I decided to replace my crusty old stock intercooler in the TD5 Defender and put in an upgraded and much larger Allisport variant. A simple enough job but you will need a hacksaw!
Pop up the bonnet and undo the four screws to get the front panel off.
Remove the four plastic screws holding the cowl above the fan and move it out the way.
Undo the 13mm bolts (13mm socket) at the bottom of the struts
Undo the bolts on either side plate (10mm left and 13mm right – no idea why) to free the bonnet rest and remove it.
With the hoses undone and the two bolts undone at the top left and top right front-facing holding the intercooler to the radiator, you can wiggle it free.
Getting the much bigger intercooler in is a little bit trickier.
The intercooler has two pins that drop into hoops either side of the radiator and two more on the front that fit into hoops hanging off plates either side of the engine bay, bolted to the Defender’s body.
Remove the right-hand plate (your right hand as you look towards the car) or at the very least, remove one bolt and loosen the other to swing it up and back out of the way.
The left-hand plate supports the bonnet strut. So either remove or support the bonnet another way when you remove the metal work.
If you do a trial fit, you may find your radiator has brackets that stop the intercooler getting close enough to the radiator for the pins to engage. If so, get out the hacksaw.
Fit the intercooler into the radiator brackets and re fit the left hand metal work to drop onto the front pin and secure in place.
The right hand pin may be more of a challenge, requiring you to get the hacksaw out again to trim a corner off of the bracket to stop it fouling the intercooler.
With both brackets down and the metal work bolted back into place either side, but not tightened up, put the front bolts in and then tighten everything up.
Don’t forget to connect the hoses!!
Put the front struts and bonnet support back in. If you didn’t unbolt the struts from the bonnet stop, it’ll make it easier to ensure bonnet alignment right about now.
Replace the fan cowl top. Put the front back on.
Check everything then go for a test drive!
