DO88 Performance Chargecooler
To Fit:
DO88 performance intercooler designed for an easy drop-in-fitment in your BMW M2 / M3 / M4 F8X.
The S55 turbo engine that powers the BMW M2C / M3 / M4 F8X uses a Top mounted water-cooled intercooler instead of a “regular” air-cooled intercooler. This OE intercooler has a Tube&Fin core with clamped plastic end tanks. This construction has its drawbacks since it is prone to crack and start leaking coolant into the engine or leaking boost pressure out of the tank seals.
Our mission when starting this development of a new performance intercooler was to eliminate the OE intercoolers weak areas and of course offer a good performance increase. During all tests we have carried out during the development of our entire BMW F8X M2C/M3/M4 product range we see clearly how the peak power is directly equated with the IAT (Intake Air Temperature). To get an exact 3D-model of the available space to design our intercooler in, we carried out a detailed 3D-scan of our M3 Competition engine bay. In our Solidworks CAD-software we tried out several design concepts for our charge air cooler using the 3D-scan generated model.
The final design concept was decided after several CFD simulations in our Solidworks Flow Simulation software. In this software we can simulate air flow and measure pressure drop and air distribution over the core. We decided not to include internal air guides since several of our simulations showed they did more harm than good. The air flow is distributed perfectly over the core with our tank design without internal air guides as many claim are good. But in many cases, these cause turbulence and disruptions to the airflow.
Our final design resulted in a bar-and-plate core with TIG-welded aluminium casting end tanks. This offers peace of mind for any High boost tune. We have managed to utilise a massive core - 85% larger than OEM and decrease (16% lower) the charge air pressure drop and maintain drop-in installation without modifications. Decreasing the charge pressure drop over the intercooler has several benefits such as the turbos needs to work less to achieve target boost / lower temperature / improves throttle response. We have the equipment to calculate the pressure drop in our CFD calculation software and also real-world tests in our Superflow SF-1020 flow bench. On the water coolant side, we changed to a dual pass flow structure which allows the coolant to flow across the core two times before exiting the intercooler instead of the OE single pass structure.
We use a high density offset cooling fin on both the air and water side. Several tests were performed to find optimum balance in-between the air and water fins to get the maximum heat transfer. This gives our intercooler a huge increase in active cooling area compared to OE.
Naturally, this being a do88 performance product, we have executed thorough, stringent, and continuous tests developing this product to ensure best performance. No compromise has been made.
All this hard work results in a product that in one way or another really will enhance the performance of your vehicle no matter if it is a standard car or a heavily modified monster! On track, on street, on strip, this charge air cooler will be your true companion!
Significant advantages with do88 performance intercooler (stock comparison numbers):
Fitting instructions can be viewed by clicking here!
OEM Part Numbers (for reference only): 17517846235
DO88 Reference: ICM-320, ICM320, DO88-ICM-320
PFS Parts Ltd. is a specialist parts company established in 2003. PFS Parts began as a Saab & Volvo parts supplier, but now also offers parts for other marques, as well as offering performance parts for many models via the DO88 perormance product range from Sweden. Click for more about PFS Parts...
