fasttech TOOLED UP INTERCOOLERS fasttech The first rule of working on cars and using tools of any kind is don’t ever skimp on decent protection. Goggles, gloves, ear defenders, masks and a set of overalls should be in your garage. Use them. When using power tools, protective gear is essential — grinders and welders can make a real mess of your soft skin and bone if you get it wrong. Never work under a car without supporting it using axle stands first. A car falling on you is not something you’ll be laughing about down the pub. When cars catch fire, they burn fast. If you haven’t got an extinguisher, think seriously about getting one. If you’re not confident in your own ability to complete a tasksafely, don’t even start it. Leave it to the experts. The advice and guidelines given in the Fast Ford tech section are given in good faith and Fast Ford or Future Publishing can take no responsibility for injuries sustained while carrying out the described tasks and procedures, or any consequences arising. 0104 0105 This is the set-up we have at the mo’ — half-width intercool- er and standard fan. It works well, but could be better. ESSENTIALSTOOLS YOU’LL NEED!COSTS Pro Alloy Motorsport front-mount intercooler kit £395.00 WHERE FROM? Pro Alloy Motorsport 0845 226 7561 www.proalloy.co.uk FITTED AND TESTED AT PowerEngineering 01895 255699 www.powerengineering.co.uk HOW LONG TO DO? Set aside two-three hours HOW HARD TO FIT? It’s not all that technical, but it can be a little bit fiddly with some of the nuts IN THE TOOLKIT Phillips screwdriver, 10 mm socket/spanner, 13 mm socket/ spanner, crimping tool and spade connectors BEFORE STARTING… COOL IT invaluable for squeezing out every last pony. We went to see Chris Todd at Power Engineering to test our RS Turbo both before and after fitting one of Pro Alloy Motorsport’s new, full-width intercoolers. It’s been specifically designed to fit behind the S2’s front bumper without any mods — there’s no need to cut the bumper or remove part of the bonnet latch. Which is nice. The ‘cooler’s sold as a complete kit, too, which means you get all the brackets and fixings, a deflector plate to redirect the air through the intercooler , and a pair of electric fans. These replace the standard, single fan and fit between the intercooler and radiator, which means a clean frontal appearance for your S2. After fitting the front-mount to our own RS Turbo, the ACTs dropped considerably (see box out). Even better, we got an extra 9 bhp and 12 lbf.ft without touching anything else — and still only running 1 bar of boost. Just follow our simple steps and we’ll show how easy it is to get more power. HAVE you ever gone for a blast on a hot sunny day and found your RS Turbo to be sluggish, yet in cold weather it goes like stink? This is because the air being drawn into the intake is hotter, while in winter , the cooler air is denser so the mixture will burn better and give more power. One of the best power mods you can do to a turbocharged car is fit a dirty great intercooler to the front of it — the larger surface area means more cooling of the charged air, which can prove Want more power? Course you do. Here’s how to fit a front-mount intercooler to your s2 — giving lower air temps and more power for not a lot of effort. Words: Dan Photos: Jon Hill To measure the effectiveness of the new intercooler, first we did a power run on Power Engineering’s rollers with the original set-up — 181 bhp and 189 lbf.ft. This is what you get in the kit — all the brackets, fixings, twin fans, and ofcourse, the intercooler. JANUARY 2006FAST FORD FAST FORDJANUARY 2006
