[Dirkanator26]

Thinking about Mishimoto or CPE at the moment for an Intercooler. Mishimoto 4.3 inch was $849 but is on sale for $592. CPE 3.5 inch is usually $780 but I don’t know if or when they have sales but it seems like general . No plans for big turbo or heavy mods but will track the car here and there for fun in southern USA with ambient temps of 95-105 in the summers. Anyone know how much CPE sales are or if the CPE is just that much better to just get it either way or is Mishimoto close enough to just get it while it’s on sale.

 

[ddfred]

Thinking about Mishimoto or CPE at the moment for an Intercooler. Mishimoto 4.3 inch was $849 but is on sale for $592. CPE 3.5 inch is usually $780 but I don’t know if or when they have sales but it seems like general . No plans for big turbo or heavy mods but will track the car here and there for fun in southern USA with ambient temps of 95-105 in the summers. Anyone know how much CPE sales are or if the CPE is just that much better to just get it either way or is Mishimoto close enough to just get it while it’s on sale.

Check CVF, Whoosh and/or Depot. You don't need to spend that kind of money on an intercooler. A 3.5 core will work fine. I've been logging revisions on my newly installed 2860; I have a Depot 3.5 inch core. It's been 95-100degrees here and my charge temps only go 4 or 5 degrees above ambient.

 

[Dirkanator26]

My first choice when I was looking previously was Depo but they’re out of the 3.5 right now and they were last time as well. Not sure when they restock. I’ll check those other two.

 

[Dirkanator26]

Check CVF, Whoosh and/or Depot. You don't need to spend that kind of money on an intercooler. A 3.5 core will work fine. I've been logging revisions on my newly installed 2860; I have a Depot 3.5 inch core. It's been 95-100degrees here and my charge temps only go 4 or 5 degrees above ambient.

Mishimoto lifetime warranty also easies my mind. Seems like CVF also has one and it’s about same price with Mishimoto current sale. I guess it’s a bet on who’s in business longer lol.

 

[junits15]

If you’re gonna spend all that money you better only be considering CPE. It’s the best, and CPE makes some of the best stuff for this platform. They are delivering a premium product for premium prices.

You’re not likely to need that warranty as I’ve never heard of an intercooler failing from a MFG defect. The mishimoto offers no novel features for the money EXCEPT for a CARB EO number.

Seriously, save your money get a woosh, depot, or CVF. They all work perfect and support more power than the stock rotating assembly can handle.

 

[Barnsworth]

Thinking about Mishimoto or CPE at the moment for an Intercooler. Mishimoto 4.3 inch was $849 but is on sale for $592. CPE 3.5 inch is usually $780 but I don’t know if or when they have sales but it seems like general . No plans for big turbo or heavy mods but will track the car here and there for fun in southern USA with ambient temps of 95-105 in the summers. Anyone know how much CPE sales are or if the CPE is just that much better to just get it either way or is Mishimoto close enough to just get it while it’s on sale.

You can throw ESP into the mix too, good value.

 

[Chris247ST3]

Thinking about Mishimoto or CPE at the moment for an Intercooler. Mishimoto 4.3 inch was $849 but is on sale for $592. CPE 3.5 inch is usually $780 but I don’t know if or when they have sales but it seems like general . No plans for big turbo or heavy mods but will track the car here and there for fun in southern USA with ambient temps of 95-105 in the summers. Anyone know how much CPE sales are or if the CPE is just that much better to just get it either way or is Mishimoto close enough to just get it while it’s on sale.

honestly... ive watch many many videos when making my decision and most of these intercoolers will do the same thing exactly what you want, bring down the charge temp. MOSTLY if you dont plan to heavily mod the car. id say go for price point not brand, if the $592 is your price point id just get that one. they're all reliable, they all bring the temp down.

 

[Dirtfiend602]

Check CVF, Whoosh and/or Depot. You don't need to spend that kind of money on an intercooler. A 3.5 core will work fine. I've been logging revisions on my newly installed 2860; I have a Depot 3.5 inch core. It's been 95-100degrees here and my charge temps only go 4 or 5 degrees above ambient.

I just installed a cvf. I see 17-20 over ambient in stop and go traffic in 108 ambient temps.

Also incredibly easy to install, oem mounting location was a must for me.

Only complaint is because of the design of the end tanks being longer and deeper ( giggity ) the t bolts require some finessing to index them. Not a big deal. Extra 10 mins.

 

[ViolatedST]

Getting dangerously close to the intercooler question. And with low stock, the answer might be changed to “the best intercooler is the one you can get”?

Remember friends;

*NOTE: CVF (a solid choice) WAS NOT AVAILABLE AT THE TIME OF THE EVALUATIONS.

Quoth the @Duece McCracken
“My picks for FMIC are CP-e as top dawg, Whoosh as best budget, and Depot as a disposable FMIC that a kid made. ESP doesnt look bad at all. Garrett is nice, but now you are getting close to CP-e money. Mishimoto has a 4.3" core, which is a great middle ground for a 3.5 versus a 5.5",.

