Installed PRL intercooler and can’t find the leak...

Honestly, why would they be responsible for your mistake?

mdub83 said:

I’m having the same problem as well, I can upload a picture of what the Honda dealer told me... I’m starting to really regret this purchase ...
I have emailed PRL and they said they will sell me new o rings , i feel I should get them free though

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can you really blame PRL for a pinched o-ring though. Unless the o ring was sent out broken or cut, they didn't really do anything wrong.

02SilverSiHB said:

I don't man, sounds like you might have just installed it incorrectly...thought they warned about that. hope that fixes your problem.

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x2, if you install wrong and damage/ pinch the o-ring why is that their fault?

If you damaged the part while installing, that is YOUR problem. If you could of shown before that a part wasnt 100% then im sure you would of gotten the part replaced for free.

PRL has done so much for the FK8 community. If there's an issue contact them directly and try to resolve it. With the products they develop, sell and the discounts they provide us I'd say they've more than proven to be a quality business.

ExVTEC said:

PRL has done so much for the FK8 community. If there's an issue contact them directly and try to resolve it. With the products they develop, sell and the discounts they provide us I'd say they've more than proven to be a quality business.

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Agree

This really is not a complicated part to install. its actually harder and more complicated to remove the civics front end then it is to install the inter cooler. I personally (as I installed a prl on mine as well) would stop installing it and uninstalling over and over. As I dont think thats the issue. PRL does pressure check them all before shipping so chances are that is also not the issue but who knows.

Only thing I can add is . Have you changed anything else on the car or is the Inter cooler your first mod? If it is your first mod that is most likely where the issue is. My buddy and several other places on the net i have read. that being the only mod on the car actually bogged the car down a bit. You are not bringing any more air in to supply the IC and your not expelling any more air but you have effectively created an expansion chamber in the middle of the engines air flow system. There is a restriction on the OEM front pipe so you can sort of skip the exhaust but you really need an intake to bring in more air for that inter cooler. and when you do an exhaust make sure you do a front pipe as well or else you have changed everything and left the biggest restriction from the factory in the front pipe. if you already have a intake then i have no clue. hope anything I have said is helpped. I only am mentioning these things because perhaps there is actually nothing wrong you just dont have the supporting other mods.

Harlaquin said:

Only thing I can add is . Have you changed anything else on the car or is the Inter cooler your first mod? If it is your first mod that is most likely where the issue is. My buddy and several other places on the net i have read. that being the only mod on the car actually bogged the car down a bit. You are not bringing any more air in to supply the IC and your not expelling any more air but you have effectively created an expansion chamber in the middle of the engines air flow system. There is a restriction on the OEM front pipe so you can sort of skip the exhaust but you really need an intake to bring in more air for that inter cooler. and when you do an exhaust make sure you do a front pipe as well or else you have changed everything and left the biggest restriction from the factory in the front pipe. if you already have a intake then i have no clue. hope anything I have said is helpped. I only am mentioning these things because perhaps there is actually nothing wrong you just dont have the supporting other mods.

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This has to be the single dumbest post I think I've ever read in my life. Nothing you say here is even remotely coherent, and any sort of credibility you had is now gone.

Intercoolers do not require more "flow" to be utilized. They're merely radiators for air. The radiator does *NOT* care how much air is being pushed through them. Sure, some larger cores could have pressure drop between them and smaller, but that's merely an impact of a larger volume.

GraphiteAZ said:

This has to be the single dumbest post I think I've ever read in my life. Nothing you say here is even remotely coherent, and any sort of credibility you had is now gone.

Intercoolers do not require more "flow" to be utilized. They're merely radiators for air. The radiator does *NOT* care how much air is being pushed through them. Sure, some larger cores could have pressure drop between them and smaller, but that's merely an impact of a larger volume.

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What ever man, you have systematically crap talked every single post I have made. Say what you want. I know several people that all they changed was their intercooler and had similar issue. Instead of following me to do nothing but troll me way not contribute to the topic? At least I'm trying to help.

7 hours later.. time to put the tools down and hire someone who knows what theyre doing.

Deadgame said:

Not sure how else you can line the o-rings up...I put them in the grooves and made sure they weren’t popping out. Tightened each bolt back and forth meticulously. Flanges are lined up properly. I do notice that the end tanks where the o-rings go have the groove that is not perfectly oval. They have a jagged pattern that the oem intercooler doesn’t have. I don’t know why this is, but it seems like the o-ring only fits in there one way. This is pretty ridiculous that I’m having this much trouble over something so simple...

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Im having the problem too. I put in new O rings yesterday and made the seal flush. I’m still not getting boost and the engine light is still on. However I’m not stalling anymore when I’m in low gear or going up a hill. It feels ok I hope the light goes away soon.

why not scan the code and see what you are getting?
or making a boost leak tester and see if you have a boost leak.

Here is a pic of the broken o ring . I replaced it with a new one from prl and put the bolts in nice and snug.

Did either of these two people ever figure out what the true issue was??

In my case, PRL sent a perfect operating IC, which I installed correctly. My issue was that I was a dumbass and didn’t fully understand boost parameters and how long pressure should be maintained over a specific period of time.