SonexBuilders.net

Brett wrote:I've tried the air ducts facing that way. I've turned mine around now so they face forward in the hope the air flow is directed onto the radiator. I have no way to test wich direction is better but I have no plans to swap them around again.

The turbo radiator cooling is only important after engine shutdown on the ground, so the direction of airflow shouldn't be important. From an engine cooling perspective however, you do want negative pressure behind the engine baffles and high pressure at the front. Air ducts in an area behind the engine baffles that introduce higher pressure airflow could/would reduce engine cooling airflow, I imagine.

I think it's pretty important during fight as well.

Here's where I mounted mine, I have the radiator sideways beneath the turbo and the radiator mounts to the firewall + engine mount at an angle. When the fan is turned on it has a lot of blow and I bet it will be mostly sucking air from outside the cowl on the bottom...

Rynoth wrote:This is the direction I'm currently headed with my Turbo cooling solution.

This picture shows in the top right the smaller radiator I plan to use, with the plans radiator in the top left. The rest of the components in this photo are from the sonex suggested parts:

http://www.rynoth.com/wordpress/wp-cont ... _1893.jpeg


This photo shows the suggested fan on my radiator (not yet fastened), next to the suggested radiator. I do not plan to build a duct between fan and radiator. I will use long screws or bolts to attach the fan to the heat exchanger directly through the fins, avoiding puncture of the fluid channels.

http://www.rynoth.com/wordpress/wp-cont ... _1894.jpeg

I was struggling and failing to find a place to mount such a large radiator as suggested by the Sonex plans in my legacy Turbo installation, which is why I looked for a smaller heat exchanger.



Below are 2 pics of 3" circular aluminum ducts I bought from Amazon, before and after painting.

http://www.rynoth.com/wordpress/wp-cont ... _1843.jpeg

http://www.rynoth.com/wordpress/wp-cont ... _1880.jpeg

Hey do you mind posting a link to where you can buy the radiator you chose? I think it is a much better option than what Sonex suggests. Also where are you mounting the coolant pump? Thanks in advance for the help/suggestions.

-Tim

Well I stupidly started having doubts about the vents and the practicality and theory of them facing the wrong direction. I swapped the fan flow direction and swaped the vent direction in the cowl so it theoretically sucked instead of blowing air into the radiator and low pressure side of the cowl. The engine temps remained unchanged however the turbo temp increased 70 degrees farenheit to cruise temps of 260-275 and spat a heap of coolant out apon landing. Clearly the fan was inadequate in this setup. I have swapped them back to the original way but I will block off the unused vent as this admittedly does serve no purpose. I'll change the direction of it just to make it look the same. I have about 7 hours now on the turbo cooling system and up till that last flight have had not one issue.

n307tw wrote:
Hey do you mind posting a link to where you can buy the radiator you chose? I think it is a much better option than what Sonex suggests. Also where are you mounting the coolant pump? Thanks in advance for the help/suggestions.

-Tim

Here's a link to the one I purchased: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00CFDS3JA/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I haven't been out to the plane to work on my installation yet.

Thanks Ryan!!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I have been following the AeroVee Turbo engine for quite some time and would like to go this route with my Sonex build. Everyone has recommended that I stay away from the turbo, however feel it is the best bang for the money spent when building a Sonex. I am mainly looking for the power it will provide at altitude. I am wondering if the Turbo is now a viable option with the water cooling setup being sold currently? I know that the testing is still being performed with this setup and it is only a few months old... but feel this is exactly what the turbo needed! I am just curious what builders have been experiencing with this new setup. Do you feel that the AeroVee turbo is now a reliable way to go for the little extra money spent? I am fimilar with turbo systems and have one on my Subaru, so I am not going into this blind. I personally think it is a great option for additional power and do not feel the turbo is pushing the VW beyond its limits. I have been interested in this engine since I first saw the EAA webinar on it with Jeremy Monnet. I just want the engine to provide reliable power at altitude for decent cross country speed and feel it is worth the extra $3500 invested! I plan on starting my build this summer and am just trying to lockdown what this project is going to cost me. I would love to hear some more information about the water-cooling from current Turbo owners! I just would like some insight on whether or not you would recommend the Turbo AeroVee now that the turbo is water-cooled...

Are there any additional upgrades to this engine that you would recommend to make it even more reliable? SCAT split heads? Oil separator etc etc?

I greatly appreciate any advice ahead of time! I have been following this thread since last Fall...

Best Regards and Blue Skies!

Nic

I have 10.3 hours now after the weekend on the turbo cooling system.

I am wondering if the Turbo is now a viable option...

If you are not in a rush to buy the engine - I'd wait and see! It looks promising but 10.3 hours of success from one of our members is not a lot of data yet. How long will your build take? I am on year 5 and am asymptotically approaching the finish line. Unless you are one of the lightspeed guys who can build (and afford) the whole thing in a year, time is on your side. As for me, my plan has been upgrade to a turbo after 5 years of flying without​. Should be plenty of time for the bugs to be worked out.

Regarding Scat split heads - why? I have a pair for my 1/2 VW Hummel engine. Seems like a lot less cooling area than a full head.