Forge Motorsport FMINT24 Intercooler for VW Golf MK8 Audi S3 Cupra Formentor Leon

The FMINT24 is a high-performance intercooler for MQB platforms equipped with the EA888 GEN4 engine. It was manufactured, designed, and tested at our headquarters in Gloucester, UK. Throughout the development process, we have strived to improve the efficiency and performance of the EA888 GEN4 engine. The goal was to develop an intercooler that would make the most of the space available in the original OEM intercooler location and ensure a reduction in intake air temperature, without negatively affecting boost pressure or engine and transmission cooling.

On the MQB chassis, the intercooler housing is particularly small and located in a confined space, as it houses not only the intercooler but also the radiator and air conditioning condenser. In theory, the front panel is a sandwich-type structure that houses the auxiliary cooling components. This means that to increase the size of the intercooler without affecting the performance of the surrounding components, and with so little additional space available, it can be very difficult to achieve the perfect combination of a high-flow intercooler in such a small space.
Forge's R&D engineers started from the specification of mounting the existing intercooler for the MK7 platform on the VW Golf R MK8 under development. Once the installation was complete, the engineers sought to determine if the intercooler could be redesigned by increasing the inlet and outlet dimensions, increasing the volumetric capacity to increase flow, and preparing the design to work correctly with the highly optimized Tier 3 and EA888 Gen 4 engines.

The design was created using a combination of scanning software and traditional measurement methods. Subsequently, it was refined with our computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulation programs, and the final tanks were initially manufactured with 3D printers. This ensured a perfect fit on the vehicle before producing cast prototypes or machined tanks ready for bench testing.

Various baffle configurations were designed and flow-simulated to ensure maximum core performance and optimal operation, while maintaining all cooling capabilities and making the most of the internal core volume. With the increase in inlet and outlet sizes, Forge Motorsport focused its attention on the silicone hose design. To optimize fluidity, a step was created in the hose so that the transition between the inlet and outlet connections is seamless, limiting airflow disturbances and avoiding unwanted turbulence. To further facilitate flow, the inlets and outlets were increased from 63mm (original size) to 76mm, which is a 45% increase in surface area.

Space optimization and intelligent design led the engineers to produce several intercooler cores with different fin configurations and internal capacities. Based on the core design, test results allowed for the selection of a bar and plate design with 83% more volume than the original intercooler and a 10% increase in frontal surface area. Compatible vehicles:

Audi S3 2.0 TSI (8Y chassis)

Audi S3 Sportback 2.0 TSI (8Y chassis)

Cupra Formentor VZ1, VZ2, VZ3

Cupra Leon VZ1, VZ2, VZ3

Volkswagen Golf Mk8 Clubsport 45

Volkswagen Golf Mk8 GTI

Volkswagen Golf Mk8 R