Page 7 - Engineering

Much like the sharpened blade that it takes its name from, Polaris's RZR is a purpose-built tool designed specifically for making precise cuts through the rugged wilderness. The 925cc torquey twin paired with forced induction, knobby tires, and long-travel suspension, all placed neatly in a fun-sized chassis makes this side-by-side the ideal specialty tool for off-the-grid excursions. Much like an actual razor, though, this machine needs constant honing to retain its sharp performance, and in this case, our whetstone is the intercooler.

The OEM intercooler is one aspect of this rugged rig that can dull the performance of your turbocharged RZR. Of course, it's not necessarily in terms of cooling power. Still, the high demand for this vehicle across treacherous terrain knocks this intercooler around enough, which can lead to cracks and leaks in the charged air or, worse, the coolant running through the core.

For any community, the wants and needs of the enthusiast essentially boil down to style and speed. These Broncos already roll off the assembly line looking the part, but, let's face it, we all want that extra grunt under the hood, no matter the reason. These Off-roaders weren't exactly designed for speed, but some extra ponies added to the pack only make the Bronco more capable when the trail gets treacherous. One of the best stepping stones on the quest for additional power out of your rig comes from an intercooler upgrade. While the 2.7L powered Broncos are packing more of a punch than their four-cylinder 2.3L counterpart, they both share this same key to that sequestered power potential, and now we'll see what the 2.7L has hidden away.

To unveil the 2.7L Bronco's hidden performance, we're

Plotting courses is a significant part of a life off-road. While these Broncos are designed to take on any spontaneous adventure and leave the asphalt behind, knowing your path home is a vital part of any journey, no matter what vehicle you're piloting. Like mapping these off-road excursions, the quest of packing more ponies into the 2.7L EcoBoost is a long and sometimes complex. Upgrading the intercooler piping is one of the vital legs of the journey, but Ford's layout can leave some aimlessly wandering this part of the wilderness. Not us, though. In our last post, we found our way through the jungle under the Bronco's hood, and now we're plotting the course.

We've all heard it before - Failing to plan is planning to fail. It's an old adage, but it still rings true, especially regarding your off-roading adventures. Nothing makes you feel quite as stranded on the trail like forgetting a crucial part of your recovery gear or vital tools from your kit. Having a plan in place is great in theory, but it still needs to be implemented. Making checklists of the gear that needs to be piled into your rig and shakedown runs is ideal for keeping you and your Bronco from being stranded. When it comes to our snorkel kit, we have the same mindset with our design and decided to set up a shakedown run of our own.

As we covered in our last post, these Broncos come prepared from the factory for life off-road. Well, mostly. Ford might have incorporated provisions to protect the intake against dust and water, but these enemies of the

Navigating the engine bay of the 2.7L powered Bronco was quite an arduous journey. The maze of hardlines, pipes, and fluid hoses added a degree of difficulty to our journey, but we were still able to find the hidden treasure buried under the dense labyrinth of stock components - more power. The success of this expedition was explicitly tied to our fresh new intake design that's now found a home in the 2.7L EcoBoost jungle and is contributing to its thriving ecosystem.

To find out just how much this kit is contributing, we started on our flow bench. The SuperFlow SF1020 is equipped with an array of air pumps and precise air metering equipment that provides our engineering team with an instant calculation of the airflow restriction between the stock system and our new design. If you want to dig deeper into our flow bench system and testing methods, make sure you head over to our in-depth tech article - Flow Bench Equipment Profile.

Deep breaths. The slow, methodical inhale and exhale helps us land-dwelling mammals find a sense of calm focus. Breathe in".breathe out. Zen. Breathing deep has parallel effects on our horse-themed adventure machines. Where the additional air in our lungs enhances our mood and focus, these fuel-burning Broncos are dead set on a longer stride and quicker gallop. So far, we've spent months training our 2.3L powered Bronco on its new breathing exercises, and now the time has come to see if they've paid off.

Our tests start on our flow bench. The SuperFlow SF1020 is equipped with an array of air pumps and precise air metering equipment that provides our engineering team with an instant calculation of the airflow restriction between the stock system and our new design. If you want to dig deeper into our flow bench system and testing methods, make sure you head over to our in-depth tech article -

Deep in the bowels of every EcoBoost engine is a penned-up herd of wild horses dying to run free. These ponies are destined to stretch their legs, but Ford's quest for a comfy, affordable off-road machine forces some of the herd back into the stable. Luckily, we have the right tool to break them free to join the pack and maybe even add a few more to the 2.3L's numbers.

To find out how enticing our intercooler is to the wild horses living under the hood of the 2.3L powered Bronco, we needed to run some tests, starting on our flow bench. Our SuperFlow Dynamics SF-1020 is packed with an array of air pumps and complex metering tools that help us determine how well the charged air will flow through our improved core. Make sure you head to our equipment profile to learn more about our

Toyota's toughness isn't just limited to the multifaceted pick-up trucks in their lineup. Some of these trucks developed super-specific skills like navigating challenging terrain without breaking a sweat. Enter the FJ Cruiser. This towering off-roader might not share the same skeleton as its pick-up cousin, the Tacoma, but both of these trucks share the same beating heart dispersing power and traction to dominate dunes, crawl through crevasses, and ford raging rivers, all of which are not places you'd want your transmission to give out.

Unlike the utilitarian-based Tacomas, the FJ Cruiser lacks the external support for maintaining transmission fluid temperatures. Both platforms utilize a heat exchanger built into the radiator's cold-side end tank, which manages the automatic transmission

The WRX will forever be an enthusiast car. While the initial reactions to the latest iteration of Subaru's sporty sedan we're as gleaming as they once were, the essence of what made this namesake legendary still lurks under the slick new styling, layers of tech, and plush comfort features. The turbocharged flat-four mated to a full-time AWD system that still powers the WRX today is why it rumbled its way into our hearts and many of our driveways. As this rally racing legend evolved into the VB platform, however, some of those rambunctious roots were forgotten along the way, but we hope to jog its memory.

Some things never change. Like how Subaru hasn't strayed from its boxer engine layout since its introduction, we enthusiasts often start our automotive attitude adjustment with

The toughest trucks on the planet are typically sporting a Toyota badge. The Hilux might be the model responsible for Toyota's rugged reputation, but that same DNA runs through the oil passages of the trucks we see on and off the roads here in the States. Specifically, the multifaceted Tacoma has become our crowd favorite, from commuting to the office to hauling you and all of your things across the wilderness. While plenty of things make all of this possible, the transmission is the driving force to accomplishing these tasks, so keeping the drivetrain in good health is imperative.

Extreme heat is the enemy to any component driving the Tacoma, especially the transmission. The fluid running through the planetary gears and clutch packs pulls double duty between cooling and lubricating the