Reasons Why Your 80 Series Intercooler Is Holding You Back (And What to Do About It)

 

If you have a turbodiesel and you find it struggling on hills or overheating when towing, the factory 80-series intercooler could be the culprit, affecting power and fuel efficiency.

Be it a Toyota Land Cruiser 80 Series, a Hilux or a Nissan GU Patrol, High Performance Diesel (HPD) has Australian-engineered intercooler kits made for your platform, including the 80 Series intercooler. This is what you need to know.

Understanding the Function of an Intercooler

Your turbocharged engine has an important part called the intercooler. The turbocharger heats the compressed air, which reduces its density and oxygen content. This can have an effect on engine performance, especially during fuel combustion and exhaust gas temperature rise.

An intercooler is a heat exchanger that cools the compressed air between the turbocharger and the engine intake, increasing its density and oxygen content, which in turn improves engine efficiency, power, combustion, and fuel economy.

Factory intercoolers are designed to handle stock power levels. A simple upgrade to your 80 Series intercooler, Hilux intercooler or GU Patrol intercooler can give your vehicle a huge performance boost.

80 Series Intercooler: The LandCruiser That Deserves Better

The 80 Series is known for the toughness of its 1HDT and 1HZ engines, but the factory 80 Series intercooler is a real Achilles' heel. When you're crawling through sand or plodding up a long grade, airflow across a top-mounted unit drops dramatically, EGTs spike and power falls away.

HPD’s Series 2 80-series intercooler kit comes with direct pipework that enhances throttle response and allows for up to 200 kW at the wheels.

If you want to squeeze every ounce of performance out of your Land Cruiser, the first step is an 80 Series intercooler upgrade.

Hilux Intercooler: Designed for Work, Enhanced for Performance

The factory intercooling on the Hilux has always been quite conservative through the generations, leaving performance on the table regardless of which variant you run. A good quality Hilux intercooler upgrade changes that significantly.

HPD has a full Hilux intercooler kit with huge torque and power gains. A big front-mount intercooler for optimum cooling efficiency.

Hilux owners who tow will know that front mounting is the way to go. No heat soak, no air flow under the bonnet, just constant cooling under load.

GU Patrol Intercooler: Giving the TD42 What It Needs

The TD42 is a torque monster but sensitive to heat. Many early GU models rolled out of the factory with a turbo, but no GU Patrol intercooler at all, making an upgrade almost essential for anyone doing serious work.

The HPD Extreme GU Patrol intercooler kit features a 450×300×76mm core that provides more than 2.5x the surface area of the factory unit. The PRO GU Patrol intercooler kit is 500 × 400 × 76 mm and will support 220 kW+. Even at a crawl, it’s kept cool by a 14-inch Davis Craig fan that pulls over 1,000 CFM. For example, the Hi-Flow GU Patrol intercooler kit for the TD42Ti has an 80% larger core with a 63mm billet inlet adaptor to replace the restrictive factory 57mm elbow.

Whether you're touring, towing or building for more power, there's a GU Patrol intercooler kit in the HPD range to suit your needs.

Why HP Diesel?

HPD is designed and built in Australia by our in-house engineers, fabricators and CNC machinists. All kits, including the 80 Series intercooler, Hilux intercooler, or GU Patrol intercooler, use bar-and-plate construction. It’s stronger than tube-and-fin and is designed to take the vibration, heat cycles and debris that come with real 4WD use. All kits are vehicle-specific and can be installed easily by professionals through a nationwide dealer network.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need a tune for an intercooler install?

An intercooler is included to improve the engine’s airflow and cooling. If you are upgrading the injectors or the turbo you NEED a tune to get the best out of it.

Top-mount or front-mount — which is better?

 Front mounts consistently beat top mounts in real-world 4WD conditions. Top mounts use natural airflow and heat soak at low speeds. Front-mounts pull cool air from outside the engine bay and operate effectively at any speed. HPD offers both configurations, depending on your platform.

Will the thing increase gas mileage?

Yes, it will, in some cases. The air is denser and cooler, so the engine burns gas efficiently. Many people who own one of these things say they get gas mileage, especially when they are towing something or driving on the highway for a long time

Does it protect the engine?

 Yes. Lower intake temps mean lower EGTs – less stress on pistons, injectors, turbos and head gaskets. An intercooler upgrade is one of the best protective upgrades you can do for heat-sensitive engines like the 1HZ and TD42.

The Bottom Line

A factory intercooler is designed to minimum specs for a stock vehicle. No matter whether it’s your 80 Series, Hilux or GU Patrol towing, touring, modified or just working hard in the Australian heat, an HPD 80 Series intercooler, Hilux intercooler or GU Patrol intercooler upgrade is one of the highest-return bolt-on modifications around.

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