Everyone who drives a turbo car has certainly heard of this very important part called “intercooler”. In today’s material we will talk about this, about the intercooler.
We will try to explain what the intercooler is, how it works, how it helps the car and what are the symptoms of a faulty one.
The intercooler is an air cooling radiator that then enters the engine. Specifically, the air is taken by the intercooler, it cools it, then enters the engine. Cold air is much denser so it contains even more oxygen, which greatly helps the engine to run, consumption will be lower and power higher.
Thanks to this special air cooling radiator, the engine develops higher power but at the same time is more stable in terms of temperatures. The higher the inlet pressure, the higher the working temperature of the engine and the lower the density of the air, leads to the “suffocation” of the engine.
This type of air cooling radiator is mounted only on supercharged cars (turbo, supercharged). The air is compressed by the turbines / compressor and because the turbine heats up the air (usually over 100 degrees), it will expand so much that the supercharging effect is simply canceled.
The compressors do not heat up so much, but they also use these radiators to maximize engine performance and reduce the afterburner temperature inside the combustion chamber, which helps greatly reduce the stress on the internal parts of the engine. This intercooler is positioned between the turbocharger and the intake manifold, in practice the air is sucked into the turbine after which it is “pushed” through the tubing in the intercooler where it is cooled and then in the intake manifold and in the engine.
There are several types of intercoolers, but the best known and most used today is the so-called air-air. That is, as the name implies, air is used to cool the air. The outside air at high speed passes through the slots of the intercooler and cools the air inside.
There is another type of intercooler, the water-air cooled one. Here the air inside the intercooler is no longer cooled with outside air but with coolant. The liquid cools the intercooler and also cools the air circulating inside.
This type of intercooler has many advantages over a classic one, first of all it can be mounted anywhere in the engine compartment because it does not depend on the air flow in front of the car and takes up much less space.
This type of intercooler is used more in racing cars because it can be cooled with ice, ie an extremely strong cooling but for a short period of time, mainly used in drag racing . The disadvantage of this type of intercooler is that it requires a separate cooling system, with another water radiator and a pump to recirculate the liquid.
What can go wrong with an intercooler and what are the symptoms?
Generally this intercooler is mounted on the front of the car (in the middle or on the side) so it is prone to bending or cracks due to the stones on the asphalt. There are also cars, for example those from Subaru that mount the actual intercooler on the engine (above it) and cool it through a slot in the hood.
This position has the advantage that you keep the intercooler very protected, however the cooling is not so good. It is also mounted in the engine compartment, where there is not much space, and for diesel cars especially thanks to the very high temperature and vibration, the plastic parts will come off the central aluminum core. Over time, thanks to high temperatures, vibrations and pressure, the adhesive that fixes the metal center to the plastic parts gives way and “pressure losses” occur.
What would be the symptoms or how do we know when our intercooler has a crack?
First of all, when accelerating, you will hear a very pronounced “whistling “ from the front of the engine. The car will start underperforming (depending on how big the pressure leak is) and will emit excessive black smoke.
The simplest and safest you can figure out if you have problems with the intercooler with the help of a diagnosis procedure that measures the pressure in the intake manifold, then you can figure out if you have “pressure losses”.
Let’s talk a little about the maintenance of this air radiator. Yes! This radiator should also be overhauled . It is mounted after the turbines but before the intake manifold. But if the turbine is not working properly , it will “easily” leak oil into the intake. This oil can still accumulate in some cases due to EGR.
But mainly this oil will collect at the bottom of the intercooler, it will have to be removed from time to time to prevent its reintroduction into the intake with the air passing through the intercooler because the oil in the combustion chamber does not behave too well, reaching self-ignition, which can damage the engine and its attachments.
Each turbine has a margin of normal oil losses, which should not worry you, if you find in the intercooler 50-100 ml of oil (practically if it is slightly stained with oil) you do not have to worry is absolutely normal. Both the CVV (crankcase gas recirculation) and the turbine bearings are not perfect, they have a small tolerance, so inevitably a little oil will leak there.
So if you own a turbo car, be it on gasoline or diesel, you have extremely high chances of having such an intercooler.
So the next time you pay a visit to the service, don’t forget to tell the mechanic to take a look at the intercooler to see what condition it is in and if it has oil inside it. This advice is to prevent any discomfort that may occur in the future, perhaps at an inopportune time.
Photo source: automotivebros.com, aet-turbos.co.uk, ro.pinterest.com, enginebasics.com