[lsturbointeg]

Originally Posted by Unspec

My biggest advice is to use your jack to your advantage. Unless you're doing this on a proper lift, the angles under the car are super awkward and you'll tire really quickly when maneuvering it in. I used my jack to hold up one side of the intercooler while I got the otherside in. Made it a lot easier.

In the end, the driver's side was just too tight and the lower part of the exit tube couldn't move past an aluminum strut or whatever it was. I got a file and filed the spot back a little (made probably a 1/8" divot) and it finally went in without a hitch. The end of the exit tube doesn't interact with the airflow, so it's not going to affect anything, just looks a little funky, but it's not like you can even see that part when it's installed.

As others said, it's super tight and no way am I ever going to try to take this thing out. I don't foresee needing to take it out/swap it either, so not a problem for me.

thanks for the headsup. yes I won't be doing this on a lift but will have it on jacks. so no need to remove the front bumper to get better access than huh or help with more visibility? i'll have to figure out what that thing was when you had to file it down. so that's in the way that it was necessary to file it down? any pictures of what you're talking about? thanks!

[Unspec]

Originally Posted by lsturbointeg

thanks for the headsup. yes I won't be doing this on a lift but will have it on jacks. so no need to remove the front bumper to get better access than huh or help with more visibility? i'll have to figure out what that thing was when you had to file it down. so that's in the way that it was necessary to file it down? any pictures of what you're talking about? thanks!

Removing the front bumper doesn't so anything, none of the front bumper encroaches on the space you need to work in, so no visibility or space issues. You're installing it behind the radiator, so all you need to do is remove the underbody tray, the radiator tray (which won't go back on - normal), and that's it. When you say you're doing this on jacks, you mean jackstands right? You couldn't pay me enough to get under a car that's only being supported by jacks lol.

You might not need to file the part, I'm not sure if this was specific to mine (factory variations etc). Because the tubes are angled upwards slightly, the bottom pushes out a little more than the top of the tube. So I filed it back a tad to create more clearance. You may or may not need to do this, only do it if absolutely necessary. I struggled for an hour before giving up and filing it.

Attached a photo of the area I filed down. Note, I only had to file down a small area, not the entire area outlined by the circle. File only where absolutely necessary. As for the thing it was stuck against, I don't know what its called and can't find a picture, but you'll know what I am talking about as soon as you take off the radiator tray.

[lsturbointeg]

Originally Posted by Unspec

Removing the front bumper doesn't so anything, none of the front bumper encroaches on the space you need to work in, so no visibility or space issues. You're installing it behind the radiator, so all you need to do is remove the underbody tray, the radiator tray (which won't go back on - normal), and that's it. When you say you're doing this on jacks, you mean jackstands right? You couldn't pay me enough to get under a car that's only being supported by jacks lol.

You might not need to file the part, I'm not sure if this was specific to mine (factory variations etc). Because the tubes are angled upwards slightly, the bottom pushes out a little more than the top of the tube. So I filed it back a tad to create more clearance. You may or may not need to do this, only do it if absolutely necessary. I struggled for an hour before giving up and filing it.

Attached a photo of the area I filed down. Note, I only had to file down a small area, not the entire area outlined by the circle. File only where absolutely necessary. As for the thing it was stuck against, I don't know what its called and can't find a picture, but you'll know what I am talking about as soon as you take off the radiator tray.

yes, Jack stands. thanks for the picture to show me reference. so where you filed no risk of leaks from not getting maybe a proper seal or do you think that didn't affect it at all?

[Unspec]

Originally Posted by lsturbointeg

yes, Jack stands. thanks for the picture to show me reference. so where you filed no risk of leaks from not getting maybe a proper seal or do you think that didn't affect it at all?

The hoses insert pretty deep onto the tubes, pretty much at where the polished metal ends. So you have something like 2 inches of metal inserted into the hoses still. It would make no sense if the hoses sealed internally against the end of the intercooler tubes, since that's a pretty weak spot to seal against (not much surface area). Filing the end of the tube therefore shouldn't affect the seal.

