Now there is enough room in front of the radiator for a 3-4 inch thick intercooler, and A/C Condensor, and (2) 12" electric pusher fans.

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The Condensor will take up the bottom half or the radiator, and the intercooler will take-up the top half. The electric fans will go over both, and possibly have a shroud to direct the air.

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In this shot, you can see how far back the radiator moved, how much room it makes in the front, and how the intercooler tubing will be able to run from the intake to the intercooler, and from the intercooler down to the fresh air intake beneath the core support.

Free horsepower from the intercooler, and from the elimination of the mechanical fan.

Switched from Demon 2 barrel 350 CFM carburetor to Holley 4-barrel 390 CFM...... should also improve power, and possibly pick up fuel economy, too (using just the smaller primaries of the 4-barrel, rather than the larger primaries of the 2 barrel).

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Put in a Schneider Racing Cam and Schneider Valve Springs. Retained the Clifford Headers, and the Water-Heated Intake, but swapped the Clifford 2-barrel carburetor adapter for the 4-barrel adapter.

I'll have to manufacture a bracket to mount the A/C compressor low on the passenger side of the block. Hopefully, there is a late-model bracket available from an inline 300 CID that will bolt up.

[52elwood]

DanSanDiego,
What are you referring to when you say inter-cooler?':?'
I'm trying to do the same thing install an A/c and would like to remove the fan and install elec. Fan.

Thanks

Also your truck looks real good.':)'
Elwood

[DanSanDiego2000]

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I have a cast aluminum plenum on top of my carburetor. It seals off the top of the carb, and has a single 3" outlet coming out of the side.

From the inlet, I'll run 2-1/2 or 3" air inlet aluminum tubing out to the front of the radiator, through an intercooler, and then down to the front of the core support where it will pick up fresh air through an air filter.

The 'cold air intake' from the front of the truck, and the air-to-air cooler in the front of the radiator should provide me a little boost in horsepower, and a little boost in fuel economy, or both, due to the cooler, denser charge of air the engine/carb will be receiving. Hard to measure, hard to feel, but there will be a difference, there will be an improvement, and it will look and feel good.

I look forward to driving it, and checking fuel economy, just to see how the improvements pan-out at the end. I'll keep you posted.

Dan

[65 CREW]

I have never heard of someone using an intercooler on a naturally aspirated engine. I don't see how the intercooler will cool the air past ambient temperature.

[DanSanDiego2000]

I have never heard of someone using an intercooler on a naturally aspirated engine. I don't see how the intercooler will cool the air past ambient temperature.

The intercooler is still a heat exchanger, whether it is cooler supercharged air, or ambient air. Just like blowing on your food cools it off, the rush of air over the intercooler will reduce the temperature of the air circulating through it.

Like I said before, you may not feel a difference, you may not hear a difference, but it should make an improvement on some levels.

[The Big M]

I think you could achieve the effect you're looking for by eliminating the intercooler. Drawing cool air from outside the engine compartment can be beneficial, but in the configuration you're describing the intercooler will only act as a restriction and will adversely affect your throttle response. It will also reduce the airflow across the rad, which will decrease its efficiency and actually make the engine run hotter.

There's going to be a pressure drop across the intercooler no matter what. In a boosted application the pressure drop is not as much of a concern because it's outweighed by the benefit of a cooler intake charge, and the intercooler only works because the air passing through it is at a higher temperature than ambient. Also one can turn up the boost to compensate for the restriction.

What you're describing is trying to cool ambient air by running it through an air-to-air heat exchanger that has ambient air passing across it. The airflow over the core will be at the same temperature as the intake charge so the effect will be nil, especially considering the efficiency of the heat exchanger.

I like what you've done to make room for an intercooler but it's only beneficial if you're going to boost the truck. I think you'd be better served by building a conventional cold air intake, or perhaps a ram-air setup like a Thunderbolt.

[Brian Taylor]

Your set up is still very cool and I like the way you are thinking. But I have to agree the intercooler will have little effect but it will be ready when you buy a turbo or supercharger.
I will try and use the cowl to draw air for my configuration, nice low pressure zone with a rain gutter.

[fire truck]

I think you could achieve the effect you're looking for by eliminating the intercooler. Drawing cool air from outside the engine compartment can be beneficial, but in the configuration you're describing the intercooler will only act as a restriction and will adversely affect your throttle response. It will also reduce the airflow across the rad, which will decrease its efficiency and actually make the engine run hotter.

There's going to be a pressure drop across the intercooler no matter what. In a boosted application the pressure drop is not as much of a concern because it's outweighed by the benefit of a cooler intake charge, and the intercooler only works because the air passing through it is at a higher temperature than ambient. Also one can turn up the boost to compensate for the restriction.

What you're describing is trying to cool ambient air by running it through an air-to-air heat exchanger that has ambient air passing across it. The airflow over the core will be at the same temperature as the intake charge so the effect will be nil, especially considering the efficiency of the heat exchanger.

I like what you've done to make room for an intercooler but it's only beneficial if you're going to boost the truck. I think you'd be better served by building a conventional cold air intake, or perhaps a ram-air setup like a Thunderbolt.

X2

You'll be better off doing a cold air intake on it. That will pull air from outside the engine compartment which will give you better economy.

Putting a CAI on a NA engine will restrict the flow and just like M said, make your acceleration and efficiency suffer.

[fseries]

I really like your thinking about flipping the brackets and relocating the radiator. Looking forward to seeing the fan installation. I've been contemplating the same thing for mine before I put the 351w in. Your work looks pretty clean.

[Tech]

You need a difference in temperature to exchange any energy. The air flow just speeds up the process of stripping the heat.
Have you thought about an Eaton super charger sitting between the manifold and the carb. If you keep it under four pounds of boost the need for an intercooler is minimal but the HP and torque gains are impressive.
This is close to the idea.
http://www.timskelton.com/valkyrie/tech ... harger.htm
Nice looking engine compartment!!
Tech