I have one. When it works, it really makes a surprising difference. Low-end torque increases, etc.
Something went wrong with my A/C and it hasn't worked for almost a year. However, a friend charged the A/C system in June, but as he was charging in, an A/C line split. Even so, it still cooled off the intracooler. On the way home, I got on in while in 3rd gear. At ~10 psi, the wheels broke loose and the car started going a little sideways.
It is fully enclosed, but you're still going to get a cooling effect even w/o the A/C running, until the water becomes heat-soaked. Since the water circulates through an external heater core, the water should cool down on it's own even w/o the A/C.
The most aggravating things about it are:
(1) their system doesn't account for thermal expansion of water. So as the temp rises, the seals let water escape, and then when it cools down again, it creates an air bubble that prevents the electric water pump from circulating the water. The Great Dudeski fixed this same problem on a Syclone using an aluminum water reservoir, so I just need to do the same.
(2) when it comes time to working on the engine, you really can't remove the intracooler, but you can lay it to one side (like you would the A/C compressor).
(3) Living in Las Vegas' scorching heat, and having a car with an under-powered A/C-Heater Fan, it's really even tougher to get the car cooled off.
I have been kicking around the idea of taking it to a refrigeration shop, and seeing if they could install a refrigerator motor, etc. and R-22 to make the intracooler isolated. I realize the motor/compressor would be a huge power draw, but I think they make inverters large enough to handle this load. Anyone have any thoughts?
