With the trend in the A4 1.8T community heading towards the big turbo (BT) GT28 variant (GT28R, GT28RS, GT2871R, GTRS) of upgrades and the lack of available intercoolers capable of adequately supporting these turbos, we introduced our Competition Front Mount Intercooler (FMIC) kit to fill the void. While the smaller intercoolers available today are adequate for the OEM K03 and K04 upgrades, they begin to be overwhelmed by the increased need for better cooling with these big turbos popular today. Even still, on the smaller intercooler, heat soak becomes a problem after repeated runs, even with the OEM K03 and K04 turbo upgrades. Our Competition FMIC kit was designed to overcome ALL these issues.

Ease of Installation: (1 Easy, 5 Hard): 2

INSTALLATION GUIDE

PARTS CHECKLIST

Key Features:

1. Large 20"x11"x3" (24"x11"x3" with end tanks) High Density Bar & Plate Construction Intercooler Core.
2. Rolled intercooler end tank design (welded and port & polished interior for improved flow).
3. Mirror polished or Type III Hard Black Anodizing (for stealth) finish on intercooler, end tanks and all piping.
4. Complete all aluminum intercooler piping, replaces every single OEM piece with hard piping for improved throttle response.
5. Larger sized intercooler piping than OEM, optimized for "Big Turbo" high horsepower applications.
6. Intercooler piping features beaded ends, silicone "hump" hoses and T-bolt clamps to prevent intercooler piping from coming off from boost.
7. Designed for OEM or OEM style diverter valves (non OEM style diverter or blow off valve flange/positioning available upon request).
8. Smog pump relocated to make room for the least amount of bends and shortest intercooler piping possible (for faster response/decrease turbo lag).
9. Maintains ALL factory components, i.e. fog lights, smog pump, horn, water squirters etc...
10. Retains the OEM side fog light covers and lower center grill for the OEM look.
11. Includes replacement bumper reinforcement bar (rebar) to compliment the large intercooler core. New rebar is made from thick DOM roll cage material and features dimpled plating for added strength.
12. Includes replacement External Power Steering Cooler kit with all hardware to mount and install that replaces OEM power steering line with more efficient unit. No need to tweak or "rig" the OEM piece.
13. Includes all hardware needed to install.
14. Limited Lifetime Warranty.

The heart of the ER Competition FMIC is the massive 20x11x3 (24x11x3 with end tanks) high density bar and plate intercooler core. It features 660 cubic inches intercooler core, more than ANY other FMIC available in the market (almost more than double in size than most). Through extensive testing of different types of intercooler cores (tube & fin, bar & plate) we found that the high density bar and plate core to be the most efficient. Independent testing (all data & dynos shown below have been independently conducted by our customers) has shown that our FMIC is so efficient in cooling that it has cooled intake air temperatures (IAT) to almost ambient (outside) temperatures. We also did extensive testing on the proper size to use to effectively cool the hot charged air from these big turbo upgrades as well as fight off heat soaking (when the intercooler cannot transfer heat away faster than the heat building up from the hot intake air). Heat soaking is not an issue at all as shown by consistency of the IAT staying in the same temperature range throughout the WHOLE RPM powerband. Also our FMIC recovers so fast after a full throttle pull that once you shift, it recovers completely. This is why pull after pull, our FMIC does not heat soak. Beat on it all day long and the IATs will consistently be near ambient temperatures. Our Competition FMIC is just what it is, designed for competition. The other intercoolers may be adequate if you lived your life a ¼ mile at a time (with hours between runs to cool down), they will definitely heat soak under harsher conditions like road racing where you're at full throttle for at least 20 minutes. Imagine you pegged behind the rear bumper of the car in front of you. With no cool airflow flowing through your intercooler, it will heat soak very fast, loosing you that very precious power you need to pass the car ahead of you. The FMIC then becomes a heatsink. Since our FMICs are considerably larger than the competition, it can hold more heat longer before it heat soaks, giving you extra valuable time with all the power you need to make the pass. With it's size and ability to support over 600hp, it is the "last intercooler you will ever buy", no matter what size turbo you decide to run in the future.

With such a large and thick intercooler core used, the OEM power steering cooler as well as the OEM front bumper reinforcement bar is now in the way and cannot be used. Unlike the competition that requires the OEM power steering cooler to rigged by bending and deforming it out of the way, the ER Competition FMIC Full Kit includes a new 4 row external power steering cooler that is now mounted above the FMIC and comes with all hardware to install into the power steering system. The new power steering cooler is more effective at cooling the power steering fluid which helps prolong the power steering pump prone that is prone to failure. Also, to make a hassle free, easy install, the ER Competition FMIC Full Kit comes with a brand new front bumper reinforcement bar (rebar). With experience gained over the years building roll cages. the new rebar is constructed from 1.25 0.095”DOM steel tubing, the same material we use as well to build roll cages. The OEM rebar shocks are retained to help absorb frontal impacts. The plates on the new rebar are dimpled for added strength, another feature we use on our roll cages.

