What do you mean by "optimal coolant temp"? A healthy engine with a good tune and good fuel will make more power at 195F than it will at 180F. If coolant is any colder than necessary, then you're just sending valuable combustion energy right out the radiator instead of letting it push down on the pistons.

 

BTW, I have my cooling fans set to turn on at 199F and turn off at 195F.

 

You spent a lot of money for your intake, do not cheap out on a cooling plate. If you are going to use the bubble wrap for insulation, as least put it under the cooling plate. Also, beware of this foil bubble wrap when it comes to heat. What you see is foil, but what you do not see is that a layer of plastic is the first piece with the foil under neath it. The plastic is clear and can/or will melt. The is to stop the foil from oxidizing in most cases. I know because I make films like these. Also, home depot and lowes do not exactly carry materials that will be under the hood to resist heat. This bubble wrap is a fire waiting to happen

 

How do you "like" posts?..

 

You mean like on facebook

 

I didn't cheap out on it. I got the best solution money can buy! If there was a cooling plate that was truly "better" than what I have, I'd get it. My solution is totally air tight aside from the 2 small holes for hte hood latch, and those 2 holes are as small as they could possibly be without obstructing the latch. It's also far lighter than any other cooling plate available. The fact that it looks cheap is a big win for me!

With regards to the fire hazard, I don't believe there is anything near that insulation that gets anywhere close to hot enough to melt anything. There's lots of plastic in the engine compartment that doesn't melt or catch fire.

 

It is your car so if you like it thats all that counts. As far as airtight, there are reasons why honda did not do this. I do not know why, but I am sure it is not solid airtight, and a cooling plate would work just as good and look 100 times better next to a $500.00 intake.

As far as the plastic that does not melt, this is because the resin formulation in the plastic is designed to resist the heating conditions it will be subject to. A lot of engineering went into this car and the parts under the hood. Home Depot and Lowes did not design the bubble wrap to withstand engine bay temperatures, it is for household insulation.

Just the same, would you use treated lumber to mount something to your car because it may be lighter or cheaper? As far as the weight savings, you could drink 1 less glass of water and achieve the same results.

If it is automotive designed wrap, you should be fine. If not, I am just saying watch out for a fire.

 

The reason why Honda didn't make it air tight is because the stock intake needs air to flow over the radiator. My intake does not.

This insulation is designed for attics, which I believe get every bit as hot as this part of my engine compartment.

 

It's a trade off is fuel atomization and timing advance. Most OEM cars are set to run at 200ish* but more HP is usually attained by lowering it to 180* so you can run more timing advance. This is what I've read anyways.

 

There's definitely an optimal mix of coolant temp, ignition timing, and AFR that's going to give best power without predetonation. If you go too hot on coolant, too advanced on timing, or too lean on fuel, things go south quickly. However, running a low coolant temp is going to reduce power similarly to retarding timing or running rich.

I'm not going to try guessing how much power you loose by running 10 degree colder coolant. All I know is that I'm getting awesome results from my setup with coolant temps in the high 190's. My coolant temp was 205 F for the dynojet run that I've posted so many times from the S2000 club dyno day.