I own a 97 mustang gt with an o2 engine vortech supercharger internal was build for racing, should i go with intercooler or aftercooler and which on is a better cooling?
Engine Intercooler or Aftercooler
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trinity_gt
10 Year Member
This is just a terminology issue.
In technical terms, "inter" cooling refers to setups where there are multiple compressor stages and the charge air is cooled between these stages (hence the term "inter" cooling). Aftercooling technically refers to cooling the charge air after the last (or only) compressor. Over the years, in automotive use, the terms have sort of morphed and everyone accepts "intercooler" as the charge cooler after the compressor.
Or perhaps you are referring to the different types of charge cooler, those commonly being air-to-air or air-to-water. In the former, the charge air is run through pipes to a heat exchanger in the front of the car and then back to the engine's air inlet. In the latter, the charge air is run through a heat exchanger that has water or other coolant pumped through it. The coolant is then piped to the front of the car where the heat picked up is dumped via a second heat exchanger.
First, I'd recommend getting an intercooler, whether A/A or A/W. Just get one.
Second, it's really a toss up as to which style you use. The A/A setup is pretty simple and proven across millions of turbo and supercharger cars but it requires that the charge air travel a significant distance between the compressor and the engine and will often use a larger heat exchanger which can soften responsiveness and increase the feeling of "lag". The A/W setup requires coolant, a pump and wiring, a second heat exchanger and plumbing but it also keeps the air-charge path pretty short and the intercooler itself is usually quite small.
Done right I think both are capable of removing all the heat you need.
In technical terms, "inter" cooling refers to setups where there are multiple compressor stages and the charge air is cooled between these stages (hence the term "inter" cooling). Aftercooling technically refers to cooling the charge air after the last (or only) compressor. Over the years, in automotive use, the terms have sort of morphed and everyone accepts "intercooler" as the charge cooler after the compressor.
Or perhaps you are referring to the different types of charge cooler, those commonly being air-to-air or air-to-water. In the former, the charge air is run through pipes to a heat exchanger in the front of the car and then back to the engine's air inlet. In the latter, the charge air is run through a heat exchanger that has water or other coolant pumped through it. The coolant is then piped to the front of the car where the heat picked up is dumped via a second heat exchanger.
First, I'd recommend getting an intercooler, whether A/A or A/W. Just get one.
Second, it's really a toss up as to which style you use. The A/A setup is pretty simple and proven across millions of turbo and supercharger cars but it requires that the charge air travel a significant distance between the compressor and the engine and will often use a larger heat exchanger which can soften responsiveness and increase the feeling of "lag". The A/W setup requires coolant, a pump and wiring, a second heat exchanger and plumbing but it also keeps the air-charge path pretty short and the intercooler itself is usually quite small.
Done right I think both are capable of removing all the heat you need.
mustangman9812
10 Year Member
Put very well trinity_gt I couldnt agree more, I do prefer A/W but thats just my opinion.
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