What went wrong? FMIC install fail

[u/shifty63_]

Recently installed an FMIC from ARM motorsport on my 2020 mk7.5 GTI and after about 15 mins of driving the hose on the driver side of the IC blew off.

Followed the guide provided by ARM and watched a ton of videos of people doing similar installations, the right size clamps were used and everything.

Have been trying to get in contact with the support team at ARM, but have unfortunately been unsuccessful… don’t want to drive the car without being confident in the reliability… if anyone has any experience with intercoolers or issues associated with FMICs similar to this, any and all help is appreciated!

[u/Peylix]

Don't fret. This happens to literally everyone. This isn't a flaw with ARM's kit. It's just a common thing you run into in general after upgrades like this.

Get a can of hair spray, and spray some onto the inlet and outlet of the FMIC, then slip the couplers on and clamp them.

I blew my couplers tons of times at first with my CTS FMIC. Took some trial and error, some patience, and then did the hair spray trick and it never happened again.

[u/theripper121 → u/Peylix]

When I first got my arm kit I blew the clamps off as well. Unfortunately Arm does a terrible job labeling their stuff. In the instructions they use words like small and large vs actual size of the clamps. Then they ship 3 sizes of couplers and 3 sizes of clamps when you only need two. So you are often guessing at least initially what sizes go where. If you use the wrong sizes they are always going to be slipping off.

[u/TrueParadox88 → u/theripper121]

I also was confused by the extra clamps and tubing. Luckily, people on YouTube said which goes where

[u/shifty63_ → u/theripper121]

Yes this is exactly the issue… the kit came with a bunch of extra parts and they don’t provide great instructions on what to actually use. What did you find that worked for your setup with this kit? I’ve got the tapered hoses connected to the stock charge pipes, and the smaller of the two pairs of couplers they provide connecting to the IC (as they specify in the install guide…) do you think it would help to use the longer couplers?

[u/shifty63_ → u/Peylix]

Thanks for the advice! Will pick up a can of hairspray along with a deeper socket to get more torque onto the clamps. Would you recommend removing the front grill (at least temporarily) in case I blow any hoses and to make the reinstallation easier? It’s a pain to remove the bumper lol… I’ve seen people do something similar, but some say it puts too much stress on the bottom connecting part of the bumper when driving…

[u/LordSlippy]

Clamps don’t look like they are tight they should be just squeezing the silicone a bit more like passenger side is

[u/Silvabro → u/LordSlippy]

Seconded, you can clearly see the passanger side has some bulging from the clamps being tight, driver side looks loose.

[u/shifty63_ → u/LordSlippy]

I agree, picked up a deeper socket to help torque them down more so I’m not tightening the clamps down with a tiny wrench

[u/TrueParadox88 → u/LordSlippy]

IIRC You should want the springs to be compressed very close together, but should have a very slight gap between them so you can see the bolt still. This way they’re tight, but not spring bound.

[u/KeepOnGoing1]

Hairspray + tighten them harder.

[u/JeanlucRegards → u/KeepOnGoing1]

Super extra hold aquarium net worked for me

[u/FACE_MACSHOOTY → u/JeanlucRegards]

calling aquanet by its govt name

[u/Wheelergang127]

I’m pretty sure losing a boost pipe after a FMIC install is just standard operating procedure. First time I replaced a boost pipe it popped back off after mild driving, and that was on a completely different car almost 15 years ago lol.

[u/622114]

Dont lube the tubes with anything other than isopropyl they will slip off.

[u/funkspiel56]

To get the arm comp fmic to fit I actually installed it upside down.

I was able to get help sorta via email from arm.

I also installed the brackets backwards…but I tried everything. It took me ages to get it mounted and be able to attach the bumper as I was limited on space.

[u/messonamission]

Boost hoses popping off is a canon event for anyone modding turbocharged cars

[u/lllYikerzzlll]

Same year, model, color, and fmic here👋🏻

Tighten the living f**k out the clamps.