I just got a set of intercoolers used. I decided to pressure test them and one IC is blowing air out of the core. The location is on the first plate about an inch from the edge where the tank meets the core. I took it to a radiator shop, who in turn refered me to a welder. I asked both if this was mechanically caused damage, as in dropped etc. They both said no, this IC came this way since the location of the leak is inside the core and not on the edges where the end tanks are welded to the core. The car that this IC came off of had two turbos go bad on the same side of the car. My guess is that this leak, caused the turbo to overspin to meet pressure, eventually causing the turbo to fail, but it is all conjecture. What is not conjecture is that this was a defect from the very beginning that was not caught by builder, or original seller. The IC's were purchased new put on that car and not removed until I got them the other day. I helped remove them so I know they have never been out of the car before and I know the full history of where they came from and when.

I decided to check the IC's for loss and the other one has a pin hole leak, which you can hear but is not major, still not good. But the left hand side IC has a MAJOR leak.

The other issue is that these IC's come from a reputable builder/seller/tuner. They are not junk IC's. Should the builder be responsible for a faulty core and leaks in these IC's that were never caught as part of the quality control?

just looking for opinions

 

what ICs are they? bar and plate? it does happen and usually its a easy fix... pictures would tell a better story.
also, they could have been like that from the start... that's why we pressure test ours to 35 psi before they are shipped.
Often the asian made cores leak, my fabricator has been welding ICs for years and he said 8 out of 10 asian cheap cores leak... not saying you have them but just sharing what I know... in my case with the bell cores its 1 out of 10 that leak...
good luck

 

Oh boy...this is gonna be good...

 

Why don't you just get your money back Dennis and move on? It's a used part, no warranties on the part I assume?

 

If I was happy with the price I paid, I would just weld em and put them on my car. Leaks are very common on ICs and I doubt they caused the turbo failures...

 

what brand ic's?

 

many of the popular IC options mention being leak checked to 30 psi, so you may have something there. Some are made in-house by tuners, some are brought in from elsewhere and sold by vendors. If yours are the former, I don't see why they wouldn't take care of it. The latter option may be a little more difficult but they should still stand behind what they sell as long as there wasn't negligence/damage involved (doesn't sound like there was). Like Mark said, it's not entirely uncommon for a core to leak/weep, but this should be caught & fixed before they go out.

Good luck!

Edit: As far as killing turbos, if the leak is big enough, it's certainly plausible. Usually leaks just show up as a few bubbles when you spray soapy water on them -these are generally harmless (but should be corrected), but if air is gushing out, you've got problems.

 

Do you use Bell cores on ALL of your IC's?

 

Get your money back and move forward.

 

I will take pictures in a bit and post them showing where the leak is coming from.

 

Yup.

 

yes I do.... on the 3.5s the 4.5s and on 6"... I use them on my own cars too... both the 996 and 997

 

the first picture shows the inside of the tank and core. The leak is at the very end on the right side, at either the last plate or at the end tank. if you pour water into it, it flows out immediately. there is no delay in water coming out.



the next pictures show the area where the leak is coming from an outside view. if you go directly in about an inch or so it is coming from inside that area. The radiator shop guy squeezed the fins out of the way to look at where the leak was coming in from.

 

Dennis,
I cant see site of leak in picture but if its too deep to easily be fixed or you no longer are satisfied with the purchase, then I would ask for a refund...

 

Dennis get your money back and get a girl to cool off