Cooling carputer

**BMW 3 Touring** · 08-15-2003, 11:03 AM

Does anyone has experience with cooling of a computer in BMW 3-serie Tourin 2003 or other cars?
Modifications needed or not?
Would like to have computer on board BMW, but I'm afraid for the heat of the computer.
Placed in dashboard (cooling by airco)or back with spare tire?

Thanks.

**jettamasta** · 10-01-2003, 03:33 PM

i will be putting a computer in my dash and was also considering this problem. here is what i came up with. i am thinking of custom bending some pipes to make a tube from the back of the computer to somewhere in your engine compartment (prefeably somewhere exposed to cool air like under a hood scoop or behind the front bumper by the intercooler). put a good powered fan on the end by the computer and a good quality cold air intake filter and you got yourself a wicked looking cooling system for your computer. Another idea, although expensive, is to have a liquid nitrogen cooling system for your computer. i read about a tower your could buy a couple years ago that was cooled this way, and you just put your computer componins in it. But i do not know if you can still buy this product, or even where you would buy it from. if anyone sees any flaws in my cooling plan, pleas tell me so i dont install it and have it not work effectivly.

**SjLucky** · 10-01-2003, 03:51 PM

The major problem I see with runnin some tube into the engine bay is rain. Alot of guys who run with CAI (cold air induction) say that rain can clogg up their air filters and thrus give crap *** performance. I guess you could translate that in to computer terms by sayin durning rainin weather kill the pc cause the extra moisture in the air could cause the filter to clogg and if you dont have a filter then put another bullet in the gun.
Now what I would do is fine a small fridge take out all the parts. get some copper tubing. get enough to run from the carputer to the front of the car. Mount the condenser in front of the raditor. run another copper tube back to the carputer hook up the rest of the junk and rock n roll. It cools better than air and safer than water. Plus you can place drinks (EI Beer) in there.
Thats my 2 cents (when converted to US dollars its about $00.00069)

**krystar** · 10-01-2003, 06:44 PM

seriously does your computer output THAT much heat that you need to run a CAI to it? just put some 120mm fans on it and it'll be fine. have them voltage/temp adjustable if you want noise reduction vs airflow.

**XtReMaTriX** · 10-01-2003, 07:17 PM

Your computer wont be damaged by heat as long as you have a heat sink on there... If your computer keeps restarting/turning off then you have a problem and you need more cooling...

Add a few fans in there (if in the trunk). If its in your dash i am not sure I have not tried it yet...

**SjLucky** · 10-02-2003, 09:51 AM

Kids Kids Kids Kids Come on meow!
Its not about how much heat it produces its about how cold you can get it. Its not about how much hp you have its about How fast you can go without gettin arrested. Its not about cheating on your girlfriend its about how many of her friends you can lay.

the point is its not what you need its about what you can modd to do what you need.

Side note: Now that Im really thinking about itI dont know if I would want anything to take away from the air intake for my car. I know it wouldnt be much of a differance but races are won in the .001 second range and even if you dont race there could be a point in time when you really need that little bit. I know I have been there many times before.

**Linus** · 10-02-2003, 10:04 AM

How cold is the air in a cold air intake anyway? My understanding was that it's only called "cold" because it isn't affected by the heat of the engine. So it's the ambient air temperature. In the summer, it'll be cooler inside your car than outside, so it would be better to circulate that air through your carputer.
In the winter, I think you need to be careful that the air isn't too cold, because the heat of the carputer can cause condensation and crap out your components.

Running a water-cooled system to the car's radiator - now THAT would be impressive.

**brrman** · 10-02-2003, 11:40 AM

Llinus knows wjhat he;s talkin about. A cold air intake does not cool the air. It simply sucks in air, much like a turbo intake does. On cool days my turbo runs much better and I get better acceleration compared to a 90 degree day.

Rain and condensation will enter this intake and you will have probs with your system. I'd simply add a small fan to the system - you dont need overkill.

**SWYZ721** · 10-02-2003, 01:05 PM

Originally Posted by brrman

Llinus knows wjhat he;s talkin about. A cold air intake does not cool the air. It simply sucks in air, much like a turbo intake does. On cool days my turbo runs much better and I get better acceleration compared to a 90 degree day.

Rain and condensation will enter this intake and you will have probs with your system. I'd simply add a small fan to the system - you dont need overkill.

Right, a CAI doesn't really take in COLD air, just air that is cooler than from the engine bay. When water is ingested by the CAI most of it is burned up by the engine and it's actually good to get a little bit of moisture in there to burn up the excess carbon. A computer however will not "burn" the excess water. Fans should be sufficient enough. Keeping it out of the sun helps. If you reall want to maybe you could tap into your a/c with tubing and run it to the case for the cold air to come in and then run another tube to the trunk or cabin for the air to come put. Just remember to use the push/pull method and seal the case for maximum efficiency. Damnit given out good tips so my install is not going to appear so dime-a-dozen!