cleaning a stock intercooler

cosmo22nov

cosmo22nov

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Jun 11, 2007
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ok so my stock intercooler got a leak so I bought a used one and the paint is pretty much off as is. so is there a chemical or something I could soak it in to shine it up? most of the aftermarket ones are just bare aluminum aren't they? because those are all shiney andnice looking :D so that's the look I m going for. I just at to find a way to clean the intercooler off without hurting it.

thanks,
tanner
 
i use aluminum siding cleaner from a hardware store to clean my wheels, i think it would take the rest of the paint off and it makes a pretty good finish. it does take a little polishing to make it look real good, but its not hard. it's basically the same stuff that truck drivers use to acid wash the aluminum on their trucks..
 
good luck. I ended up repainting the endcaps black on mine. just couldn't get it to shine up.
 
ill prolly pick up some of that siding cleaner up tomorrow and see how that works
 
The siding cleaner is a diluted acid(I want to say muratic). Just becareful and make sure you rinse it off completely!
 
ok so i would just have to spray it with a hose really good to get it all off right?
 
ya you need to have a water hose. spray it on, let it sit for a few seconds, then hose it off.
 
I just filled mine up with a mix of Simple Green and water and it worked great. Rinsed it REAL good and let it dry out for the afternoon. Couldn't believe all the crappy looking water that came out of it during the rinse, but I guess that is what 150K+ miles puts in an intercooler.

Joe
 
if your going to use an acid like zstoken said mix a little baking soda with hot water and make sure its mixed well and that will neutralize the acid
 
Clear anadize the unit after you clean it. This will look really good, shiney and make up for a few inperfections. If you have the money, the shop doing the anadizing will do the clean up too.
 
Only thing I found on eBay was a f16 style one that had a big visor on it. Not sure how good the quality would be. It's was more of a novelty helmet

from phone
 
speedyboy487 said:
Only thing I found on eBay was a f16 style one that had a big visor on it. Not sure how good the quality would be. It's was more of a novelty helmet

from phone
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With the stock IC you have cast end tanks. You need to remove the as cast finish and polish it to a shine. I don't mean, get some mothers polish and polish, I mean buff and buff with polishing compound until you have a polished finish.

Acid cleans aluminum but leaves a whiteish finish due to the oxidization. It's mainly for people who are too lazy to take proper care of a polished finish.
 
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