Intercooler Forge Motorsport FMINT17.N for Renault Megane Mk4 RS 280 300

The Forge FMINT17 is an intercooler upgrade for the Renault Megane Mk4 RS. 

Forge's highly skilled team and manufacturing department were able to design an intercooler that would occupy the original space without having to modify the vehicle, while at the same time designing a product with a higher capacity harness for optimal performance.

The end tanks have been a key part of the design of this intercooler, and they have opted for a classic and proven sheet metal construction which is folded in a way to produce a shallow and fast flowing design with negligible back pressure. It is also lightweight as this was another key element in the design brief, to manufacture a high performing intercooler as light as it's possible; this element also has a significant impact on the choice of intercooler core.

Once they had produced an end tank design, they specified several different intercooler core constructions before they started a vigorous dyno testing. The research and compiled data pointed to the use of a tube and fin core construction, this UK manufactured component really worked well and again was the best option to keep weight to a minimum. The stepped core design is 41% larger in capacity over the OE intercooler and the final product achieved gains of 8bhp with an increase of 12NM of torque between 1900 RPM and 2500 RPM along with 20NM between 5500 RPM and 6000 RPM. This makes the Megane feel and pull stronger at the top of the rev band and when combined with a vehicle equipped with upgraded ECU software like the development vehicle the whole package transforms the 1.8T power plant into the motor this Megane R.S deserves.

FMINT17 is finished in an anti-corrosion powder coating which not only helps preserve this intercooler from harsh environments it also aids its thermal properties. As with all Forge Motorsport fabricated products this intercooler has the Forge Lifetime warranty.

Why test different cores?

At Forge Motorsport, when developing an intercooler, they will test several different cores for each application. For example, a bar and plate style core, a tube and fin style core along with different fin pitches and heights e.g. 22 fins per inch or 17 fins per inch, as well as changing the internal fin pitches/shapes and density within the tube enabling to fine tune the amount of pressure drop the intercooler produces.

Pressure drop is not always a bad thing, as the testing and research has proven on various projects. This is because the pressurized air velocity is being stalled by the pressure drop within the cooler thus allowing more time to cool the air within the cooler itself, as air passes through the non-pressurized face of the core that is open to the atmosphere. Too much pressure drop can of course have a problem on the higher performance engines as the intercooler reaches its maximum efficiency the turbo has to work a lot harder to force the air through the core. This in turn creates higher inlet air temps (IAT’s) due to the turbo creating more heat as it is over stressed and worked harder.

Having no pressure drop can also prove to be inefficient as the cooler will not lower the charge temperature again resulting in higher inlet air temperatures.

Dyno Results

Testing was completed on Litchfield’s Maha dyno, manufactured by the same people who currently supply BMW M sport and Mercedes Benz for all their engine calibration and dyno testing. They also took the opportunity to use Performance Remap Gloucester dyno to compare results and ensure the most accurate data.

The stepped core design is 41% larger in capacity over the OE intercooler and the final product achieved gains of 8bhp with an increase of 12NM of torque between 1900 RPM and 2500 RPM along with 20NM between 5500 RPM and 6000 RPM.

Highlights:

• Hand fabricated
• Lightweight - Tube and Fin core
• Stepped core design
• 41% capacity increase over OE intercooler
• Gains of 8bhp
• Gains of up to 20NM

Vehicle affectation:

• Renault Megane Mk4 RS 280 (2017 on)
• Renault Megane Mk4 RS 280 Cup (2017 on)
• Renault Megane Mk4 RS 300 Trophy (2018 on)