[Gimmick]

OK, so I we had a little meet down in SW florida so i didn't have salot of time for the V-mount today...When I got home I cracked open the instructions and they said it should be 36 hrs to install...I thought i should stat to give me time to finicsh tomm and heres where I am at so far...
Removed stock radiator, fans, IC and assembled the PE radiator/fan assembly...
So far, I see about 20lbs worth of savings with this kit possible...The radiator/fan assembly alone saved 5.
I have yet to drain the ac system though so the condensor is still in...



What I can say so far...
This kit may actually be underpriced. I have installed countless amounts of parts on hundreds of cars, subarus and more and I must say. This is the absolute most complete, best fitting and best built kit I have ever seen. The instructions are extra explicative with color pictures and diagrams. The hardwars is factory quality hardware, not cheap hadware store junk, and every single piece is made the best poss way using the best possible materials. I am so impressed that I know for a fact I will use the PE rotated mount kit now. It will be worth the money, I know it. This is the best part I have added to my car to date...
Heres my notes as far as temp logs...
I am not certain if the sir temp sensor is before or after the IC in the car, But I took down those measurements also just for the heck of it...
Left my house and drove the car till fans clicked on the first time and cycled and then began logging prior to the changover to see what differences after the change to v-mount...
Heres the stock readings, after the v-mount is installed I will run the same measurments on the same route and see if there are differences. These were done at 85 degrees air temp
First stop light I hit sat when the light turned green
coolant temp 89
air temp 42
Cruising 30-40mph for a few minutes it all droped
coolant temp 87
air temp 36
next stop light, a longer light at the green
91 coolant
45 air temp
cruising at 70 in 6th
83 coolant
35 air temp
droped the revs, downshift to 4th and pull to redline
84 coolant
36 air temp
Thats it, I will have pics of the rest of the install tomm and test numbers tues.

[Dylan]

Congrats, man!

Yet a lot of people are still harping on ARC's price. This and Do-Luck's are manufactured for them by ARC.


Gimm, you might want to chop off that image of your SRI, there are Gurus here that will crucify you for having one.

[evilSTi7]

wow, very cool! def keep us updated on this one

[2fas4u]

trying to understand your numbers, they dont make sense????

are the coolant temps in c? There is no way they are in Deg F at those low numbers, your thermostat would never open

[Gimmick]

Yes, those are celcius numbers...

My SRI works perfectly. I designed it myself and the placement of the MAF and housing are a excxcat match for the stock one. I have no problems whatsoever.

In fact, no cats, intake and a cat-back with no check engine light for over 1500 miles...Beat that.

(and no, the uteec has nothing to do with it I went 800 before the utec with no cel and still have the cel function on now in the utec)

[Mykl]

How much horsepower will this setup support?

[2fas4u]

there is an 05 thats getting that setup at our tuner now. Looks to be a very very nice setup!

[kwlsti]

i should handle 500hp at least thats what people are saying.

can i ask where you picked this up from???

[Gimmick]

I have finished the install now...I must say, the term "fitas like a glove" is understated. This thing is a exact fit. I had to basically leave everything loose until I was done and then tightened everything up at that point. I am very pleased.
Heres a shot when I first put the radiator in...


Then I had to fit the condensor. This required some trimming of some of the metal on the sides of the radiator support. Nothing structural, just looked like filler panels

One of the hardest parts of the install was the ac plumbing. You need to slightly bend the pipes to get a good fit, and when you are scared of cracking them its quite a nerve racking experience. Once you get them in though its pretty clean. The adapters they provide are very nice as well.

Next went the ic core, like I said earlier. Leave everything loose. This is the first part that ties the 2 sies together and if everything is tight, it wont fit.

The kit comes with brackets for the top, but I slightly changed it to get the ic lower and more exposed to airflow which did not allow me to use the bracket. so i will make my own modified ones down the road, its all so snug, I dont even really think I need them.

I planned on esing aluminum sheets to somewhat make it similar to a drift 240 v-mount setup to better direct air thru the kit, but the spaces are so smal that air can excape I used the provided foam for now.

I will see how well the foam holds up and if not I already have all the aluminum sheeting here to improve with.

Putting the intercooler pipes in was another challenge. They are one piece to eliminate couplers but this means again, a exact fit. As with every other fmic style kit I have ever installed it interferes with the fuel lines, nothing that cant be fixed with some aftermarket ones, but still a pain.

[Gimmick]

The only other issue I had was that the coolant overflow was set to go in the stock washer bottle location, which on the 06, is different now. So I had to move it to a different place.

Thats about it. Once my mesh grill comes from japan I will eliminate the center post in the grill for a little more airflow. Other than that, very very minor trimming on the front bumper for fitment.


Once I get a break I will go for a spin. I did this all in 90 degree heat so Im pooped...
Some details...
What came off the car
TMIC 11.8lbs
tmic mounts 1.2lbs
splitter 1.6lbs
bumper beam 26.1lbs
radiator and fans 16.2lbs
misc brackets and hardware 1.6lbs
Thats 58.5lbs
What went on
rad and fans 12.6lbs
all the hardware and brackets in kit 3.4lbs
intercooler 4lbs
pipes 4.6lbs
ic hoses/clamps .2lbs
JDM bumper beam 7lbs
Thats 31.8lbs
26.7lbs lighter...
Not a bad weight savings.
I will do cooling temop logs later today

[senortighto]

very nice man

[wdb]

Nice! Good writeup and pics. Can't wait to see numbers. A rotated intake manifold would be really, really sweet...

[Gimmick]

senortighto : Thanks.

wdb : Still considering options...I still like the legacy gt manifold but we shall see, I need suspension mods next...

[Gimmick]

Can anyone confirm where the intake air temp sensor is on the sti?

I just went for my first drive with the v-mount to make sure everything was tight and no leaks and my coolant temps are basically the same as with the stock setup...87-88 crusing 91-93 sitting still but my air temps dont go over 35 now?

This either tells me that the ic is doing much better than the stock one or I dont know???

Cruising they sit at 31-33 degrees and sitting they go to about 35...Thats 10 degrees lower than the stock one was!!!

I got into it in 4th gear at 2k rpms and didn't feel any noticable lag, air temp was at 31 and shot to 34 then down to 31 almost instantly.

Its 87 degrees out right now too so its hotter than my runs the other day with all stock stuff.

Ill do all my logs on the same route as before

BTW: If you buy the kit and insall it...Just a reminder to everyone to make sure the drain on the radiator is tight

[supermarkus]

Intake air temp is on the MAF sensor.