You'd have to cool the intake charge a lot more than any intercooler is capable of, to get any moisture to condense before it entered the engine.

Underhood intake temps are typically 5-10 degree's warmer than ambient temp, when a vehicle is moving. You'd have to have the OEM intake sitting right behind the radiator to get an substantial increase in intake temp. I don't know of any manufacturers that place their intake directly behind the radiator. Cold air intakes are usually just a marketing ploy. No Real difference in intake temps when the vehicle is moving. Unless the OEM setup was very poorly designed.

 

The air doesn't have to be cooled all that much to get moisture to settle out. Look at air compressor tanks, they always end up eventually filling with water from moisture in the air.

 

[QUOTE=meborder;11910586]Hot air throughs through the intercooler (technically an aftercooler as described above) the same way how coolant flows through a radiator.

cool air passes over the intercooler and removes some heat from the compressed air flowing through it.


This is why I started this thread; to get a more accurate
picture on how this worked.

So the hot air out of the turbo flows INSIDE the intercooler, and it's the OUTSIDE of the intercooler that is in the flow path of the cool air ducted from the license plate area. I had it backwards. I guess in theory it could work either way.

Thanks Meborder

 

[quote=Truckpilot1329;11913266]Correct!!

 

The BIG difference is that an air compressor compresses air to over 100psi.(super heating it) Then deposits it in a large stationary tank at ambient temp. None of which happens in automotive apps.

There just are not any IC's used for auto apps that can cool air that far/fast.

 

I'm through with this thread. I'm amazed by the nonsense and lack of comprehension I'm reading here.

 

Compressor discharge on turbo vehicles often exceeds 250*F, some can even touch 300-400*F. A good aftercooler can drop the air temperature by as much as 100*F or more. With that much of a temperature delta, water can and will drop out of the air.

And check this out: Remove your intercooler condensation pipe - Cobalt SS Network
GM put condensation traps on their coolers; the reason why?


Sound familiar?

 

I wonder why Ford engineers deemed any condesation trap unnecessary? Because in 99.9% of driving, it is unnecessary.

Turbo outlet temps that excede 300 degrees are usually highly modified cars/trucks running insane boost. Not applicable on the OEM Ecoboost engine.

 

Why did GM not originally have a condensate trap on their intercoolers, then later add one? The engineers don't always think of or test every possible scenario.

I'd hardly call driving through high humidity or fog/rain while in cruise control .1% of driving. High humidity is what you can expect all along the North East during the summer months, and its not uncommon to for people here to cruise at moderate speeds for hours at a time going up and down I-95.

Also, completely stock engines can easily have turbo outlet temperatures approaching 250*F.

 

This is proving to not be true.

There have been several reports on this forum alone of people cruising for hours with no problems, and then having misfires and engine stumbles alone with MIL codes upon hard acceleration.

Specific temps don't matter, specific relative humiditity numbers don't matter.

the fact is that warm air holds more moisture than cool air, and intercoolers cool the air, thus causing moisture to drop out of the air and pool in the system (presumably the bottom of the intercooler core).

what appears to be happening is that the moisture is sitting in the bottom of the core with no harm, until a surge of air comes through and picks the water up into the intake causing an engine stumble.

This could happen rather quickly in a rainstorm where the humidity is 100% going into the turbos, and the water from the road splashing on the intercooler making it that much more efficient in removing the heat.

there was a guy who reported this exact symptom here a week or so ago, and it happend here in south dakota.

this is a problem i think ford will have to mitigate here at some point, as it is appearing more and more frequently.

 

in the ecoboost with it's air-to-air intercooler, this is correct.

I have to admit, however, that it looks like the air-to-water intercooler used on the cobras is exactly reversed. Where the hot air coming out of the supercharger flows over the intercooler, and coolant flows inside the cooler to remove the heat from the air charge. this was news to me.... so we all learn something

 

You'll be back.

 

If anyone is interested in learning about intercoolers, the latest issue of Hot Rod (August 2012) has an article.