Intercooler for the Focus ST225 by Radtec

The Ambient temperature during testing was 7 degrees celcius.

RADTEC INTERCOOLER

Two things shocked us at the end of the test more than anything. Firstly just how bad the standard intercooler is when any kind of tuning is introduced, and secondly, how equally good the Rad-Tec Cooler is.

ACT's were reaching extensive levels even with the ambiant temperature below 10 degrees and this could prove annoying to owners of chipped cars in particular over the summer months as the power, even the enjoyment, from the car might be capped through the ECU backing the power off.

Recording temperature drops ranging from 128-130 degrees is impressive enough for the RadTec cooler, but this achievement is further enhanced when the temperature is droping them to is around 15 degrees. This hits home when you consider that the standard cooler under the same test is only capable of getting them down to 49 degrees at best. Apart from the efficiency of the RadTec cooler in getting temps down and being able to recover on both the rolling road and open road quickly, it's also given the car a massive boost in performance that none of us were really expecting. The Stage 1 car was producing a peak of 257bhp and 347Nm (265lb/ft) but with the RadTec cooler fitted that figure rose to a peak of 291 bhp and a whopping 400.6Nm (295lb/ft) still at 1.2 Bar. Thats a full 34bhp and 53.6Nm (40lb/ft) increase at the top and a substantial gain throughout the rev range, making the £499 pricetag seem more than worthwhile. An Incredible gain by anyone's standards, and one that clearly safeguards your performance, even when the hotter weather does finally arrive.

To Summerise, as other Focus ST owners might find themselves going backwards, cars fitted with the RadTec intercooler will definitely find themselves going forwards, Fast!

Written by Dave Moore (PF Editor)