Thread: Any guesses on what I will dyno with S2 Intercooler?

Yeah, $800 brand new if you use a vendor core and pump, then use a rad instead of a FMHE.

Still stuck on fuel. Modded rails suck, cutting the rails is stupid, hello $500 for a billet set.

If you went heads, you could get away with stock rails for longer.

You're going to spend a grand on heads, or more. More if you want aftermarket valves and such. Don't suggest larger valves unless you're going with a cam. Even then, for a street car, do you really want to?

Then installing is fun, couple hundred in gaskets and fluids. At least it's straight forward though.

Not that an intercooler is any better. Pluming and mounting was not well thought out at all.

You can go either way, make some power, have some fun, still get stomped by anything with a better power adder.

Ya know?

Seems to me that ic is an absolute must to spin a gen5 that hard on a baby pulley
I'm not saying an ic isn't effective
And I'm saying it can cost much less in mods to run 12s if times are what your after.......

I ported my own heads, let me run the same pulley as the intercooler did. Little less timing though.

Took me a few months to get them done though. Couple hours here and there. Since I'm a porting noob, I used the sandpaper bits instead of carbide. Highly recommend you do the same unless you have experience. I went with the Eastwood porting kit.

Ended up buying new exhaust valves, valve stem seals and valve lapping compound. Total investment was around $170 mostly due to shipping and those valves.

Add in 250-300 for gaskets/fluids and it was a nice 400-500 dollar investment compared to the $1500 the intercooler cost me in the end. That was starting with the $900 WBS kit, then modded rails, then all of the hardware the kit doesn't come with.

Lesson here is, you don't have to spend as much money if you can do things yourself.

Summary: If buying vendor parts, heads will be the same cost wise as an intercooler. If you are willing to port your own heads, get a set and do it.