Okay to drive the car to the paint shop with no supercharger coolant?

[MurderCat]

Not sure if this is a great idea.

Wouldn't be going past 50mph or into boost. Date to fix the cooling/interchiller on the 4.5L whipple cat is about 3 months out so would give time to fix paint/body work issues in the meantime.

Any risk of damaging the S/C or cooling system even more? Can wait but would be ideal to get the paint/body work done so this car is ready just in time for nice weather.

 

[Paladin06]

This is a I got you joke right?

 

[MurderCat]

Nope, decided against it and will just wait. One shop said it was okay, another said to pull the IC fuse. Don't really need any more damage so mission aborted. Could trailer it over to paint but not paying someone to go 10 miles.

 

[Hellcatcfp]

I wouldn't personally.

 

[fumanchu182]

Not a good idea ever, I mean just because you are not in boost doesn't mean the pulley isn't spinning and making heat.

 

[BULL]

See, now I would have done this, with the strict restrictions in place.

Short drive, no boost.

I'd be more concerned about the coolant pump than I would be about lack of charge air cooling in what should be basically a bypass/vacuum condition for the motor.


Of course, "better safe than sorry" may be the correct thinking.

 

[vortecd]

There are supercharged cars without intercoolers. I would pull the fuse for the pump so it isn't running like Bull said and drive it

 

[WhipCat]

Just tow it. Can’t be that expensive

 

[ChargerChallenger]

Do it and let us know😁

 

[Jimmy N.]

There are supercharged cars without intercoolers.

Yep, the very vast majority. The rest of us have charge air coolers.

 

[Magnified]

Pump with no fluid is a no no. You might make it, but you'll have taken some life span off that pump and it might drop out on you at an inopportune moment. Borrow a friends trailer. If I was nearby I'd be over there with my flatbed this weekend.

 

[Magnified]

Yep, the very vast majority. The rest of us have charge air coolers.

I've never understood that. In automotive applications, if you're not running an intercooler of some sort you're giving with one hand and taking away with the other.

 

[vortecd]

I've never understood that. In automotive applications, if you're not running an intercooler of some sort you're giving with one hand and taking away with the other.

I made plenty of power with a Vortech and no intercooler

 

[Magnified]

Sure, plenty of power, but not nearly as efficient as it could have been. Significant power could have been added to the system with the addition of an air-water-air or even just an air to air unit, from the physics / design perspective.

 

[BULL]

With our tuning developed around the charge air being cooled, the idea is to not operate too far outside of expected regions.

Hence staying out of boost, and therefore adding heat.

 

[Confuzed1]

Sure, plenty of power, but not nearly as efficient as it could have been. Significant power could have been added to the system with the addition of an air-water-air or even just an air to air unit, from the physics / design perspective.

I agree....cooler denser air is always more efficient....hands down.

But roots blowers themselves are much more efficient than they used to be - even without an intercooler. Instead of the old lobe-type rotors, most blowers now have semi-helix rotors that don't heat up the air near as much as older blowers did in the day. The Magnuson MP-122 that I have on my old Camaro doesn't have an intercooler, but I'm only spinning it hard enough for 7-8 pounds of boost.....still adds plenty of power..

And as mentioned by @vortecd, the Vortec centrifugal blowers are even more efficient and most of their kits don't come with an intercooler.......but having one is always better....

-And to the OP....good call. I wouldn't drive it either without the intercooler working either. Not worth the risk, and not tuned for running like that.

 

[Jimmy N.]

I've never understood that. In automotive applications, if you're not running an intercooler of some sort you're giving with one hand and taking away with the other.

Well, a charge air cooler, or after cooler, can be an intercooler. And it can be the very same physical part.
But as the name strongly implies, for it to be an intercooler it must be between two power adders.

Most of us only have a single compressor, so we don't have intercoolers.

 

[BULL]

So be it, henceforth the bricks inside of our superchargers shall be known as the

"After the screwy part, but before the 4-stroke fire making, go-fast part, air/water cooler"

 

[Xylander]

Not sure if this is a great idea.

Wouldn't be going past 50mph or into boost. Date to fix the cooling/interchiller on the 4.5L whipple cat is about 3 months out so would give time to fix paint/body work issues in the meantime.

Any risk of damaging the S/C or cooling system even more? Can wait but would be ideal to get the paint/body work done so this car is ready just in time for nice weather.



View attachment 39366

You can flatbed tow it 40 times for the same price of fixing it if you do accidentally melt it down.

 

[Xylander]

I made plenty of power with a Vortech and no intercooler

And I made more power with a ProCharger and a GIGANTIC intercooler: