Bar and plate intercooler vs. factory tube and fin

[Steve]

I am curious to what the flow difference between a modern bar and plate intercooler vs. the factory tube and fin intercooler. Let saw you have a factory 10 row intercooler intercooler that is 3" thick then you compare it to a modern bar and plate intercooler with 10 rows and also 3" thick would there be a difference and if so how much? Thanks

 

[toofastforyou]

"Steve" is asking about the flow characteristics, but I would also like to know if someone please could explain the difference between "tube & fin" and "bar & plate" designs?...Pictures would also be nice!...
thanks,

Claude

 

[Mike Licht]

I depends on how big the rows are. If the rows are 1/4" or the rows are 1" it is going to make a big difference. That is whay you cannot compare intercoolers by rows unless they use the same core.
Mike

 

[Steve]

Thanks for the replies. The Bar and plate intercooler in question has 1/4" tubes. I have a bar and plate intercooler with 15 1/4" rows and is 3" thick. I am planning to run 2.5" pipes. If my calculations are correct then the area of a 2.5" pipe is ~4.91. That is high because the pipe is 2.5" O.D. rather than I.D. The intercooler has 15 rows at .25 X 3 which comes to an area of 11.25 but of course the fins take up some of the area inside the tubes so the number would lower than that. Even if the fins in the tubes restricted the flow by 50% that would put the area of of the tubes at 5.625 which would still flow more than the 2.5" open pipe. Does that seem like a logical conclusion?

 

[Mike Licht]

The surface area on the inside of the tube where the air flows also creates drag and resistance to flow. the lenght of the tube also makes a difference, a 12" path length will flow more that a 24" path length with the same size and number of tubes. Besides flow there is pressure drop and cooling ability. Hard to say what would happen in your case with out knowing what sort of care you have and what you are trying to do
Mike

 

[Alky V6]

Check out this site.

ARE Cooling (Aluminium Radiators & Engineering P/L)

 

[Steve]

The bar and plate intercooler has 24" of core length. The manufacturer rates it at <600cfm and claims it can support 700max hp. My car is a mid 10 sec car and the 700 max hp rating would be good if the rating is accurate. Does the 50% resctiction thru a 24" core seem resonable or high? Thanks

 

[Mike Licht]

what brand of core is it?
Mike

 

[Steve]

The intercooler is sold by CXracing.com but I am sure the core is made overseas.