Switch from pannaut fmic to perrin fmic. **56K warning**

S

strongbear0

Member
I took out my pannauto fmic today and replaced it with the perrin fmic and there is a huge difference in the routing of pipes. The pannauto kit requires a substantial amount of cutting to get it in but the perrin is an absolute pita (pain in the ass) to get in there. With the direct line that the perrin pipes take there are some coolant and ac lines that need to be bent and the ac condenser has to be relocated to a lower position and all the lines are aluminum and need to be bent. It took me about 5 hours by myself to install the perrin, but remember I had done this once already so someone who has never done it before should allow some more time and should plan on having someone help them.


Thanks to Cullen at **********.com for getting it for me. He was actually supposed to be at my house to help me install it Tuesday morning but he convienetly showed up after I was already done, no big deal. He is the man when it comes to parts for the msp.

I have a couple of issues with the perrin though. For the price paid the perrin should be flawless and there should be no issues. The bolts required to mount the new bumper support were not included and the intercooler is not perfectly centered in the bumper opening. You can see that it is off center in the final picture.

Here are some pics of both fmic kits.

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Sucks that you couldnt get it centered... Looks good still, just not perfect, as it should for that price.

Differences: Any differences in performance with this kit compared to the Pannauto. Sound different/better/worse?

Do you feel that your money was well spent?
 
Saban said:
Sucks that you couldnt get it centered... Looks good still, just not perfect, as it should for that price.

Differences: Any differences in performance with this kit compared to the Pannauto. Sound different/better/worse?

Do you feel that your money was well spent?
Click to expand...

Performance wise it is hard to tell. There might be a difference but I really can't tell. This one just looks a lot better. I switched them because I have pistons, rods and mpi tuner on the way and as soon as I get it all i will be boosting 18 psi, after my turbo rebuild of course. I figured that I might as well get the biggest core possible if I am gonna be boosting that high.
 
strongbear0 said:
Performance wise it is hard to tell. There might be a difference but I really can't tell. This one just looks a lot better. I switched them because I have pistons, rods and mpi tuner on the way and as soon as I get it all i will be boosting 18 psi, after my turbo rebuild of course. I figured that I might as well get the biggest core possible if I am gonna be boosting that high.
Click to expand...

18 psi (humpleg)

Adam's da man (you dammmn right). Those planned mods that you've mentioned before should get you to 18! Keep sending us those progress-reports. Thanks!
 
Were you ever able to recenter it? Mine is coming soon and my car is gettting here next wed. so I am going to be installing it soon. This review is a little discouraging. I would've thought the bumper support would've lined it up perfectly. Would it be hard to center it, or does the design prevent it? I am so anal about my cars that it would have to be dead center for it to be acceptable by me.


*edit* Oh yea, was there any drilling or cutting needed? I have heard conficting reports. SOme say you have to cut holes and rebend a/c brackets etc, and some say you dont have to cut holes.
 
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Looks good. I cant wait to install mine next weekend. Hopefully I can get mine a little more centered.
 
daedalus said:
Were you ever able to recenter it? Mine is coming soon and my car is gettting here next wed. so I am going to be installing it soon. This review is a little discouraging. I would've thought the bumper support would've lined it up perfectly. Would it be hard to center it, or does the design prevent it? I am so anal about my cars that it would have to be dead center for it to be acceptable by me.


*edit* Oh yea, was there any drilling or cutting needed? I have heard conficting reports. SOme say you have to cut holes and rebend a/c brackets etc, and some say you dont have to cut holes.
Click to expand...

There is a lot of cutting involdved and you have to bend a bunch of lines. The cutting is hard because it is close to some lines and it would be easy to mess up and cut through a line. The cutting needs to be doen with a sawsall.
 
mspeed101 said:
Looks good. I cant wait to install mine next weekend. Hopefully I can get mine a little more centered.
Click to expand...

The only way to center it is to redrill the bumper support holes so that they are more like slots. That way you can have movement back and forth.

Hey mspeed101 do you live in Coral Springs, FL? Are you the guy I am installing that fmic for the day before the meet in Orlando?
 
mazdaspdprotege said:
can u post some pix of the cuttings
Click to expand...

Here is a pic with red circles showing where you need to cut. It is sheet metal, but behinde it on both sides there are brackets that are made of very strong steel that are much harder to cut without cutting lines that are around those areas. By far the hardest part is relocating the the ac condenser. The lines that are connected to it are very hard to bend without kinking or breaking them.

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mazdaspdprotege said:
does the ion fmic require similar cutting ? or its less then this ?
Click to expand...

you would have to ask somone who has the ion kit. I have heard that there is cutting invlolved but the perrin kit takes the most direct line for the pipes so I think it is better. Look at a pic of the piping for the Ion kit and a pic of the piping for the perrin kit and you can see the difference in the two. When it comes to fmic's for the msp the perrin kit is second to none.

PERRIN FMIC
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ION FMIC
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Look at the difference in core size between the two also. The perrin is 28x9.25x3.5, Ion is 24x6x3.5. Begger intercooler = better cooling especially if you plan on boosting big. Not to mention the Ion kit has 7 silicone hoses to connect the 5 pieces of pipe to the intercooler core, throttle body and turbo. The perrin only has 4 silicone hoses to connect the 2 pipes to the intercooler, throttle body and turbo. Oh and the pipes on the ion kit are made out of stainless steel, not the best choice in intercooler piping. The pipes on the perrin kit are aluminum, the best choice for intercooler piping. And then there is getting the item, ion can take forever look at their gb in the exhausts. People have been waiting for months it could be the same with the intercooler. Make yourself happy and go with the perrin.
 
all that is true but u forgot the mention the approx. 350 dollar diffrence, regardless id rather pay more and get something better and not wait months.
 
Actually the perrin is 1330.00 with free shipping from **********.com and the ion is 1150.00 plus shipping and importation taxes from canada. After shipping and import taxes the ion will be over 1200.00 and the perin is 1330.00 with no tax if you are out of the state and free shipping. So that is less than 130.00 difference. And I did some more research, there is more cutting involved with the ion kit so the choice looks clear.
 
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