The Mountune isn't a great design, FSwerks isn't a great setup, Depot is super rough fit and finish with ** hardware, Altitude Autoworks is just awkward and may have gone out of business, Cobb is over priced, CXR is ghetto, Levels has the bov flange but everything else about it I just don't like, Vortech is 1k dollar tiny piece of **, For some reason I just dislike Steeda, Process West is super dumb design, ATP fmic is a poor design/ nice core though, NPBoosted has airguides but seems super cheap, ETS has flimsy mounting tabs , DaVinci performance is some garage made crap for 450, Treadstone TR8 builds are very budget but too close to Depot/Whoosh prices.”

 

[jumeirah]

OP any after market bigger FMIC other than stock is mil times better. I have the original super lightweight Mountune by Pro Alloy tube and fin design for over 6 years and am super happy. Do a lot of high speeds 200 km/hr plus drives on our state or art highways, Auto X’s and couple track sessions each year. Right now my Mountune is on a BT setup living in one of the worst heat regions that see ambient temps at 122 degrees.

Have friends with Cp-e no surprise with its monster core size it’s cools very well, but it weighs a ton, imagine installed right on the nose of the ST (Two individuals needed to lift and carry it) Overkill for most people IMHO, but would be good for 400-450 whp plus setup

Another two I would recommend is the Cobb and Garrett IC's. Very good in my opinion.

 

[k1rby37]

OP any after market bigger FMIC other than stock is mil times better. I have the original super lightweight Mountune by Pro Alloy tube and fin design for over 6 years and am super happy. Do a lot of high speeds 200 km/hr plus drives on our state or art highways, Auto X’s and couple track sessions each year. Right now my Mountune is on a BT setup living in one of the worst heat regions that see ambient temps at 122 degrees.

Have friends with Cp-e no surprise with its monster core size it’s cools very well, but it weighs a ton, imagine installed right on the nose of the ST (Two individuals needed to lift and carry it) Overkill for most people IMHO, but would be good for 400-450 whp plus setup

Another two I would recommend is the Cobb and Garrett IC's. Very good in my opinion.

View attachment 405673

Meh I installed my 5.5 cpe by my lonesome. It's heavy, but not a 2 person lift.

Love my cpe, but I'm not big turbo yet, and if you don't plan to go BT I'd say what others have; CVF, whoosh, depo.

 

[Ryry]

If you're determined to get name brand and a warranty, the Garrett one is solid. It's middle of the road price wise. I ended up with it just because it was in stock. Happy with it.

2013-2018 2.0L Ford Focus ST Intercooler

Replace Heat With Horsepower PowerMax performance products by Garrett Motion are vehicle specific turbo and intercooler upgrades for the popular OEM

www.garrettmotion.com

 

[Chris247ST3]

If you're determined to get name brand and a warranty, the Garrett one is solid. It's middle of the road price wise. I ended up with it just because it was in stock. Happy with it.

2013-2018 2.0L Ford Focus ST Intercooler

Replace Heat With Horsepower PowerMax performance products by Garrett Motion are vehicle specific turbo and intercooler upgrades for the popular OEM

www.garrettmotion.com

i +1 this, i actually run the garrett FMIC and i havent had any issues, i installed it by myself no help needed its not as "heavy" as some others has said other FMIC's are, decent middle price.

 

[itssocoldinthe]

I went with the Garrett because it's always in stock and the price wad right where I got it (Whoosh). Had one on each of the STs.

There's not much to FMICs though the giant ones should be reserved for the BT boys as you can stand to lose some pressure and this throttle response if you go too big.

But still ... real answer is get what's available and what's compatible with your budget. Anything is better than the stock one (except Levels ... don't buy anything from them because it's a long running scam operation that continues to scam folk to this day).

 

[davesST]

I went with the original Mountune Tube & Fin design. That was back in 17’. I don’t really have anything bad to say about it. It seems to do the job just fine. I do remember it being on the higher end of pricing though.

 

[bishop13]

I’ve had my Mountune IC for a couple of years and no complaints and it does the job. It’s all black so it’s a bit of a stealth install…pro for some, con for others. It’s also 20% off right now so it makes the price more palatable.

 

[I008]

I've had my gold mishimoto intercooler for about 2yrs 45k no issues yet. It's my daily no issues so far no regrets on purchase.

 

[beretta96]

I recently installed a new radiator, requiring the FMIC to be removed and reinstalled.

I’m running the Depo Beast (5.5”) FMIC.

Weights of the OEM & Depo Beast intercoolers:
OEM: 6.4 lbs
Beast: 35.2 lbs

 

[Dirtfiend602]

I recently installed a new radiator, requiring the FMIC to be removed and reinstalled.

I’m running the Depo Beast (5.5”) FMIC.

Weights of the OEM & Depo Beast intercoolers:
OEM: 6.4 lbs
Beast: 35.2 lbs

Should have weighed the cvf. It's gotta be close to that.