How To: Remove Intercooler
by Pat Signorino & Shane Craddock | September 17, 2002 1:38 pm
The intercooler can be tough to get in and out of there.
1. Remove the Intercooler Fan with the 3 bolts.
2. Remove the passenger side Engine Hook.
Here it is. 2 medium bolts on top. 1 long bolt in the middle. 1 Small bolt at the bottom, and one bolt with large washer on the side (not pictured).
Here are the bolt locations on the car looking down (notice the oil filter on the left and part of the exaust manifold). Notice the arrow on the left, there is no bolt there. I forgot to get that bolt in before the picture was snapped. It’s a small one with a thick washer.
The secret for the IC is that the upper and lower bracket have to be removed before you can get it in or out. This means that they have to be removed and installed while the intercooler is still in the car. To do this, you undo the bolts holding the IC brackets (and IC) to the car. The top bracket comes off easily with 2 10mm bolts. The lower bracket is the tough one. I had to put one arm on the left side of the free floating IC, and one arm on the right side to help position the socket wrench and bracket.
a. Remove 3 upper bolts. b. Remove 2 lower bolts. c. With the IC now free to move around, reach around behind the IC, and remove the bolts connecting the lower bracket to the IC. d. Remove the lower bracket. e. Arch the IC around the large coolant hose and pull out. It can be done, use good judgement, and force where necessary.
Here’s the IC out of the car with the upper and lower brackets removed and all bolts (except one for the far right hole on the lower bracket which I was never able to get back on when re-installing the IC)
This is how to get the IC in and out once the upper and lower brackets are disconnected. There is a large coolant hose at the bottom right that has to be forced out of the way (not pictured).
Here’s the free floating IC. This is where I climbed up and layed on the car with feet over the wing, one hand on the left with the bolts and socket wrench, and one hand on the right to steady things.
Source URL: https://midshiprunabout.org/mk2/intercooler-removal/