[g80_nick]

Hey guys so i was curious, i'm running BM3 tunes and my IAT is 134-161 degrees. Is that extremely high? Would you guys recommend getting an aftermarket intercooler? If so, which one do you recommend? Everything on my engine is stock besides my fabspeed cat bypass downpipe and my full non resonated exhaust.

Thank you so much!

[AmuroRay]

Yes you need an intercooler.

My recommendations

Stage 1/2 (no lag reported):
VRSF Competition
ER
CSF as a 3rd. (It has lower fin density, and it’s slight smaller in depth than the VRSF)


Competition/HPDE use (slight lag reported):
Wagner Evo 3
VRSF Race

I do not recommend anything smaller than the VRSF 5” (and for the $40 extra the Competition unit is just better) I do not recommend anything Wagner Evo 1 or 2 - they are more expensive and perform worse than every unit mentioned here. I do no recommend MAD, AA OR CTS (non race core) because they are smaller, have less fin density and wouldn’t not keep up with the demands of Stage 2 tunes.

Hope that helps.

[g80_nick]

Originally Posted by AmuroRay

Yes you need an intercooler.

My recommendations

Stage 1/2 (no lag reported):
VRSF Competition
ER
CSF as a 3rd. (It has lower fin density, and it’s slight smaller in depth than the VRSF)


Competition/HPDE use (slight lag reported):
Wagner Evo 3
VRSF Race

I do not recommend anything smaller than the VRSF 5” (and for the $40 extra the Competition unit is just better) I do not recommend anything Wagner Evo 1 or 2 - they are more expensive and perform worse than every unit mentioned here. I do no recommend MAD, AA OR CTS (non race core) because they are smaller, have less fin density and wouldn’t not keep up with the demands of Stage 2 tunes.

Hope that helps.

Thank you so much for your help!! Sorry i'm kinda new to this stuff 😂So i'm thinking of getting the VRSF competition since i feel like from your reply it seems like the best one! I don't track my car just is my daily. Do you think the VRSF competition is good for just street driving and with no engine modifications except for my catless downpipe and full non-resonated exhaust?

[AmuroRay]

Originally Posted by white_f22

Thank you so much for your help!! Sorry i'm kinda new to this stuff 😂So i'm thinking of getting the VRSF competition since i feel like from your reply it seems like the best one! I don't track my car just is my daily. Do you think the VRSF competition is good for just street driving and with no engine modifications except for my catless downpipe and full non-resonated exhaust?

If you plan on tuning it - absolutely. You live in AZ, and the ambient temps are high, the extra headroom would really help you out.

[g80_nick]

Originally Posted by AmuroRay

If you plan on tuning it - absolutely. You live in AZ, and the ambient temps are high, the extra headroom would really help you out.

okay! yeah i'm getting some custom tunes made and it's pretty much 115 everyday so LOL

[g80_nick]

Originally Posted by AmuroRay

Yes you need an intercooler.

My recommendations

Stage 1/2 (no lag reported):
VRSF Competition
ER
CSF as a 3rd. (It has lower fin density, and it’s slight smaller in depth than the VRSF)


Competition/HPDE use (slight lag reported):
Wagner Evo 3
VRSF Race

I do not recommend anything smaller than the VRSF 5” (and for the $40 extra the Competition unit is just better) I do not recommend anything Wagner Evo 1 or 2 - they are more expensive and perform worse than every unit mentioned here. I do no recommend MAD, AA OR CTS (non race core) because they are smaller, have less fin density and wouldn’t not keep up with the demands of Stage 2 tunes.

Hope that helps.

quick question so the VRSF competition intercooler is still on pre order. Do you think it matter as much if i just get the 5" step performance or should i wait for the competition?

[AmuroRay]

Originally Posted by white_f22

quick question so the VRSF competition intercooler is still on pre order. Do you think it matter as much if i just get the 5" step performance or should i wait for the competition?

