TurboDennis
SILVER Star
- Thread starter
- #181
Time for a big update. After taking over a year planning this (I really wanted it to be absolutely perfect), and a couple of months actually building the thing, the world’s best Land Cruiser intercooler is finally done.
Here’s the criteria that I laid out for myself:
1) First and foremost, the intercooler had to be very good at doing its’ job. I’ve done a lot of research and engineering calculations to come up with the best possible core for my particular application. Both in terms of quality and size.
2) The whole system had to be 100% “bolt on”. Meaning absolutely no permanent modifications to the truck of any kind.
3) I wanted to retain the stock look of the engine bay by keeping the stock “Turbo” intake pipe, and routing all the piping out of sight. This one is more of a personal preference - not a fan of huge shiny pipes all over the engine bay on a truck like this.
4) None of the components (pipes or intercooler itself) could impede access to any common maintenance items. If pipes/core did need to be removed (for advanced maintenance/repairs), it had to be very easy to do.
5) The system had to be as light as possible.
These are pretty difficult conditions to meet. There are no off-the shelf intercooler systems available for these trucks that satisfy ANY ONE of these 5 conditions. Let alone all 5 of them. So right away I knew that going full custom is the only option and that’s why it took so long to plan out and build.
Here’s how I was able to solve these problems:
1)Garrett core was selected for the build. These are, according to most racers “light years” ahead of typical Chinese cores that most (All?) off the shelf intercoolers for these trucks use (in terms of performance/efficiency). Here’s a good detailed write up, comparison and actual testing of Garrett vs Chinese core Garrett Vs Vibrant Intercooler Core - https://www.fusionsportforums.com/threads/garrett-vs-vibrant-intercooler-core.13465/ (scroll to post #17 for testing)
The intercooler also has foam insulation between the core and the AC condenser, which further increases efficiency. (something that is missing from other IC's for these trucks)
2/3) The main idea here was to route the pipes through the fender well, and into the engine bay where the RHD steering box would be on a RHD truck. The pipes enter the engine bay under the airbox, and continue on to the turbo/intake. Keeping the stock intake pipe is tricky, as the turbo compressor outlet is normally connected straight to it (pointing up), leaving zero room for piping. So I had to clock the compressor housing about 60 degrees to point sideways to make room for intercooler pipe connections. Even then, it’s extremely tight in that area and I had to do a lot of complex curves on the pipes to make it work.
The intercooler itself bolts up to existing holes on the rad support, and has brackets on it to attach everything that is normally attached to the hood support piece that it has to replace. This includes hood lock mechanism, grill clip, lower valance.
4) There had to be A LOT of extra bends in the pipes to make sure they wrap tightly around all the obstructions along the way and don’t interfere with anything (such as opening the “tuna can”, alternator removal/adjustment, etc) . To remove the pipes, you just need to remove the airbox lid with the turbo inlet hose.
5) There are a few parts to this:
- Core and pipes were sized to provide maximum efficiency for the exact boost that I intend to run with about 20% to spare. This is significantly smaller than most LC intercoolers, because those are usually sized for high output turbos. Using a larger than optimal intercooler is bad for a number of reasons.
- All pipes are made from seamless, grade 9 titanium tubing. It’s roughly half the weight of stainless, but also stronger/tougher. This is important, because the pipes are very exposed to road debris in the wheel well.
- There are only 3 pieces of pipe in total. This reduces the weight significantly by minimizing the number of clamps/couplers used. The cold pipe (from IC outlet to stock intake pipe) is one piece. The “hot” pipe is two pieces. I could’ve actually made it 1 piece, but I wanted to have a coupler at each end to allow for some flex (to accommodate engine vibrations). The 1HD-FTE turbo has a bolted flange on the outlet instead of a hose connection, so I decided to split the pipe into 2 pieces to allow for a coupler there. So there is a total of 4 short couplers, and 8 coupler clamps.
Here’s the criteria that I laid out for myself:
1) First and foremost, the intercooler had to be very good at doing its’ job. I’ve done a lot of research and engineering calculations to come up with the best possible core for my particular application. Both in terms of quality and size.
2) The whole system had to be 100% “bolt on”. Meaning absolutely no permanent modifications to the truck of any kind.
3) I wanted to retain the stock look of the engine bay by keeping the stock “Turbo” intake pipe, and routing all the piping out of sight. This one is more of a personal preference - not a fan of huge shiny pipes all over the engine bay on a truck like this.
4) None of the components (pipes or intercooler itself) could impede access to any common maintenance items. If pipes/core did need to be removed (for advanced maintenance/repairs), it had to be very easy to do.
5) The system had to be as light as possible.
These are pretty difficult conditions to meet. There are no off-the shelf intercooler systems available for these trucks that satisfy ANY ONE of these 5 conditions. Let alone all 5 of them. So right away I knew that going full custom is the only option and that’s why it took so long to plan out and build.
Here’s how I was able to solve these problems:
1)Garrett core was selected for the build. These are, according to most racers “light years” ahead of typical Chinese cores that most (All?) off the shelf intercoolers for these trucks use (in terms of performance/efficiency). Here’s a good detailed write up, comparison and actual testing of Garrett vs Chinese core Garrett Vs Vibrant Intercooler Core - https://www.fusionsportforums.com/threads/garrett-vs-vibrant-intercooler-core.13465/ (scroll to post #17 for testing)
The intercooler also has foam insulation between the core and the AC condenser, which further increases efficiency. (something that is missing from other IC's for these trucks)
2/3) The main idea here was to route the pipes through the fender well, and into the engine bay where the RHD steering box would be on a RHD truck. The pipes enter the engine bay under the airbox, and continue on to the turbo/intake. Keeping the stock intake pipe is tricky, as the turbo compressor outlet is normally connected straight to it (pointing up), leaving zero room for piping. So I had to clock the compressor housing about 60 degrees to point sideways to make room for intercooler pipe connections. Even then, it’s extremely tight in that area and I had to do a lot of complex curves on the pipes to make it work.
The intercooler itself bolts up to existing holes on the rad support, and has brackets on it to attach everything that is normally attached to the hood support piece that it has to replace. This includes hood lock mechanism, grill clip, lower valance.
4) There had to be A LOT of extra bends in the pipes to make sure they wrap tightly around all the obstructions along the way and don’t interfere with anything (such as opening the “tuna can”, alternator removal/adjustment, etc) . To remove the pipes, you just need to remove the airbox lid with the turbo inlet hose.
5) There are a few parts to this:
- Core and pipes were sized to provide maximum efficiency for the exact boost that I intend to run with about 20% to spare. This is significantly smaller than most LC intercoolers, because those are usually sized for high output turbos. Using a larger than optimal intercooler is bad for a number of reasons.
- All pipes are made from seamless, grade 9 titanium tubing. It’s roughly half the weight of stainless, but also stronger/tougher. This is important, because the pipes are very exposed to road debris in the wheel well.
- There are only 3 pieces of pipe in total. This reduces the weight significantly by minimizing the number of clamps/couplers used. The cold pipe (from IC outlet to stock intake pipe) is one piece. The “hot” pipe is two pieces. I could’ve actually made it 1 piece, but I wanted to have a coupler at each end to allow for some flex (to accommodate engine vibrations). The 1HD-FTE turbo has a bolted flange on the outlet instead of a hose connection, so I decided to split the pipe into 2 pieces to allow for a coupler there. So there is a total of 4 short couplers, and 8 coupler clamps.
