OK, some of you guys know I got a Forge FMIC kit for a pretty great deal. Today was nice enough to get it installed this afternoon and then go be social this evening. WRONG.

Everything went fine when I was disassembling the stock stuff- I didn't have to disconnect the battery, nothing broke (so I can return to stock if needed) and myself and a friend were moving along at a good pace. Then came time for the pipe routing. I think the guy I bought it from had a FWD, because the driver side piping just wasn't working. Firts off, Forge had a spot for the sensor that is on the stock piping, but the hole Forge had was way too big for the sensor to fit snugly into. Plus, the OEM bolts didnt thread into the Forge piece. I RTV'ed the flange and set the sensor in, used some bolts from the hardware store, and RTV'ed all around the perimiter to ensure a good seal. Now the next problem... I'm not sure if it was the seller's fault, but I think I was missing a reducer sleeve to join two silicone boost hoses together. A trip to Autozone for some 2.5ID exhaust piping that was about 4in long was my solution. Then I had to cut one of the hoses in half to spin it so both the upper IC piping to the intake mani and the lower IC piping that connects to the FMIC would connect without binds or kinks. So I have some sleeves in my silicone hoses now. The routing was difficult to get perfect, and I'm not 100% satisfied just yet. It took a long time to spin and move everything to the best position. It started getting dark and I had to tell my GF to go on ahead without me.

Eventually I got everything connected in an acceptable fashion. I threw the wheels on to test drive and check for boost leaks (can't find my boost tester, plus I don't have an air compressor at my new place) After ruining a hose clamp and finding something hanging from below, I brought the car back into the garage and decided I can troubleshoot tomorrow. It boosted up to 10 psi or so, I didn't want to push it any farther until the RTV cured and I made sure everything was back on the car. For now, it's pretty much done, but it isn't pretty.

 

Ouch man.. Hope everything works out alright.

I just put a fmic on my 180 lastnight.Took me just an afternoon to fab everything start to finish including fusking with the front clip on and off.I bought a random 28x7x2.5 intercooler on ebay from Just-intercoolers. I have an 03 Srt-4 with some 500whp that's just my track car..completely gutted with a cage and all..but I had extra aluminum tubing laying around. I used the spare piping, ebay intercooler, and an aluminum map sensor flange fromoffline. Looks great, no leaks. So I am confident that you can get your Forge system to work fine if I can make a whole kit out of scrap..Just take your time.

 

Fwd or awd, makes no differance since the piping goes no where near the tranny. Also, the maps come in two differnt sizes, if it didnt fit, the seller had a differnt size map (see below).

 

I meant to say 180 instead of 225, not FWD instead of AWD ... I was just so fed up that I forgot to correct that part of my post. Thanks for the product pic, I'll check into that

 

hey man, sorry your having trouble with your install, 180 and 225 makes no difference either, ill do some checking to see about the end cap and a possible missing bracket, i have been sick with pnuemonia for about a week so i apologize for taking so long as im pretty behind with just about everybody.............will get back to you ASAP

 

should sold it to me if you dont like it i still want it =)

 

Greg, thanks for looking. Don't worry about it until you're feeling better. I'll add the bracket (if you find it) later on when I replace my grill, when the bumper comes off again.

I got it on and it works fine, I just figured it'd fit really easy. Now that I look back at the piping on the driver's side, I guess adding the sleeve wasn't a huge deal. I just wonder if it's going to create turbulance going into the intake mani, or if that's even relevant on a stock turbo system.

 

I hope this isn't the way this kit installs when you buy a kit from a vendor... I've been planning on going with this FMIC for my car.

 

if you found a pic with the hoses, I can tell you which ones I got... I just cant see how they would fit on all cars with the trouble I had... my car isn't special or modded in any other way, besides a chip. maybe having xenons or it being an 03 had something to do with it? all I know is that I aint no dummy and this weren't an easy fittin' job here now. yup.

 

if you plan on keeping the stock turbo water/meth is a much better solution and more cost effective than FMIC...now if you have both....WOW your engine will love you