Intercooler Core
 

Without buying a complete kit:

What intercooler core is recommended, when going with a Borg warner EFR7163. The goals are 450bhp to 500bhp. Does anyone know who offers a core that is good and that not impeded the HP goals.

I think we answered this pretty well in your last topic. Get a Garrett or Bell core for maximum cooling. Vibrant and Treadstone are good alternatives.

Get a core rated for the power you plan to make.
/endthread

I've been running a 7163 for years. Fantastic turbo and I adore the noises it makes.

Full race offers some upgrades over the OEM equipment that comes with that turbo. I highly recommend them.

JDL Makes a pretty overpriced IC, but it's rated for 700+ HP. Then again though a core is a core, you can probably get a base core from any manufacturer and get a shop to weld up the chambers.

A core is not a core, there is a huge difference between garbage and high quality. The JDL upgraded Intercooler honestly isn't overpriced for the fit and finish. Good luck getting the guy to make one though, he's super busy with gen2

read this and then go back and read it again https://strikeengine.com/5-intercool...e-calculators/

Forgive me I called it overpriced in the sense that you're paying a lot of a high-graded intercooler that would be overkill for the power that these stock motors would make on boost. I agree a core is not just a core, but for the sake of applications to our cars on lower boost and lower power, the core quality overall really doesn't make much of a difference here in my opinion

Yes, less boost = less compression/heat so the intercooler has less work to do. I think buy nice instead of buy twice. If you upgrade the turbo or run more boost eventually, you're going to end up re-doing your intercoooler setup potentially.

With that said, I've run a CXracing and other eBay intercoolers to test and for real and I've never had issues.