Check VRSF directly and message Mike@N54Tuning.com to see what he has. I would wait though, because the extra headroom will really help you in your region

[g80_nick]

Originally Posted by AmuroRay

Check VRSF directly and message Mike@N54Tuning.com to see what he has. I would wait though, because the extra headroom will really help you in your region

okay

[Dynamic_m235]

Honestly I am super happy with the way my CSF performs. I highly recommend!

[mike@x-ph.com]

Originally Posted by white_f22

Hey guys so i was curious, i'm running BM3 tunes and my IAT is 134-161 degrees. Is that extremely high? Would you guys recommend getting an aftermarket intercooler? If so, which one do you recommend? Everything on my engine is stock besides my fabspeed cat bypass downpipe and my full non resonated exhaust.

Thank you so much!

If you are going to keep the car stock, get a 5". Anything over that is either an overkill or causes more harm than good (MAD 5", Active, BMS are all good options)

If you are going with a stage 2 tune in the future, get a 6" or larger intercooler . look for CSF, ER, Wagner EVO II, MAD 7"

Originally Posted by Dynamic_m235

Honestly I am super happy with the way my CSF performs. I highly recommend!

+1 one of the best performing intercoolers

[g80_nick]

Originally Posted by mike@x-ph.com

If you are going to keep the car stock, get a 5". Anything over that is either an overkill or causes more harm than good (MAD 5", Active, BMS are all good options)

If you are going with a stage 2 tune in the future, get a 6" or larger intercooler . looks for CSF, ER, Wagner EVO II, MAD 7"

+1 one of the best performing intercoolers

i kinda already order the 6.5" competition VRSF one😅but i'm running stage 2 OTS BM3 and i'm also running my custom tunes. Is that ok? lol

[Devils41]

Originally Posted by white_f22

Hey guys so i was curious, i'm running BM3 tunes and my IAT is 134-161 degrees. Is that extremely high? Would you guys recommend getting an aftermarket intercooler? If so, which one do you recommend? Everything on my engine is stock besides my fabspeed cat bypass downpipe and my full non resonated exhaust.

Thank you so much!

As another Arizonan on a stock IC I feel your "temps". I am on a Stg 1 BM3 tune and did a log at around 11pm at night ambient temp was around 90 and my IAT after one pull was 160f. So I'll be looking at an intercooler soon as well, good info on this thread.

[mike@x-ph.com]

Originally Posted by white_f22

i kinda already order the 6.5" competition VRSF one😅but i'm running stage 2 OTS BM3 and i'm also running my custom tunes. Is that ok? lol

yes thats fine

[AmuroRay]

Originally Posted by white_f22

i kinda already order the 6.5" competition VRSF one😅but i'm running stage 2 OTS BM3 and i'm also running my custom tunes. Is that ok? lol

The VRSF Competition is superior to the CSF in every regard.

[mike@x-ph.com]

Originally Posted by AmuroRay

The VRSF Competition is superior to the CSF in every regard.

1- it's heavier, that's the first thing where it's not superior to CSF

Please share any data you have with tests done on the same car comparing ignition timing, IAT, pressure airdrop, and recovery.

Not saying one is better than the other or that VRSF is bad, but your blanket statements about intercoolers are just wrong.

You can easily share your opinion about which intercooler you recommend, no one has a problem with that.
But you go the extra step, make wild claims, and get called out for it (by many people at this point).

I don't gain anything from this either way but I'm giving you a piece of honest advice because you sound like a good guy that is interested in intercoolers and spending time on the forums.
All your hard work is being overshadowed by how you are carrying yourself which is a shame because you are putting a lot of work

Again nothing to gain by telling you this , on the contrary, i see I'm losing your support as now you recommend other vendors LOL

[AmuroRay]

Originally Posted by mike@x-ph.com

1- it's heavier, that's the first thing where it's not superior to CSF

Please share any data you have with tests done on the same car comparing ignition timing, IAT, pressure airdrop, and recovery.

