Should You Insulate Intercooler Pipes?

Do intercooler pipes need insulation? How can you increase intercooler performance? The general answer is yes, it is advantageous to insulate intercooler pipes, especially the pipe leading from the intercooler to the engine. Unfortunately the benefits in doing so are only marginal, but for someone searching for all out performance, this may be an advantageous modification.

[@MrSVTc0bra]

You and 928 are the go to channels for anything and everything obs related. You guys are the best!

[@jeremykeith3152]

MrSVTc0bra Agreed! I watch both and enjoy how they both freely share their methods in details! Thanks

[@tomturner2656]

Brilliant work

[@norman_sage2528]

Since day one of owning my truck, I never thought to remove this insulation. 1: that insulation does not look cheap to me 2: auto manufacturers are the ultimate bean counters. 3: for a engineer to approach an executive and tell them they need to spend 5 dollars on insulation, there better be a good reason when you produce 1 million units a year. 5 dollars is actually 5 million dollars in production costs. 4: we are talking about large conference rooms with charts and diagrams filled with data, and a slide projector. ( no powerpoint back then ) 5: I am not in any possition to second guess them. Do what you want, just keep things in perspective.

[@Rnddiesel]

Absolutely! If anything the insulation makes it looks more 'space age.' Reflective foil insulation is exactly what they use on satellites and rockets for some interesting reason... There's no way the minuscule difference you'd see with the insulation would really be worth Ford paying much attention to, though it is rather curious that even with the economics of it, they still insulated the primary pipe coming from the turbocharger, maybe to protect the battery/ alternator from heat?

[@norman_sage2528]

@@Rnddiesel kzbin.info/www/bejne/fKOplpSEfKmhhc0

[@michaelanthony4270]

Yea you 2 guys are awesome..... I've done a lot of work to my truck and many others, would love to post here just not in the budget. Everything I do is on mobile phone. Just enjoy wrenching here and appreciate others that do..... love the videos guys..... maybe soon it will be in the budget....

[@Rnddiesel]

Thank you very much! You know you can do a lot on a mobile phone, heck that's what I still use... 928 looks to have a better filming setup with a gimbal and everything, but for now the phone works jut fine! Best of luck with the truck!

[@leslieq958]

Cold side of intercoller is colder than ambient because of PV=nrT. The intercooler is acting a little like an expansion valve in an A/C unit.

[@cucvfarmer]

If you want more cooler air going into the intake get rid of the factory spider (Super Duty) and install a 2 piece like AFE Blade Runner or something similar to that.

[@jr10]

Great video. I just found your channel and subbed. I have a 2000 7.3 Superduty. I have a few mods such as 4" exhaust, and Edge evolution tuner. I am thinking of adding a Wicked wheel 2 and S&B cold air intake. I wanted to add a set of Sinister Diesel's blue intercooler pipes for their looks. I've often worried about losing the insulation on the intake pipe. I don't race or use the truck for any heavy hauling. Based on your video, am I correct in assuming that my temperature gain should be negligible ? I forgot to mention that I live in Arizona, and temps in the summer here are in the 115 degree range.What do you think? Thanks again for a great video.

[@Rnddiesel]

I'm glad to hear you found the video to be helpful! I don't think you have to worry about losing the insulation on the intercooler pipes. For all intents and purposes the amount of heat that the incoming air would gain is negligible. Frankly the stock setup puts insulation on the turbo discharge pipe where the air is very hot. You may actually see a slight benefit in losing that insulation. The only downside is that you risk dumping that excess heat into the air intake which is before the turbo. I think the main reason for the insulation is for noise purposes anyway in the stock setup. Once you've built a good amount of boost any heat soak that may have previously occurred to the intercooler pipes will likely go away, so if you see any benefit in having the insulation it'll likely be on the 'low end.' Even at that point I doubt you'd notice any real difference. You may gain some performance however from a flow standpoint with the new intercooler pipes. Best of luck, and have fun with it!

[@jr10]

@@Rnddiesel Thank you for thre response. I truly appreciate the help.

[@aaroncottrill7426]

Why not get the temp directly from the intercooler exit, before the pipe heatsup?

[@hotrod6919]

Just a guess but I think the insulation on the cold side is more for sound reduction then for temps. Run high enough boost the charge air temps can run hotter then under hood temps and the i/c only drops temps 10-15 deg But on the hotside we always wrapped anything tubed to retain the heat and help spool the turbo better

[@Redbullz23]

there is no insulation on the cold side.

[@tedenderpalmer6550]

Good science

[@slomango7927]

I did the foil delete because I hated the way it looked on there

[@Rnddiesel]

If it's the foil you took off of the hot intercooler side, it may have actually helped your intercooler performance by removing it! Either way, the difference would be marginal.

[@tonecrazy88]

Thank God I have an OBD connection.

[@kieran8720]

Thurmeester

[@johnhoover411]

Don't be a jackass

[@lordoflextape5798]

Unless its an early 99 😂 my truck has zero insulation on the intercooler