Unlike turbo kits and other parts where the main power adder is constant, intercooler gains (or recovery) is based largely on how badly the current intercooler setup working and will vary from setup to setup. Dyno graphs do not properly show the performance of intercoolers, intake air temperatures do as that is the job of the intercooler. We can take a car with a huge turbo upgrade; test it with the OEM Side Mount Intercooler (SMIC) and run 30 lbs. of boost. Then test it with our FMIC. We'd probably gain 20-40 wheel horsepower from that. But does that properly show how good the intercooler is? Will most people see these kinds of gains? Showing the intake air temperatures against ambient temperatures shows how efficient the intercooler cools the hot charged intake air and is the best way to judge how good the intercooler works.

With the big turbo upgrades available today, 300+ hp A4 1.8T are now becoming common place. As horsepower level start exceeding 300 hp, the FMIC available today and OEM intercooler hose/piping (2.0”) itself starts to become a restriction. When intake air starts to reach the speed of sound (Mach 1) the piping size itself becomes a restriction (and yes, we pulled out the equations and calculated the numbers). With that in mind, the ER Competition FMIC features 2.25 charge (turbo to intercooler) hard piping and 2.5 cold (intercooler to throttle body) hard piping to properly match the higher flow rates of these big turbos. The smaller charge pipe helps keep airflow velocity high to fill the large FMIC, which helps increase response and reduce turbo lag while the larger cold pipe helps with high end flow (matches OEM throttle body size). Our extensive testing has shown that higher top end power is achieved with the larger piping. Also, all OEM hose is replaced with complete hard piping and run as short as possible while taking the least amount of bends possible which increases response, decrease turbo lag, and reduces pressure drop back to OEM levels if not better. The ER FMIC kit comes with a smog pump relocation bracket for this purpose as the smog pump is blocking the shortest and straightest path to the FMIC. The factory 2 piece intercooler hose on the driver's side has now been replaced by one single pipe. The factory "S" section right before the throttle body has now been replaced by a single straight pipe. The reduced bends increased throttle response and decreases turbo lag (better overall performance).

All our intercooler applications come standard with a mirror polish intercooler and piping. We also offer and stock our intercooler applications with Type III Hard Black Anodizing for the guys that want the stealthy look. With the Type III Hard Anodized FMIC, it is very hard to tell there is a FMIC on the car. Most of our customers with the Type III Hard Anodized FMIC comment that unless you know there is a FMIC on the car, nobody notices it. Another added benefit of the Type III Hard Anodizing is that it makes the intercooler fins harder and stronger, which makes it less prone to getting bent/damaged from road debris like rocks etc... We opted for the Type III Hard Anodizing over the Type II color anodizing which is only aesthetics for this purpose only (even though it cost us considerably more to anodize Type III than Type II). We have been using Type III Hard Anodizing on FMIC we put on our rally car customers for years which go through tremendous amounts of abuse. Testing has shown no noticeable ill-effect from the Type III Hard Anodizing on performance (regular spray paint etc... has shown ill-effects on performance).

We also offer our intercoolers in any color of the rainbow you want (special order) and is available in only Type II Anodizing (aesthetics).

Quality is very important to us. We do extensive R&D as well as beta testing to ensure this (as some of you may already know, waiting for us to release the production units). We only release our products once we feel we have reached perfection. We do not rush to get our products out even if there is a lot of potential customers. Also, we do quality checks before the intercoolers are packaged. EVERY FMIC is pressure tested to 50 PSI of pressure before they are shipped to ensure no leakage. EVERY FMIC is test fitted on the original component on the car (OEM radiator) to ensure perfect fitment. We include only high quality parts and accessories in our FMIC kit. We include detail instructions and ALL parts needed for installation. All our FMICs are backed with our Limited Lifetime Warranty.

Almost every intercooler manufacturer claims to have the best intercooler on the market. However, research for yourself. Check the intake air temperatures of all these manufacturers. Ask the Audi communities on the internet forums. You will see that NOBODY can touch our IATs. When you pull up and people see the ER Competition FMIC, they KNOW you mean business!

We go through extensive R&D to test all the innovations and features we incorporate into our intercooler systems. With years of experience building race cars and high power street cars, you can be sure that you're getting the best.

NEW!!!  Due to demand, we have now released the Competition FMIC Basic Kit for the DIY installers at a reduced price! It features everything you need for installation just like full kits. The only difference is that it does not include some of the "amenities" like the new bumper reinforcement bar, upgrade power steering cooler, t-bolt clamps and hump hoses. It requires the DIY installer to modify the OEM bumper reinforcement bar. The Competition FMIC Basic Kit is perfect for those who are willing to do a little bit more work to save a few more bucks in your pocket to get the BEST FMIC available!

The B5 A4 Competition FMIC requires the use of a B5 S4, B5 RS4, or aftermarket front bumper (requires no modifications to RS4 and most aftermarket bumper cover when properly installed). The factory bumper has too small a profile to properly fit a FMIC of this size and is not recommended.