Background:
The Baun Performance FMIC (Front Mount Intercooler) kit is built around a Vibrant 12810 bar and plate intercooler. This is the fourth FMIC to be installed as part of the focused FMIC comparison test.
Since the intercooler is the component being compared, the full Baun kit which includes intercooler piping, coupler hoses, and hose clamps is not being tested, just the Vibrant intercooler.
The purpose of the testing is to collect data during street pulls to compare with other FMIC options, and also the stock GTI IC.
Test Procedure:
The complete details of the FMIC test are contained on the test comparison page. Briefly, a series of consecutive full-throttle third-gear pulls are made on the street using a Mk7 GTI equipped with an IS20 turbocharger operating using a Stage 2 tune. Measurements of temperature and pressure variables are made to use for comparison with other Mk7 GTI intercooler options.
Test Results:
The first chart is an overview of the data collection session showing each of the pulls.
In the above chart, T_Out is the air temperature at the turbocharger compressor outlet.
The next chart shows the trend of the delta IAT over the series of pulls.
Delta IAT is the difference between the Intake Air Temperature (IAT) and the Ambient/Outside Air Temperature (OAT) at an engine speed of 6,000 RPM while operating at full boost.
The Baun/Vibrant FMIC will be compared with the stock GTI IC, AMS/Neuspeed Bicooler, CTS FMIC, ECS Tuning FMIC, and ARM Motorsport FMIC in the following charts.
This chart shows the average of the delta IAT throughout the series of pulls.
This chart shows individual data points making up the delta IAT at 6k RPM for all of the intercoolers.
This chart shows the delta IAT at 6k RPM in a histogram format.
The next chart shows the IAT of the first and last pulls of the Baun/Vibrant FMIC collection session, there is no comparison with the other intercoolers on this chart.
This chart shows the average IAT across the pulls for all of the intercoolers.
Next is the average temperature exiting the turbocharger throughout the pulls.
Next is the average intercooler cooling efficiency throughout the pulls.
This chart shows the average pressure drop between the turbocharger compressor outlet and the intake manifold.
Notably, the Vibrant core has less pressure drop than the ARM Motorsport core, which looks like a copy of the Vibrant.
The trend of acceleration times using the Baun/Vibrant front-mounted intercooler is next.
Note: The Y-Axis is mislabeled in the above chart. It should read Acceleration Time instead of WHP.
This chart shows the Virtual Dyno calculated power curve for each pull.
The trend of peak Wheel Horsepower is shown next:
Conclusions:
The Baun Performance/Vibrant FMIC for the Mk7 GTI was installed on an IS20-equipped GTI and operated on the street to collect engine and vehicle data.
In general, the performance of the ARM Motorsports FMIC fell between the the stock GTI IC and the AMS/NS bicooler.
Compared to the ECS Tuning FMIC, CTS Turbo FMIC, and the ARM FMIC, the Baun/Vibrant showed cooling efficiency and pressure drop that equals or betters that of the other three FMICs, making it the best overall performer tested thus far.