Again, emphasis on the file when necessary. If you can get it to go in without filing, even if you struggle a lot, don't file it. I filed because I just couldn't get it in and was getting hungry/frustrated. I'm pretty sure if I took a break and came back to it, I would have been able to get it in without filing, but I get a bit tunnel visioned when frustrated

[lsturbointeg]

Originally Posted by Unspec

The hoses insert pretty deep onto the tubes, pretty much at where the polished metal ends. So you have something like 2 inches of metal inserted into the hoses still. It would make no sense if the hoses sealed internally against the end of the intercooler tubes, since that's a pretty weak spot to seal against (not much surface area). Filing the end of the tube therefore shouldn't affect the seal.

Again, emphasis on the file when necessary. If you can get it to go in without filing, even if you struggle a lot, don't file it. I filed because I just couldn't get it in and was getting hungry/frustrated. I'm pretty sure if I took a break and came back to it, I would have been able to get it in without filing, but I get a bit tunnel visioned when frustrated

thanks for the pointers. quick question since you were down there. do you feel that the boost pipe should be replaced or do you think it's not necessary since you first got hands on experience seeing what that pipe looked like?

[Unspec]

Originally Posted by lsturbointeg

thanks for the pointers. quick question since you were down there. do you feel that the boost pipe should be replaced or do you think it's not necessary since you first got hands on experience seeing what that pipe looked like?

The boost pipe felt like it was pretty thick. Its a rubber hose, assuming you're talking about the one that goes from the turbo to the IC. In my opinion, it'll be fine until you start really going nuts with the boost, such as a PS2 turbo. Since you'll have to remove a bunch of stuff from that area anyways to install the new turbo, it would be a perfect time to replace the boost pipe. Probably want to replace the intercooler to charge pipe pipe as well at that point. ER makes a metal one, similar to its charge pipe.

But if you're on stock turbo, the stock boost pipe should be fine. Mine looked mint still.

[lsturbointeg]

Originally Posted by Unspec

The boost pipe felt like it was pretty thick. Its a rubber hose, assuming you're talking about the one that goes from the turbo to the IC. In my opinion, it'll be fine until you start really going nuts with the boost, such as a PS2 turbo. Since you'll have to remove a bunch of stuff from that area anyways to install the new turbo, it would be a perfect time to replace the boost pipe. Probably want to replace the intercooler to charge pipe pipe as well at that point. ER makes a metal one, similar to its charge pipe.

But if you're on stock turbo, the stock boost pipe should be fine. Mine looked mint still.

i won't be upgrading the turbos so i'm guessing no need to upgrade the boost pipe than? also, I didn't know there was an aftermarket pipe between the intercooler to charge pipe. i'll have to check out ER. do you know what it's called exactly?

[burro_blasta]

I just had to fix a boost leak created by a torn o-ring where the turbo outlet meets the boost pipe. I asked the shop whether we should get an aftermarket boost pipe while we were in there and they said that they prefer stock bc they see more issues/leaks with aftermarket pipes than stock. I'm stock turbo

[Unspec]

Originally Posted by lsturbointeg

i won't be upgrading the turbos so i'm guessing no need to upgrade the boost pipe than? also, I didn't know there was an aftermarket pipe between the intercooler to charge pipe. i'll have to check out ER. do you know what it's called exactly?

N55 (3.0T) 535i/640i/X5/X6 Lower Intercooler Charge Pipe (LIC)

Directly off the ER website.

[lsturbointeg]

Originally Posted by burro_blasta

I just had to fix a boost leak created by a torn o-ring where the turbo outlet meets the boost pipe. I asked the shop whether we should get an aftermarket boost pipe while we were in there and they said that they prefer stock bc they see more issues/leaks with aftermarket pipes than stock. I'm stock turbo

was the torn o-ring from something you did burro or was it just normal wear and tear? is this a performance shop telling you this or just a regular Indy shop? i'm wondering if they're speaking from experience as far as leaks with aftermarket pipes?

Originally Posted by Unspec

N55 (3.0T) 535i/640i/X5/X6 Lower Intercooler Charge Pipe (LIC)

Directly off the ER website.

i'll check it out...thanks!