Not saying one is better than the other or that VRSF is bad, but your blanket statements about intercoolers are just wrong.

You can easily share your opinion about which intercooler you recommend, no one has a problem with that.
But you go the extra step, make wild claims, and get called out for it (by many people at this point).

I don't gain anything from this either way but I'm giving you a piece of honest advice because you sound like a good guy that is interested in intercoolers and spending time on the forums.
All your hard work is being overshadowed by how you are carrying yourself which is a shame because you are putting a lot of work

Again nothing to gain by telling you this , on the contrary, i see I'm losing your support as now you recommend other vendors LOL

To the bold portion - that's just not true. I've recommended you as recent as 30 days ago?

https://f30.bimmerpost.com/forums/sh...54&postcount=3

I'm also not a VRSF employee, fanboy, and I don't get a kickback in any way from them or any other vendor or product. You don't carry VRSF products so I can't direct someone to buy a product you don't carry.

I'm also in a different position than you are. You've admitted you can't speak openly on this subject matter because you carry all these products, so you should (and do) walk a tight line in not disparaging all your brands.

I'm not going to attack your service, price or knowledge which are superior to any other vendor on here. I'm not going to attack you as a person, because despite your perception of me, I actually like you.

I just disagree with the conclusions you have come to on these subject matter, and I understand that you don't have the freedom to speak as openly and objectively as I do.

For the Italic portion -
I don't have a back to back comparison - and neither does anyone else. But we do have reviews from different users. Does this mean any comparison between them is useless or invalid? hundreds of users give reviews every day and no one questions it. I have just provided context.

https://f87.bimmerpost.com/forums/sh...3&postcount=25

VRSF vs CSF -

The VRSF weighs more, and thus has more thermal capacity
The VRSF has a higher fin density, and has more effective surface area
The VRSF has no turbo lag, while there are reports of turbo lag with the CSF
The VRSF costs less than the CSF

I can post the reviews and the logs, but you and I have both seen them, and you know I'm not just fabricating anything.

Finally to the underlined portion. What wild claims have I made that aren't based on data that's available? I've offered people to take the Pepsi challenge, and so far, no one has accepted.

Show me what you have, because you know I have a BUNCH of logs to pull from.

[AmuroRay]

Also - a quick way to get on my less than favorable side is to advocate for me to 'censor' myself (or have the moderators do it) because you don't like what I have to say.

[mike@x-ph.com]

Wow, I don't even know where to begin with this one . You either are not reading my posts or don't understand the difference between me asking you to censor yourself and me asking you not to belittle brands based on no objective data or analysis.

1- I can freely speak about any brand I carry and I have done so in the past. I give my honest opinion. Here is an example: CSF is a better option than Active Autowerke on a stage 2 FBO car.
My vendors understand and respect that i am honest with customers and that's why they trust me. I can't speak freely of other brands because I get reported to admins

2- You made a claim that intercooler A is better than B in every regard. Great, please post a comparison on the same car running the same map showing these claims and I will agree with you.
Im not saying you should not post that intercooler A is fantastic and the best creation to mod cars, that would be censorship. You have the right to post anything you want, but you do not have the right to say intercooler B is inferior in every aspect without direct comparison data

It's getting tiring doing this with you on every thread, i thought i might help but i was wrong. Have a great day and sorry for wasting your time

[mike@x-ph.com]

Since this is the last time i will be doing this with you, i want to respond one final time to your censorship comment.

I have people creating threads just to attack me and I never asked the mods to delete it You can still check it out in the review sections

There are threads where I and you go back and forth for pages and you even attack me personally. I never asked you or the moderators to remove these posts.

There are tens of threads where customers are asking for opinions and you make wild claims, then attack other brands. No matter how much i disagree with you and think its wrong, i would never ask you or the moderators to remove the post

I was just trying to give you friendly advice on how to act so you do not get called out on every thread by a different member.

I admit i should have stayed quiet. I will do so going forward.