Is an aftermarket intercooler really worth it for towing??

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42pilot

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The louvers on the IC in are also for fuel economy, in addition to helping warm up quickly as others have stated.
Ford makes these to run in all temps so I would imagine in sub zero temps the system would want them closed to help keep the engine at operating temps. Much like semis in sub zero have their grills almost completed blocked.
You are correct, but the louvers in relation to engine operating temps only apply to radiators and not the IC. I wish I could have sub zero air intake temps all the time.
 

Battleship1

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Not helpful in the conversation because a'all are operating above my level, but... got here because there's a Raptor take-off IC for a reasonable price near me, and was wondering it be a worthwhile addition. Just starting looking into it, but I'd ASSUME it be an upgrade compared to what's stock on the 2017. Any thoughts appreciated. ...and now I want to figure out if the 2017 has these louvers and if I should disable them if I were tinkering in the area....
 

Ellison Brown III

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First of all, thanks for the dyno chart. That's an impressive result. When I calculate your HP, I come up with approx 650 HP given your 618 ft lbs of torque at 5500 rpm. Nonetheless, a quick and relatively flat torque curve is far more important than HP.

I don't want to get a tune because, quite frankly, I own this vehicle; its my daily driver; it has to last (have you seen the price of new/used vehicles??!!) and I don't want to wear the engine with increased pressures, etc. In addition, I just don't trust aftermarket tunes. If you look at the software, i.e., the tables and inputs to produce a result, it is complicated. I used to use Link G4 ECUs to tune, and we only used 12-14 tables, for example fuel delivery rate, fuel correction by IAT temperature, manifold pressure, timing, boost, acceleration rate, cold start, hot start and so on. There are probably well over 50 tables in our ECUs. You just need one corner to be cut, or be too aggressive on timing on boost, and so on. For me, I'm ok with the power delivery using 87 octane or 91 towing. Personal opinion.

Since our ECUs learn, installing a new aftermarket IC needs no tuning package to get the benefits.

Thanks again for the chart.
No, I completely understand. I thought long, and hard, before I did the tune. Finally gave in. Even took it off once to take it to the dealer. Thought about leaving it off. After driving it for a few days made my mind up to reinstall it. Drive like a turd in my opinion.

I like your HP math… what’s the formula you used? Those final numbers on the dyno printout are at the wheels. It’s those numbers you multiply by 15-20% to get flywheel numbers, correct? I typically am modest and use 15%. Thanks!!!
 

JasonH

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Not helpful in the conversation because a'all are operating above my level, but... got here because there's a Raptor take-off IC for a reasonable price near me, and was wondering it be a worthwhile addition. Just starting looking into it, but I'd ASSUME it be an upgrade compared to what's stock on the 2017. Any thoughts appreciated. ...and now I want to figure out if the 2017 has these louvers and if I should disable them if I were tinkering in the area....
No louvers on 2017.
 
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42pilot

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UPDATE

I just got back from an 8,000 mile round trip, from JAX to Wyoming and back. I pulled a 6300lb travel trailer about 5500 miles of the 8,000, that included a lot of miles at elevations over 6,000ft and some up to 9,000 ft. Over the total trip, average mpg was 10.5. For the most part, I stayed at or below 65 mph and of the 5500 miles pulling the trailer, about half that was back roads. This trip, we took as many back roads as possible west of the Mississippi.

So, how did the stock intercooler perform? With the louvers pinned to the open position, and the motor always requiring some amount of boost (I hesitate to mention how much because it was always different due to terrain, headwind or tailwind, traffic and so on), the differential between ambient temp and manifold inlet temp was just too great (sometimes more than 30 degrees continual), especially compared to not pulling a trailer and continually being in some amount of boost. The OEM intercooler just could not shake the continual heat soak. Since I am selling my travel trailer, it's not worth it to me to invest +$900 for a quality IC when the stock IC works just fine for short bursts of power. If I would have kept my trailer, I would definitely upgrade the IC.

I also learned the 3.5L Ecoboost and the Expedition (with tow package) is an impressive combination for pulling small to mid-size travel trailers. The highest mountain passes and passing slower rigs, I never felt like the car was under-powered or lacking. Well done, Ford.

FYI...
 
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