Worth Replacing the Heat Exchanger?

[zillymc]

Hi all - Doing a bunch of preventive long term care additions on my 2018 ZCP M3, and I'm on the fence of whether or not to replace the heat exchanger. I plan on Mishimoto TMIC, charge pipes, oil cooler kit + Turner skid plate, and CTS J-Pipe to address known issues of cracks in charge pipes/j-pipes, TMIC leakage, and oil cooler getting destroyed. Mishimoto has the power pack which includes the TMIC and charge pipes and also the heat exchanger so I'm debating if its worth it to get that and replace the heat exchanger.

I do not plan to run a tune or turbos or anything, nor do I track the car, so the heat exchanger isn't needed from a performance perspective. Nor am I doing any crank hub work given that I plan to remain stock and not wholly bought into the CH/CBC marketing over the years. I know the stock heat exchanger has plastic parts that could crack or become brittle over the years so that's a consideration. It's probably an extra $1000-2000 in parts and labor given the job is around 3-4 hours.

I want to keep this car for many years to come as it's still very low miles (~17k) and teach my son someday years from now to drive a stick! Want to do what I can to get the longevity out of it as this platform is already proving to be very reliable with proper care.

[mike@x-ph.com]

If you don't plan on tuning the car, replacing the front mount heat exchanger is unnecessary. As far as I know, it's not prone to failure, unlike the top mount.

[zillymc]

Thanks mike appreciate the feedback - will likely not mess with it until it needs replacing!

[mike@x-ph.com]

Originally Posted by zillymc

Thanks mike appreciate the feedback - will likely not mess with it until it needs replacing!