Intercooler hose shrinking in extreme cold temperatures ...

Post by **marginal** » 16 Jan 2011, 21:47

Hello everyone.

My car has a problem in very low temperatures.
After starting, it has no power due to the turbo not functioning properly because there's something blocking the front of the intercooler hose Upper Outlet

(number 2 on the image).
I can see that because when my wife is pressing the accelerator, the hose is shrinking, meaning something is blocking its front.
The problem goes away after about 7 minutes of driving.
Any ideas?

Thanks.

Post by **Ozark Lee** » 16 Jan 2011, 21:52

The drain hole on the intercooler is clogged and the condensation from pressurizing the air is freezing in the intercooler which blocks the air flow.

You must first thaw it out and then deal with the crud at the bottom of the intercooler to get the weep hole open again.

...Lee

Post by **marginal** » 17 Jan 2011, 02:59

Thank you Lee ...

gulfan · Post by **gulfan** » 17 Jan 2011, 11:33

If a car is stuck in a parking lot is there any options for warming up the innercooler?

Post by **Ozark Lee** » 17 Jan 2011, 12:35

If a car is stuck in a parking lot is there any options for warming up the innercooler?

I suppose you could remove the upper intercooler hose and nurse it to a warm parking place.

...Lee

Post by **jblackburn** » 17 Jan 2011, 12:47

If you do do that, unplug the connector from the MAF sensor first, and you might have a chance at limping it somewhere! Ever tried to run a turbo without that hose connected? It doesn't really run...at all...more than idling, if it will even do that.

Post by **JDS60R** » 17 Jan 2011, 13:20

In MA we used to open the hood, unplug the fans and wrap an old blanket around the whole cooling package (rad intercooler,condensor) and then lower the hood to hold it . About ten minutes after the thermostat opens you were ok to go.

Dont take anything apart just wrap it down the back of the rad and up over the front of the bumper. We used old army blankets as they were scrap and were not supposed to burn. They never got hot enough to catch fire in my opinion.

Make sure to clear that drain in the intercooler.

Post by **marginal** » 17 Jan 2011, 14:24

Ozark Lee wrote:The drain hole on the intercooler is clogged and the condensation from pressurizing the air is freezing in the intercooler which blocks the air flow.

You must first thaw it out and then deal with the crud at the bottom of the intercooler to get the weep hole open again.

...Lee

Well, strange things are happening ...
Today, when I started the engine from cold (-20 ºC = -4 ºF) I didn't have that problem opposed to yesterday (-16 ºC = 3.2 ºF) ...
I went to see my mechanic and we opened the drain hole to 1/8" (is it too much?) ...
I believe the intercooler has cracked due to the expanding properties of the water becoming ice in it yesterday and the water from the condensation has leaked out yesterday after the engine got hot enough ...
Any ideas?

Thanks a lot.

gulfan · Post by **gulfan** » 17 Jan 2011, 21:38

Ozark Lee wrote:
If a car is stuck in a parking lot is there any options for warming up the innercooler?
I suppose you could remove the upper intercooler hose and nurse it to a warm parking place.

...Lee

Thank you for the idea it worked! The car has been dead for a week in -20C weather. I unhooked the upper intercooler hose and unplugged the mass airflow sensor. The car started but would stall unless the unless the throttle was on part way. Very sporadic and tough to keep at a steady RPM. After a few minutes the RPM evened out and it was able to idle. Once the engine was warmed up I plugged the intercooler hose back on, as well as the mass airflow sensor and was able to drive it home.

This issue happens to me every winter. Is there any suggestions on how to prevent it? With the above, I feel better that I at least have a work around, as before I've been stranded until it warms up enough to naturally fix itself.