Many of you will think I've totally lost it now but I've just bought a new SMIC.  Yes that's right, even though I went from the stock IC to a Forge one some years ago, I've now bought another SMIC to replace the Forge one rather than getting a FMIC.  It's the Tyrolsport (www.tyrolsport.com) one from the USA and arrived today.  I'll let you know how it performs once I've got it fitted.  Also considered a similar one from Boost Factory (http://www.boostfactory.net/) over there but felt more comfortable with Tyrol in the end.

Here's a picture of the beast next to a stock one.  Let the flaming commence...

What on earth pocessed you to buy that, rather than a FMIC!

All I can say is get it fitted, so I can start playing with your old one!

John

John - You are mod crazy!! and they say i should get out more

Looks good though!  

John, don't think pope would appriciate you playing with his "old one", or even refering to it as that for that matter

Why another side mount instead of a front mount? all the same though, will be interesting to see the gains.

Andy

After a 30 minute phone call tonight, Chris didn't seem to have a problem

Believe me whan I say, Chris doesn't buy anything without lots of research!

Andy,

You trying t say we are old? LOL

Paul, I mod everything apart from the bodywork...............unlike you!  Is it starting to look normal again?

I get out loads, read the threads, but I do take it serious.....might stop at 200BHP, but maybe not......................

John

alleyroo:

John, don't think pope would appriciate you playing with his "old one", or even refering to it as that for that matter

Why another side mount instead of a front mount? all the same though, will be interesting to see the gains.

Andy

I nearly asked John to re-phrase that myself but thought better of it.

As for my decision:

• No plans to go with a big turbo so can't afford to lose any precious boost by going with a FMIC.
• Don't want something that involves hacking of bumper or impact bar.  That said I will have to hack some plastic to get the Tyrolsport to fit.
• Didn't want to block radiator and run risk of higher water temperature even though air inlet might be cooler.
• Good reports from the US about the performance of the Tyrolsport, not on a par with the best FMIC jobs but I reckon it should be good enough.
• I'm getting the benefit of stock fittings and pipe runs, minimal pressure drop and with no radiator obstruction perhaps at the expense of slightly higher inlet temps some of the time as compared with a FMIC.  That compromise works well for me and the type of driving I do.

sounds like you've thought it through to say the least. I did toy with the idea of a better side mount myself rarther than a front mout, but after finding one on flee-bay for about £280 including pipes, which has got great reviews on here and vw vortex, i'm thinking about going down that route. Let me know how you go on though, cause I've yet to rule out the side mount, especially when considering the points you just made.

Andy

Andy, £280 is a fantastic price and if you don't like it for any reason you will easily find someone to sell it on to.  I'd really like to get some proper logs on inlet temps before and after fitting the IC but that's a lot of work especially since my heat soak issues only arise after an hour or so on the motorway.  Will keep you posted.  Are you coming to Himley again this month?

Chris

I can't make Himley this moth, have just posted on the thread. I've got a big contract on for the next couple of weeks which means I'm banned from having weekends. Looking on the bright side though, it's going to pay for the intercooler and uprated dampers all being well.

Andy

Pope, have you fitted the new intercooler yet?

whats the verdict, been considering this also since it would be a fairly easy DIY job.

No, not yet.  I have to do it outdoors and the weather has been too variable this week.  If this afternoon is anything to go by it won't be this week-end either.

Don't worry, will post up the details when I do.

Chris

C'mon Chris a little won't hurt just get the out .

Neil

instead of

junglisteve:

would the smic upgrade be a solution instead of a full FMIC ?  or an addition ?

It's instead of an FMIC Steve.  It's a replacement for the stock one instead of going the FMIC route.  In my case I replaced my stock one with a Forge one some years ago so this is yet another SMIC upgrade .  Simple DIY replacement job.

old_n07:

C'mon Chris a little won't hurt just get the out .

Neil

Oh I don't mind a few raindrops Neil, I just concerned that I might end up with some water spots under the bonnet and then have to wash and wax it again so that it looks as good as yours.

Really thought you'd left for already until I saw your Himley post just now.  When are you off, sorry I meant leaving?

Chris

Mo:

instead of

Off topic but I just love that shot from the week-end that you now have as your sig Mo.

Don't think mine looks to hot at the moment Chris, i'm doing a bit of a John in that I haven't washed it properley for a couple of weeks now as the weather has been shoot and it would be a complete waste of time.

Leaving a week tomorrow, be nice to get away from work for a bit

 Neil

ce0u1162:

let me know how you get on with.  Im after one, gunna get one when I get back from my hols, if you dont mind me asking how much did you pay to get it over here.  I was looking at getting the boost factory one, what made you decide on the tyrolsport one, also how long did it take to be delivered

Read good things about both BF and TS.  Had some contact with TS last year and a very positive and immediate response to all my questions. They seem a completely professional outfit with everything from the design of the product right through to answering questions, shipping etc.  The downside is that their product is $750 as opposed to $550 for the BF job so I started leaning towards BF. 

However, in the end I was put off by the fact that BF seemed to be a more amateurish outfit.  They took longer to respond to questions (days instead of within an hour). They don't keep a stock of products and make each to order which means that you have to wait at least two weeks before they make yours and then ship it but that time can vary.  I also got the impression that the quality control standards are not as consistent, they could not answer with any certainty how much trimming I would have to do to fit their product and there was no possibility of fitting the intake shroud.

By contrast, TS has a pdf with instructions on their site and seem to have thought of everything already. In the end I decided that I wanted to reduce the possibility of any support issues and bought the TS one even though it was more expensive.

They told me it would take 3 weeks to get here and cost $80 and they were exactly right.  It was well packed, appears to have been well produced and everything smacks of professionalism.  If it's as good as they say it is and a few others are interested, I may import on a limited basis.

Chris

pope1:

Mo:

instead of

Off topic but I just love that shot from the week-end that you now have as your sig Mo.

Cheers Chris