Rock left a dent in my intercooler

[RNZ13]

It's only a year old so im not sure how long since the damage happened. I havent noticed anything out of the ordinary. The temp gauge doesnt read higher than usual and so far I havent seen any leaks or anything coming from the front of the car. I do hear a trickling almost whistley sound from inside the sometimes but only when the A/C is on.

I have the 1.5T so I was concerned if it might be more sensitive to this kind of damage in terms of heat dissipation etc. Should i get it looked at by a professional?

 

[charleswrivers]

It's only a year old so im not sure how long since the damage happened. I havent noticed anything out of the ordinary. The temp gauge doesnt read higher than usual and so far I havent seen any leaks or anything coming from the front of the car. I do hear a trickling almost whistley sound from inside the sometimes but only when the A/C is on.

I have the 1.5T so I was concerned if it might be more sensitive to this kind of damage in terms of heat dissipation etc. Should i get it looked at by a professional?

I wouldn't worry about it. As long as it's not perforated, a couple bent fins should have virtually no effect. If it had a hole it'd cause a boost leak.

If it bothers you too much, you can get a replacement for probably $80-100 assuming you will do the replacement yourself. Paying someone else to replace the stock intercooler would likely cost several times more the cost of the part itself.

 

[RNZ13]

I wouldn't worry about it. As long as it's not perforated, a couple bent fins should have virtually no effect. If it had a hole it'd cause a boost leak.

Is there any way of knowing short of taking the intercooler off and testing it to see if theres a hole/leak? From some angles the dent in the tube looks pretty deep. Though i just got back from getting the second oil change from my local dealer and they didnt notice anything. Im not sure if they wouldve checked for anything like that though since it was just a minor service.

 

[charleswrivers]

Er... well, you can do a leak down test. I have a boost leak tester on my Z32. I've not done one on my Civic or had cause to do it. I'm not saying this one would fit... but this is what I have:

https://www.z1motorsports.com/z1-products/z1-motorsports/boost-leak-tester-p-1867.htm

Kind if of poor man method, if you put a loose piece if masking tape over the spot, go WOT in first just to hit peak boost. I bet 1 atm of pressure should blow it off... but you oughta not be going more than ~10-15 mph to hit peak boost.

If you had a boost gauge (I assume this isn't an Si that quantifies the number) you could see if your down. These cars don't really hit a specific boost target on the stock tune, so I wouldn't consider that all that accurate anyways.

 

[dc2turbo]

Just rev it up and see if air comes out

You make a boost leak test easily from your local lowes/home depot. Pvc cap end , plumber coupler , valve stem and air compress or tire pump.

 

[charleswrivers]

It's an small turbo... but it's also a small engine. Watch your pressure to see it you can get it to budge while revving. Most cars I've seen develop practically no boost when not in gear and under no load, even if you rev them out. That's why anti-lag shenanigans have their place. I know my Z will develop about 0 boost (though its not in a vacuum anymore) for the amount of throttle to reach redline in neutral. I actually haven't tried it on the Civic, though a few stabs of the throttle in neutral hasn't ever shown positive pressure.

 

[RNZ13]

Just rev it up and see if air comes out

You make a boost leak test easily from your local lowes/home depot. Pvc cap end , plumber coupler , valve stem and air compress or tire pump.

I have a sneaking suspicion there is a small air leak coming from the intercooler. I tried revving it in neutral but theboost gauge didnt budge. So i took it on a couple passes up and down the street and it did kinda sound like there was a hissing when i floored it. Is that just a turbo noise? But with the stock turbo being so small i kinda doubt it.
I also tried squirting some soapy water on the damage and had it on idle with the ac blasting. Idk if that would be enough load or if its just the air being sucked inby the fan but i thought i saw some movement of the water. Not necessarily bubbling though.
Does this mean i should take it in to get checked? New car though im kinda wary about taking it to some random mechanic.

 

[Civics4Ever]

Your fine. You would notice a difference in the engine if you had a leak. The car produces no boost in neutral, even if you floor it. That is normal, mines been that way from day one.

 

[charleswrivers]

I just don't think you're going to build any boost in neutral. There's no load on the engine to make enough exhaust gas to spool the turbo. That's why leak down fittings exist.

You will hear a hiss even with the factory intake from the turbo. If you have a substantial boost leak, your car will not build boost (with the engine under load, as normal) and you will be noticably down on power. Since you are losing metered airflow out the hole, it'll run rich and poorly. If the car does not exhibit these characteristics during operation, it is likely fine.

I have found/corrected many boost leaks on old cars. You do a leak down test to really find/correct issues. I've had cars with moderate boost leaks that seemingly didn't affect performance much. Fix them up and the cars a little quicker to power. It didn't run like a dog before. I've also had a boost leak so substantial, you'd of thought the car was in limp mode.

