Need ideas on how to bring coolant temps down on track
#41
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I found those pics. The rear end of the black bumper support is scalloped and has a spot in the middle for a plastic push pin that comes through the bumper cover. It isn't needed to support the bumper cover. It is redundant and blocks airflow. I started by trimming back the three scalloped areas to allow more opening but not opening up to the interior of the bumper support. Later, I trimmed it forward a bit more, exposing the chamber of the bumper support after determining it was indeed a closed chamber and would not leak air that was intended for the radiator into other areas. A larger bumper mouth opening (within reason) is a good thing to me. There is slightly less of a bottleneck there now by many square inches. Pics to follow from mobile app by phone in a minute.
#44
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Those pics are from the ground looking straight up. The exchanger pictured is my oil cooler which lives in the nose and is mounted to the crossbeam behind the bumper support. Air goes up in between the black inner bumper and the crossbeam, so my car is set up to have it go through the oil cooler there.
I have since cut the inner bumper back almost even with the natural line of the trailing edge of the bumper cover in the pictures.
I have since cut the inner bumper back almost even with the natural line of the trailing edge of the bumper cover in the pictures.
#45
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reroute and moving IC back fixed my issues!! 180* around town, about 195* on track when it's 90* ambient. I'm a happy guy! Now I can work on my car wants instead of my car needs!! Thanks for the help
#47
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The IC was mounted where Kraftwerks designed it to be mounted. I had room for the AC condenser and Rotrex oil cooler behind it. I removed the AC condenser (and AC and power steering components) and found I could move the Rotrex oil cooler closer to the radiator, so I did, and this allowed me to cut some of the IC piping off so the IC ended up about 2" further back from the mouth. This allows more air to get around the IC and hit the radiator. I have before pics but it looks like any other Rotrex Miata with Kraftwerks IC. I'm an old man who is not too good at loading up the pics. It's a good day when I can get Harry's Lap Timer to work in my car!! Better day when I can load the video on to my lap top. It's a miracle if I can get it to Youtube! HAHA The reroute was good for at least a 10* degree temp reduction. Moving the IC back got about another 15*!! I was always at 220* or slightly more on track when the ambient was in the 80s. 195* at 90* is awesome. The other thing is with the lower water temps I have lower oil temps too. Win/win
#48
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</p><p>EDIT<s>: It's really funny how I tried to keep as much of the Air Guide (I think what you are calling the Inner Bumper) as intact as possible, and yes, my FMIC is right inside it. I cannot move it back due to the evaporator can, so I will have to cut the top out like you did</s></p><p>EDIT: Went out and looked more closely at the car from above and below. Now I see where Six cut the actual bumper (hence called it the Inner Bumper), which is in front of, and above the Air Guide. Now I understand the pictures. So, I can leave the air guide alone and direct some of the flow above it and the IC (the top section of the Air Guide just faces the top of the IC.</p><p>If tomiboy got 15* CLT improvement, that was great. As I think I mentioned, my AIT's are no issue, so bypassing some IC air would be no problem. We will see how much cutting the inner bumper does, vs his moving the IC back.</p><p>EDIT <s>Six, what year car are those pictures from?</s> NVM, now I know what I'm looking at.</p><p> </p><p> </p>
If you look at the top of the bumper mouth there is some room to trim both the bumper cover and black plastic inner bumper to give another inch or two of inlet area through the mouth most of the way across. I also sealed the huge gaps between the bumper cover and black inner bumper with cut blocks of upholstery foam. There are openings big enough to put your fist through that bleed off air towards the outsides and into the wheelwells.</p><p> </p><p>Upholstery foam is cheap at any fabric store.
Last edited by DNMakinson; 08-05-2015 at 12:06 PM.
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