For me, it partly because I want to push more power and the aesthetics is definitely a plus too. But my OEM intercooler is also so beat to shit that the straightener I used broke lol. And it has multiple big dents from rock chips. So if I’m gonna replace the intercooler I might as well replace it with a aftermarket one. At least those are my thoughts.Quick question-
Why?
More specifically, what specific benefit are you looking to gain by replacing the OEM intercooler?
So far I've seen something about throttle response... and weight, which the PRL is a net-negative... it could be viewed as a gate to "reliable" 500 horsepower... and maybe aesthetics, that the OEM intercooler might not have enough "presence". Am I missing anything?
Because of all the forum prowling I've been doing since I discovered this platform, I have yet to see any conclusive, data-backed evidence that it's worth considering doing anything at all to the OEM intercooler, and to the contrary the PRL intercooler in particular seems to be linked to at least a few actual overheating issues on track.
I'm not saying I'm right or wrong, I'm asking for evidence that goes into the willingness to modify this component for an expectation of potential gain. So far my hypothesis is that it's assumed to be necessary to get big power out of it and perhaps there's truth behind that... but for anyone not looking for a dyno queen they're pretty much pointless and could actually be detrimental.
That is fair. "If it's broke, upgrade it" is a valid approach. I have some remnant questions on the events that led to your intercooler sustaining such irreversible damage but that's neither here nor there.
The events that led that to the intercooler damage are prolly contributed to me driving it all year round and living in the Midwest with salt trucks are where most of my chip/dent damages come from. Also not a fan of slow drivers in the fast lane if you know what I mean lol. And I agree with you on IC being top of the list. I never planned on upgrading the IC until I was ready to do my fueling and turbo upgrades, it was essentially at the bottom of my list. But now it has been bumped up due to me visually looking at it on a daily basis and realizing how messed up my stock one is lol.
These are legitimate questions that I asked myself before doing the intercooler. I had already upgrade the intake, inlet, and charge pipes, along with down pipe and front pipe and felt like I might as well just go ahead and do the last piece in that chain which was the intercooler. I started to regret this after I put in the PRL due to the downsides of weight, size, and throttle response issues. My remedy was to spend more money and put a more expensive intercooler that solved these issues. But if you are not feeling an urge to upgrade your intercooler and are content with the stock one, you're probably better off just sticking with stock.
Thank you for the input and first hand experience! Curious what IC did you end up going with and also curious if you were tuned and still experienced the throttle response issue? I am in the same boat with dps, inlet, intake and front pipe and exhaust. The turbos and fueling would be next for me so I may potentially do turbo and fueling and intercooler at the same time.
I ended up with the PWR intercooler.