 

[RNZ13]

I just don't think you're going to build any boost in neutral. There's no load on the engine to make enough exhaust gas to spool the turbo. That's why leak down fittings exist.

You will hear a hiss even with the factory intake from the turbo. If you have a substantial boost leak, your car will not build boost (with the engine under load, as normal) and you will be noticably down on power. Since you are losing metered airflow out the hole, it'll run rich and poorly. If the car does not exhibit these characteristics during operation, it is likely fine.

I have found/corrected many boost leaks on old cars. You do a leak down test to really find/correct issues. I've had cars with moderate boost leaks that seemingly didn't affect performance much. Fix them up and the cars a little quicker to power. It didn't run like a dog before. I've also had a boost leak so substantial, you'd of thought the car was in limp mode.

So even if it is leaking a little bit will it be fine if I left it as is and put off repairing it? And even if i was to repair it im not really sure how to approach it. This is my first brand new car and I dont really have a trusted mechanic I could take it to and Im kinda wary of taking it to some random shop. Even if they could repair it the dealer would probably be a huge ripoff. And i dont have the mechanical knowledge or tools to do it myself.

In terms of performance I havent noticed anything extreme except that Im running mpgs in the low 30s though i had attributed that to my commute being mostly streets now and the colder weather recently. How noticeable would decreased performance because of an intercooler leak be? Other than decreased efficiency would there be any major long term damage? I really need this car to last me and id rather not cause big problems down the line.

 

[charleswrivers]

So even if it is leaking a little bit will it be fine if I left it as is and put off repairing it? And even if i was to repair it im not really sure how to approach it. This is my first brand new car and I dont really have a trusted mechanic I could take it to and Im kinda wary of taking it to some random shop. Even if they could repair it the dealer would probably be a huge ripoff. And i dont have the mechanical knowledge or tools to do it myself.

In terms of performance I havent noticed anything extreme except that Im running mpgs in the low 30s though i had attributed that to my commute being mostly streets now and the colder weather recently. How noticeable would decreased performance because of an intercooler leak be? Other than decreased efficiency would there be any major long term damage? I really need this car to last me and id rather not cause big problems down the line.

I can't answer that question really as that is completely dependent on how big of a hole there is... and I'm not sure that you have a hole at all. It looks bent, but intact.

An intercooler is essentially the same as a radiator... except it's a air to air heat exchanger instead of an air to water one. They're both made of aluminum. Any small hole (assuming you actually have one) could be patched with any number of products... an example provided below...

https://www.jbweld.com/products/j-b-weld-radiatorweld

But there's lot... I've used "Steel" (I think it's called) to fix things... it's like a putty you apply that you can drill into.

If a complete intercooler replacement is desired, there are piles of DIYs for intercooler replacements which are replacing with an aftermarket... but can be followed to replace an OEM.

I was a little off on my numbers, but I believe the intercooler is the same across all 1.5T Civics and runs ~$120.

http://hondapartsnetwork.com/part/9703626/Honda-Part-19710-5AA-A01-Intercooler

Again... I don't think it is needed. If the car drives as it always has... it's likely fine. I'd pop off the air filter, make some terrible duct tape contraption on the end and run a air hose in there and put a few pounds in the ducting. A bike pump won't cut it... at least it'd never of worked on my old Zs. The way you did those is pressurize to 5# then observe. If it didn't drop rapidly... you were good, though it'd still drop slowly. You could hear an air leak on a silent car. Those cars have 21 feet of charge piping across 2 intercoolers and turbos... so a bike pump would have taken...

...and you'd of never been able to observe a pressure.

 

[Green82]

You be fine mine has had a dent in it for months now with a small hole in it aswell.
I have not noticed any loss in power

 

[charleswrivers]

Holes will cause a vacuum leak not under boost and a loss in pressure under boost. Small ones won't make a major difference, but it's a good thing to get it patched up when you can. Your A/F mix assumes you don't have extra air being pulled in under vacuum (lean) or losing pressure while under boost (rich). Large holes will have a dramatic effect. You'll likely throw a code for a lean fuel trim if it's bad enough at idle (and it won't idle good). The MAF sensor is just after the filter. The turbo and intercooler is afterwards. If the amount of air is changing at the intercooler past the MAF, the car is relying on some slop provided in the fuel trims to keep it running right.

 

[choo]

Smoke test will work here.

If its not leaking (sucking in smoke while holding RPM, no load) then leave it alone...

Make sure the AC fan is not running when you test it lol

 

[l15b7allturbo]

Time to be replaced by PRL intercooler!

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