Nissan Patrol 4x4 (Africa)

On Boezman I had the front mounted I/C .. and never a moment's regret for having it front mounted.
ONLY real bitch that bothered was when going through MUDDY slush water -- it clogged the vents and getting them clean was a mother of a FUP --
But then, I just never did the muddy slush again .. In overlanding the rivers we cross the water is clean and one does not have this problem.

If again i get to choose [like on the Hard Body 3.0 Di .. I would again choose front mounted

Dankie Oom Mac,


I picked up my troll from Gerhard and was looking at moving intercooler to give more space in front. His comments and I tend to agree is that the engine bay of a 4.2 turbo diesel get very hot and heat soak is a problem. With the top mounted cooler the chances of getting an efficient cooling is less likely than a front mounted cooler as there is no heat soak on front mount.

After our trip from Bots and the long road home, I opened the trolls bonnet and could not touch the bonnet holder (piece of steel that keeps the bonnet up when open) If that piece of steel get that hot, I cannot see the top mounted intercooler doing much. My opinion so please reply if you have something to add.

I have long been concerned about the reduction in cooling experienced as more and more things are placed in front of the radiator, making the air that reaches the radiator much hotter, and also to some extent reducing the amount of air that actually reaches the radiator (the more obstructions, the more air will flow either over the bonnet or under the car, but this will be a slight amount).

On the other hand, I agree that heat soak is already a large problem, and particularly in slow hard-working 4x4 situations.

Personally I have been very tempted to find a new location for the A/C condensor, somewhat like Pieter did with his (under the car), which would reduce the heat load on the radiator significantly.

However, you can't do this with an intercooler, as the piping would be far too long. But now are are also adding the additional heat load of a oil cooler in there somewhere...

I would be very inclined to go top-mount over the exhaust manifold, putting additional heat shields between and adding a large fan which can be manually switched on at low speeds, or even going very radical and mounting the whole intercooler effectively above and outside the bonnet vertically (IE in the same orientation as a front-mounted IC), with a scoop forcing air through it, such that the outlet air exits above the bonnet, toward the windscreen

Mounting a fan on top of a top-mounted intercooler helps with the cooling at low speeds

On mine the fan is mounted underneath the IC, which is top mounted. The previous owner also had the whole IC ceramic coated.... looks like crap but I'm sure it assists in keeping the heat soak down. I do however need to add heat shields as mine has exhaust branches and a shield is going to be a tricky thing to make fit as my turbo sits quite high up in the engine bay.

This is an old photo of the engine bay the day I brought the Iron Maiden home. That horrible red piping has since been changed to a shorter and more curvy air inlet pipe to get rid of those sharp 90 deg + bends.

I've just taken my 'Troll back to RGM to bleed the clutch as there has been some slight juddering feedback on the pedal since they replaced the clutch and they are also putting better connections on the alternator after a wire dropped off the connector.... and guess what ?? They now picked up a leak on my intercooler! I always noticed a little oil dribble off the underside of the one corner, and this always caused the starter motor underneath to be permanently coated in an oily film. The question now is - can we repair, or do I replace with OEM, or should I remanufacture a new one. I am also getting concerned, as I am doing a trip down to the Cape in 12 days time and I don't want to go immediately after fitting new parts - remember last year my drama with the alternator over the Easter weekend!

Hey Tony ....imho its a pice of aluminium. ....weld the hole shut or take it to a radiator place that does it every day....speak to Driko after your trip and do the upgrade. ...or hear who still has their oem cooler after the upgrade .....fit that in the mean time

Thanks Tinus, will do.

Tony - if it is a FIELD REPAIR up in Africa -- the Q-Bond should do the trick but this is "at home" -
Too many variables on the I C - me thinks, give SAC Centurion a tinkle - speak to GERHARD and get hands-on advice.

Truth be told - the 3.0 wil LOVE luvvvvvvvvvv a bigger I C [Grootseun Driko style]

The OEM inter-cooler was about 2.5 times the price that I paid for Driko's complete kit. My inter-cooler was declared U/S (Serviceable) by the radiator repair guys I sent it to