Hello all, I'm looking for a bit advice on intercoolers.

So far the only "under-bonnet" mod I've made to my vRS is the addition of a closed induction kit, but I'm looking at changing a few more bits. I want to get it re-mapped to ~200bhp, but I'm also looking at intercoolers.

So a few questions:

1) Would an intercooler benefit the car?

2) How big a job is it to fit?

3) Any recommendations on which intercooler to get?

Model 1.8t 180PS

Any advice really appreciated

For simplicity the forge is best but much money. The toyo sport ones are sposed to be good.

Lots of bodge jobs too but they are imo a pita.

I have/had a forge ant it takes 30mins to fit. Easy. No mods to the crashbar neither as forge do it.

Few searches will disclose more. For a simple remap tho its not the be all n end all as the std smic is good. Stage 2 is a must tho.

Youll add slight lag but i never noticed much.

Golf mk4 1.8t ths twin pass intercooler

Much cheaper than forge

Made one hell of a difference on my stage 1 vrs

Couldnt get intake temps to peak higher than 36 degrees C in peak summer after 10runs on a rolling road

It will, however if you drive conservatively and use full power in short blasts I havent found any major downsides with the standard one. Maybe drill some half inch holes behind the intercooler in the arch vent.

If you are building some sort of track car or drive with a lead foot at all times, worth considering.

You can get the larger smic's

But im doubtfull whether they are any good

Personally I wouldn't put any holes in the arch liner, It's there to keep mud and other crap off the intercooler and TBH I can't see the difference a few holes might make being worth the risk of it getting blocked with ****e.

Personally I wouldn't put any holes in the arch liner, It's there to keep mud and other crap off the intercooler and TBH I can't see the difference a few holes might make being worth the risk of it getting blocked with ****e.

Its not the holes in the back of the cooler that causes it to get blocked it the wacking great hole in the front bumper that causes that, the holes at the back help the air escape and also helps cool the brakes if you do both sides

Well my arch liner generally has a layer of crap on it which would be on the intercooler if it wasn't there and I've yet to fill the front duct with mud.

I've a charge cooler to fit to mine when I eventually get round to it

Thanks for the replies guys - how much would I be looking at for a Golf Mk4 one, with all the bits and bobs? And is there a lot of bodging involved, or is it a nice fit?

Did someone say charge cooler

My old gooooolf

Thanks for the replies guys - how much would I be looking at for a Golf Mk4 one, with all the bits and bobs? And is there a lot of bodging involved, or is it a nice fit?

Its basically a straight fit bar fixing of intercooler and crash bar alterations

That intercooler Jase posted up is on my car now. Works fantastically well with my stage 1 map. Never drops off boost unlike before. They're not cheap, but if you plan on pushing for more boost they're definitely worthwhile.

Its basically a straight fit bar fixing of intercooler and crash bar alterations

Ooh er... that sounds a bit scary. You sure that wouldn't void an insurance claim if you're in a crash?

Anyone got recommendations on a distributor?

Ooh er... that sounds a bit scary. You sure that wouldn't void an insurance claim if you're in a crash?

Anyone got recommendations on a distributor?

The forge kit uses a modified crash bar that they supply with the kit!

Most intercooler setup's have to mod the crash bar!

Probably does effect insurance but the front end will get mangled most likely in a smash anyhoo

Did someone say charge cooler

My old gooooolf

Thats on a tracktor engine ne way lol

Diesels dont get as hot do they?

Yeah they probably get hotter (run more psi) think mine was chucking out 30psi +

I modified my crashbar then welded some 4mm flat bar into it to strengthen it back up again

So why do the diesel turbos only have oil cooiling? They wont last long pushing that power. The vrs turbos are water and oil cooled.

Myt egt's were in the high 800's!

Pass mate dont know also ran water meth inj too

Water temp never got hot on it and my fab vrs ran over 200bhp for over 60k and is still going

I haven't had to modify the crash bar at all to fit my THS. Depends what you want to buy I guess!

So why do the diesel turbos only have oil cooiling? They wont last long pushing that power. The vrs turbos are water and oil cooled.

You're correct Billy, turbocharged petrol engines generally run far hotter exhaust temperatures than diesels.

I haven't had to modify the crash bar at all to fit my THS. Depends what you want to buy I guess!

I did as my coolers massive, prob actually a little to big for standard turbo but also did it as i have wide mouth front bumper aswell so opened crash bar up to help with air flow

Still love my Forge and prices gone down a lot these days...

I would of fitted an alternative but went with easiest fitting, like Billy did I modified my crash bar (my choice, before folks start) to get max air in..

Got the forge one on mine and it's a great bit of kit,may be pricey compared to the others but a quality product,modified the crash bar on mine too for more airflow and I also stencilled on a vrs logo which isn't to everyones taste but it's different

But then it got neglected and a bit tarnished so i painted it black and re did logo