Forge Charge Cooler – BMW M3

The Chargecooler features an all aluminium construction which overcomes all the issues relating to plastic end tank splitting, failure at high boost and leaks between the core and end tanks with end tank seal failure. The end tanks are fabricated using high precision laser cut sheet metal panels which are TIG welded by hand for maximum strength and durability.

Designed and manufactured at Forge Motorsport HQ in Gloucestershire, England, we utilised our Solidworks CAD design system to assist in the creation, modification, CFD (Computational Fluid Dynamics) analysis and optimization of this innovative charge cooler. Three different core constructions were evaluated during the development process. The final design of a bar and plate core far outperformed the other two alternatives. In doing this, the Forge Motorsport development engineers have made a quadruple pass design, allowing the water to flow through four passes of the cooler which improves the cooling efficiency beyond any other products currently on the market.

Unique to the market, the Forge BMW M3/M4 S55 Chargecooler system (that also fits the M2 Competition F22 2018-) uses an expansion tank rather than a header tank like the OEM system. There is a filler cap located at the highest point on the Chargecooler allowing you to be sure that the charge is 100% full of coolant with no air pockets. This maximises the efficiency of the heat rejection of the coolant within the Chargecooler water jacket. Offering over 71% increase in volume and over 42% increase of frontal area.
In hot climate testing, constant dyno runs showed significantly lower inlet temperatures compared with the stock system and an increase in power of up to 20BHP.
As part of Forge Motorsport’s strict quality control process, each chargecooler unit is carefully inspected and pressure tested to 4BAR before despatch.
Located on the outlet tank of the chargecooler there is also a 1/8 NPT port ready for water/methanol injection if required.
The existing OEM Chargecooler rubber mounts are used for this expansion tank and Chargecooler, isolating the system from the harsh vibrations of the engine. No trimming or cutting of the vehicle is required and all parts can be returned to standard if necessary.