[burro_blasta]

i think it was just normal wear and tear...I'm FBO and going through custom tuning revisions

it was at a performance shop that was speaking from experience

fwiw, while they were fixing boost leaks, they also took out my wagner intercooler and trimmed the hard black plastic that runs along somewhere near bottom of the radiator. My buddy and i had a really hard time getting the wagner to fit (like everyone else) and it seemed like that black plastic was making the IC tilt with the bottom tilting towards the back of the car. The shop said that the with the IC at that very slight angle, when they did the leak test if they would just wiggle the IC a bit then it would leak. They decided to trim that plastic so it fit perfectly vertical...i haven't heard anyone else on here write about that so i thought it was weird but i remember that plastic definitely being in the way of trying to get the IC up and into place

[naCAnItihS]

I just installed mine this past weekend. It was actually pretty simple. Didnt struggle too much. There were a few things to note during install.

1. Pull/push that hard hydraulic line that runs across the bottom behind where the ic sits. You will want to temporarily bend it towards the back of the car for clearance of the passenger side coupler on the ic.

2. Trim the two hard black plastic tabs that the stock ic cover bolts to ever so slightly. This is also the spot you attach the metal tabs. I'll post a pic when I'm at my PC and not on my phone.

3. Jam that thing up in there and use a pry bar to reach up and adjust / attach the stock hoses. No need to pry hard it's just a useful tool to get the job done.

[BimmerHausPerformance]

Regarding having to file the aluminum on the steering rack to get this thing to go in... I had the same problem. Just posted my quick review on this same purchase and install:

https://f10.5post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1644767

[David_Vasha]

How did you get past the coolant line that feeds to the drivers side radiator? I saw it in your pictures and seems similar to my model. I cannot get the IC past this hose and it's only on the drivers side. I don't want to break the hose.

[SWFLf10]

I just completed installing mine yesterday along with a FTP boost pipe and ER lower chargepipe. Besides it being an extremely tight fit, the only real issue I had was getting the boost pipe connected properly. I found that removing the lower chargepipe first and then getting the drivers side in place helped. I then pushed the drivers side up while lining up the boost pipe.

My main issue was getting the new boost pipe in the correct orientation and getting the silicone coupler on it centered up again once I was done pushing the intercooler in.

As far as the coolant/oil lines, I was nervous about damaging them with all the pinching and pulling on them to get them out of the way. So far they seem fine though!

[Unspec]

Originally Posted by SWFLf10

I just completed installing mine yesterday along with a FTP boost pipe and ER lower chargepipe. Besides it being an extremely tight fit, the only real issue I had was getting the boost pipe connected properly. I found that removing the lower chargepipe first and then getting the drivers side in place helped. I then pushed the drivers side up while lining up the boost pipe.

My main issue was getting the new boost pipe in the correct orientation and getting the silicone coupler on it centered up again once I was done pushing the intercooler in.

As far as the coolant/oil lines, I was nervous about damaging them with all the pinching and pulling on them to get them out of the way. So far they seem fine though!

The lines are actually pretty robust, I highly doubt you'd be able to damage them by hand.

[etnsandman]

Got my GPlus installed today. Releasing the pipes wasn't to bad. But reconnected the pipes with new o-rings was no joke. Got it done, but works were said. Need to flash MHD stage 2+ 93 octane and see how she feels and how are the temps.

[etnsandman]

Man, she runs strong. Feels wild in Sport+. New plugs and the big intercooler and she's happy.

[paul223]

The boost pipe b/w turbo and Intercooler will improve boost response even on stock turbo as long as you are tuned.

[lsturbointeg]

for those who have done this and had some time put in any reports of any issues?

[Unspec]

Originally Posted by lsturbointeg

for those who have done this and had some time put in any reports of any issues?

Nope, haven't had a single issue with the intercooler. Installed it and forgot about it.

[BimmerHausPerformance]

Originally Posted by Unspec

Nope, haven't had a single issue with the intercooler. Installed it and forgot about it.

Same here.