He dusted a forgotten item from the SVT parts shelf that had been used on the 1993 Mustang Mach III concept car.

The SuperCooler, as Ford calls it, uses the vehicle's air conditioning compressor and an intercooler to lower the temperature of the air going into the engine.

When air is colder and more dense, a greater volume can be packed into the combustion chambers. That enables the engine to produce more power. While the technology is part of a high-profile concept truck, the system can be applied to any engine that uses a turbocharger or supercharger to increase horsepower.

Although different in approach, the SuperCooler aims to do the same thing as a nitrous oxide system, a popular aftermarket addition for enthusiasts.

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The problem with nitrous oxide is that the tank has to be refilled at around $3.50 a pound. Conversely, the SuperCooler is a sealed system that does not need recharging.

The SVT Lightning concept truck - an early look at the next-generation production version based on the 2004 F-150 - delivers between 50 and 60 more horsepower with the SuperCooler, Coletti says.

The SuperCooler system doesn't need any expensive or exotic hardware, just an additional tank and some extra plumbing. But it works only on turbocharged or supercharged engines equipped with a liquid-to-air intercooler. Much of the hardware is already in place on the current F-150 Lightning and Mustang Cobra. Both are equipped with a supercharger and water-to-air intercooler.

The vehicle's air conditioning compressor chills a tank of glycol - antifreeze - to about 30 degrees Fahrenheit.

When the driver opens the throttle, the coolant in the intercooler, which is about 140 degrees, is bypassed by the chilled glycol.

The system lowers the temperature of the intake air from 120 degrees to between 50 and 70 degrees.

Once the glycol passes through the intercooler, it circulates back into the tank, where it is chilled again.

The system never needs refilling, never wears out and requires no additional maintenance. It also has no effect on emissions.

The four drawbacks are slight:

1. The additional horsepower is not available all the time. It lasts only as long as the supply of chilled glycol.

2. The system adds around 25 pounds of weight.

3. Fuel economy is slightly lower because the air conditioning compressor is running more often.

4. The SuperCooler adds around $750 in cost.

"With a 2.5 or 3.0-gallon tank (of glycol) and an engine our size, 5.4-liters, you are talking about 45 seconds where you have an effective superchilling effect," Coletti says.

He says that duration is more than enough since the truck hits 60 mph in around 6 seconds. It would reach 150 mph in about 25 seconds.

Coletti engineered the system so that it doesn't take long for the glycol to get cold again.

"It's under two minutes," Coletti says. "If you think about it, the way we designed it, you can go down the drag strip and by the time you get back to the starting line, you are ready to go again."

Coletti says the standard-issue Ford air conditioning compressor needs no modification.

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It can be used to boost the performance of small displacement engines, which may have big implications if fuel economy standards are raised.

"It is possible to use the technology in the smaller end of the market," Coletti says.

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He says SVT engineers have tested the SuperCooler and verified that it works well under real-world driving conditions.

Originally posted by Buellwinkle
Who said anything about putting it on a C230, I want the 2005 Cobra with it right from the factory....

"With a 2.5 or 3.0-gallon tank (of glycol) and an engine our size, 5.4-liters, you are talking about 45 seconds where you have an effective superchilling effect," Coletti says.

finds a liquid that will stay cooler longer, and chill faster

Originally posted by dswildfire
the difficulty there is flow rate. it can be done, and the liquids are available to do that, but like glycol, they flow slower than water, which is rather essential to the cooling effect. It's why coolant in our cours is a mix of water and glycol, rather than pure glycol. Glycol could cool better, but would flow slower. You might be able to bypass that with a pump, but i dunno. I'm not an engineer.

The Ford system already is using glycol. I don't know how much more you need than two minutes of continous use.