Should I spray it?

[Motorhead350]

Now this isn't exactly as it seems. I was hanging out with some gearhead buddys last night and they told me about spraying the intercooler with water, nitrous or washer fluid. I have heard of water before, but I have no idea if this simply cools the car down or what. I think the intention was just to keep the cars engine cool so wouldn't nitrous be a no-no? Water would seem just fine and I think off road racing trucks do this often. Is it worth it, does it gain any hp, is this just for those hot summer days for cool down, do I spray while racing?

What is this all about? :confused:

[sabtaj1]

colder intercooler= colder air entering the engine. Makes more power

[94_302]

Why would spraying the inter cooler with nitrous be a no no? There are a lot of people who do this, here is an article about it. Yes it's for a honda but you get the idea: http://www.hondatuningmagazine.com/tech/0508ht_intercooler_spraying_te st/index.html

[Motorhead350]

The reason I'm thinking Nitrous is a no no is because I already have the blower so wouldn't Nirtous w/o any other mods be asking for trouble? My intention is to just keep the engine cool and not really gain any power.

[HwyCruiser]

Spraying nitrous on an intercooler would get expensive quick and there's always the hassle of filling the bottle back up. IMO, if you're going to do nitrous, spray it into the intake where it's going to be most efficient in dropping inlet temps and you are the most frugal in its use. Another option is spraying the intercooler with CO2, but again kinda expensive and a hassle - and you definitely don't want any of it into your intake.

Here's an interesting option that uses water to spray down the intercooler: http://www.autospeed.com/cms/A_0527/article.html?popularArticle

You'd probably get tossed out if they find you using it down the track at the drag strip but I see it as almost ideal for street use. The article is a really good read to explain how intercoolers work in the first place.

[Joe Walsh]

Spraying nitrous on an intercooler would get expensive quick and there's always the hassle of filling the bottle back up. IMO, if you're going to do nitrous, spray it into the intake where it's going to be most efficient in dropping inlet temps and you are the most frugal in its use. Another option is spraying the intercooler with CO2, but again kinda expensive and a hassle - and you definitely don't want any of it into your intake.

Here's an interesting option that uses water to spray down the intercooler: http://www.autospeed.com/cms/A_0527/article.html?popularArticle

You'd probably get tossed out if they find you using it down the track at the drag strip but I see it as almost ideal for street use. The article is a really good read to explain how intercoolers work in the first place.

Yes! Any water on the track is a BIG NO NO!
They will toss you off the track, or worse...the guy behind you who breaks an axle or spins out will punch your lights out!

Spraying the intercooler with Nitrous or CO2 is dangerous if any gets taken in to your intake....engine sputters, dies or just goes BOOM!

[94_302]

The reason I'm thinking Nitrous is a no no is because I already have the blower so wouldn't Nirtous w/o any other mods be asking for trouble? My intention is to just keep the engine cool and not really gain any power.

You can run spray and FI you just want to make sure that you have everything balanced. So don't run a larger pulley and then spray a large shot (on our motors) But in terms of cooling the intercooler yes it would be expensive but I believe it would probably cool things down better than water. But if your going to throw a bottle on you might as well run it through the motor just run a small shot and have a good tune. I would also say avoid zex with their purple box that seems to fail quite a bit causing people to pop the motor.

[HwyCruiser]

Between the two (non-water) options at the drag strip, I'd probably go with a CO2 spraybar and subcool the intercooler just prior to staging, leave it off for the actual run, and then use it to cool the system back down again on the return lane. A heat soaked intercooler takes a long time to cool down when you're not moving much air across it and cooler IATs means more timing mean lower ETs.

...but off the track I'd say water all the way.

[sabtaj1]

Nitrous express makes a intercooler nitrous kit. You dont use it all the way down the track. Its basically a big oval with many holes facing one direction. And works like a purge. You only spray the intercooler at the line and basically freezes the intercooler. So you really dont use that much. Many tuner guys use this set up.

[MACFORD88]

Spray It Spray It

[Joe Walsh]

I just saw an article in MM&FF November 2007 issue.
They tested one of those NOS oval intercooler spray bar systems and it chilled the intercooler a massive 4 degrees and resulted in NO better power.

Page 136 "Chemical Dependency" article.

They said: "You carry around an extra 25 pounds in weight and waste a lot of nitrous for nothing."

Save your money for a good Methanol injection system.

[snowbird]

I just saw an article in MM&FF November 2007 issue.
They tested one of those NOS oval intercooler spray bar systems and it chilled the intercooler a massive 4 degrees and resulted in NO better power.

Page 136 "Chemical Dependency" article.

They said: "You carry around an extra 25 pounds in weight and waste a lot of nitrous for nothing."

Save your money for a good Methanol injection system.

^^^^Listen to my evil Carbon fiber brother !!!^^^^

[Breadfan]

....

Save your money for a good Methanol injection system.

That's about what I was thinking too :)