the cooler it'self is about $40 bux but the fuel line is where it adds up... depending on where you get it and how much it costs... mine ran about $80 bux for the amount of line I had, I had extra and ran it behind the brake booster to keep it as far away from the exhaust manifolds as possible. also you need to add in the pieces to go from 5/16 to 3/8 (fuel cooler has 3/8 lines on it) I got those from Ace hardware. 4 barb fittings plus 2 unions did the trick.

the advantage is you get more power on hot days than without it. think about it, if you have an aircharge that's cooled only so much thru the intake tube and intake manifold (where it heats back up) and then inject cold fuel on it, the intake charge temp will drop giving you a boost in low-mid range power.

did this mod on my 2 bmw's, then the truck and in the bmw's you could easily feel it, the truck however the gain is a small percentage and you wont feel it. the best way to measure it is thru your mpg or dyno. the 6% for me = .8 mpg on the hiway

 

That's about exactly what I figured, I used my base roughly 12.5 mpg, another 6% gives it 13.25.... so roughly .75 mpg, you must have been getting a bit better mpg to start, but now we are splitting hairs, sorry.

 

there will be no splitting hairs on DF.. thank you!


j.k

or if you wanted to you could mount it in a remote location and run a small 12V sever duty fan mounted right on it.. then you could really mount it anywhere youd like... just a super quick look on ebay.. a 10" 12VDC fan was between 20-40 bux and a 8" was about the same.

 

Sorry no splitting of hairs, mileage gained is mileage gained. Today thats a great thing. Yes with the electric fan that would in effect make it mountable anywhere, but again too far away and you are increasing you cost for fuel line and insulation and lengthening the time it would take for the part to pay for itself. If we cared about that it is.

 

good point... it usually comes down to the question.. how much will i spend and how much will i save...

also a good point.. if we cared.. hehehhee.. it would be a fun project .. and a lower cost mod as compared to some of the higher costing mods that are as fun to do.. another question that usually pops up is how much beer do i need to complete this mod and how many cuss words will i say?

 

Too true Shott.... This one could have a moderate cuss factor. We should actually post cuss factor when we discuss mods!!! Ofcourse the cuss factor could be directly proportionate to the amount of beer involved in a project as well!!! While I don't advocate drinking while working on the truck as things can get overlooked and forgotten, a "refreshment" every now and then during the project can be enlightening.

 

the point of doing the mod on my truck was to improve hot weather performance, it worked, the benifit was the mileage.

here's the data...



[IMG]local://upfiles/1508/3FEFAB5E822C47C8B45B692ACFFCC910.jpg[/IMG]

you will need to have your browser on full screen to see it... or download it and zoom in. I tried to make it as big as possible so you guys wouldnt have to hassle with it... sorry.

 

I am not arguing the benefit whatsoever. There is definite benefit. I apologized ahead of time for having to do the math. I see the benefit and am considering the mod myself. It's just before I do anything to improve performance or mielage I myself do a cost/benefit analysis and thought I would share my findings. I am sorry if my ramblings upset anyone, that was not my intention, just to share data.


On another note, I was just proof reading my post.... "definite benefit" .... say that ten times fast!!

 

Well Tommy, the whole point of a forum is to toss out ideas, help each other fix stuff when it breaks and to have general discussions about the rams... i dont think anyone here has any ruffled feathers... [sm=icon_cheers.gif]

but if you do a cost analysis on a set of heads for example (performance wise), you'd never justify it. too damn expensive for the amount of benifit you get out of them. from my stand point, almost every mod/upgrade is a step in the right direction and worth the bux for them (mods). sometimes you need to experiment yourself and find out what works best for what your after.

for me, it's all in the data (cheep data) that I can collect after a mod. I have a spreadsheet on the new truck that is tracking all of my mileage tank to tank and has shown me what setups do what to performance & mileage. this info I share as needed to others who are looking to do a mod that I have data for.

 

Nice spreadsheet...bet you don't hear that every day. I keep a similiar log for all my vehicles using a small notebook, it helps me keep track of maintenance and fuel economy.

Now you have me thinking about doing this mod. I thought I was done for awhile, but this one does make sense. I'm running an open air filter element on my truck now, so I am pulling some warmer air into the intake. I have to get the thermometer out of the camper and run some air temp tests again to see what the actual temperatures are running. I'm curious how much more this might help out the low end. Don't worry about rambling, this is an interesting discussion.