HPD REPORTING FOR SUPER DUTY
The high performance diesel specialist is ready to assist customers with the Ford Ranger Super Duty variant
HPD is proud to confirm it has been able to source a Ford Ranger Super Duty to make sure its market-leading Diesel Next Gen Ranger/Everest/Volkswagen Amarok V6 intercooler, transcooler, and catch can kits suit this popular variant.
“We can confirm that HPD’s Aussie made intercooler and transcooler kits fit. A small modification on mounting brackets was required on the ARB bull bar fitted to this example,” HPD Sales Lead, Rob Varga, said.
“The Super Duty will require its own HPD catch can kit, which should be available by the time you read this article.”
Why the big demand?
Rob says that just like it has previously experienced with 300 Series Landcruiser, many Ranger owners are telling HPD that the factory cooling arrangement is not good enough for towing.
“HPD products are considered by many to be the best on the market to cope with the extra heat generated in the drivetrain when towing typical modern 2.8 tonne plus caravans,” Rob said.
“Everything we do is done properly, the brackets, the welding, the shroud, everything! Nobody makes kits like us.
“Dave Mitchell our boss and leader overengineers everything! It is there for life,” boasts Varga.
The overheating issue is said to be further compounded by all the usual modifications for touring and off-roading like bigger tyres, bars, racks, upgraded suspension, canopies, drawers, and so on, all creating even more strain and therefore more heat in the already stressed V6 engine and ten-speed gearbox.
Thicker than most
After a thorough research and development program, HPD’s Next Gen Ranger intercooler, transcooler, and catch can kits were released in October 2023.
The huge all alloy, 76mm thick bar and plate intercooler unit reportedly provides a massive 222 percent increase in cooling volume compared to the small plastic/aluminium factory unit, according to HPD.
“HPD are the only Australian manufacturer to offer a 50mm thick bar and plate transcooler core with end tanks CNC machined from solid billet alloy,” Rob claims.
“These transcooler end tanks have a minimum wall thickness of 3mm and are bonded to the super-efficient bar and plate core by class leading tig welding.”
Testing times
Impressive results have been reported by HPD during in-house dyno testing.
“We saw impressive cold side temperature reductions of 30 – 45°C compared to the far smaller plastic/aluminium factory intercooler unit,” HPD’s Karl Venning, who oversaw testing during the R&D program, said.
“With the HPD intercooler fitted, no matter how hard we pushed, we didn’t see intake temperatures above 40°C.”
Four ingredients for class-leading performance
Importantly, HPD says the intercooler’s impressive reduction in intake temps does not come at the expense of higher coolant temps.
It explains that this is thanks to the following four reasons:
- The bigger alloy bar and plate intercooler creates lower intake temperatures which translates to lower EGTs and lower engine temperature, putting less strain on the engine cooling system.
- Unlike other products, HPD says its transcooler is integrated neatly on top of the intercooler instead of in front, which adds airflow restriction to the intercooler (and radiator).
- During the comprehensive design and testing process, HPD says the coolers and bracketry were all positioned to receive optimum airflow, without negatively impacting other parts of the vehicle. Drawing on HPD’s vast experience and expertise, the team says they identified the need to develop a bespoke fan shroud. Like the OEM plastic fan shroud, the HPD replacement aluminium shroud seals against the radiator fan to draw and channel air with maximum efficiency through the front of the vehicle to the HPD coolers as well as the factory cooling system.
- Fitting a HPD transmission cooler kit to the Ford Ranger provides the transmission its own tried and proven air-cooled system rather than contributing heat to the engine cooling system (or receiving hot coolant to the transcooler).
Why the need for change?
The HPD intercooler and transcooler kit was updated mid 2025 with redesigned bracketry.
“The revised kit was developed due to a couple of Next Gen Ranger owners fitting bigger aftermarket radiators as advised for GVM upgrades,” HPD Owner, David Mitchell, said.
Fitting a bigger radiator required the AC condenser to be moved further forward providing poor clearance between the big HPD intercooler and the condenser.
The new brackets allow adjustability so that the HPD intercooler can be mounted as far forward as required to provide ample clearance for the condenser.
“Being a market leader, we used this opportunity to reengineer the intercooler and transcooler kits to withstand body movement on the chassis better than the original kit during extreme offroad conditions,” David said.
“We genuinely want our customers to have the best products available.”
The massive crack
Inevitably, for such an immensely popular vehicle, around Q3 of 2025, HPD says the “Crack” happened – factory ECUs could now be accessed, and professional custom tuning packages became available.
“Several tuners around Australia recognised the superiority of Australian made HPD intercoolers to others on the market, in terms of performance, quality and ease of fitment,” David said.
“This lifted demand even further. One highly regarded tuning company reported that with the HPD intercooler fitted, astonishingly, they did not see intake temps above 35°C during their dyno testing compared to well over 60°C with the factory intercooler.”
Prevention is better than the repair bill
More than ever, consumers and workshops are taking great care in their choices.
“We’re finding that new vehicle owners (and of course workshops), now more than ever, spend a lot of time researching how to improve and prolong the life of their investment,” HPD Marketing Manager, Peter Melegh, said.
“That’s why they call us! They understand that engine and transmission protection measures implemented now benefit their vehicles and their hip pocket years down the track, when their vehicle is no longer under warranty.”
For more from HPD, visit www.hpdiesel.com.au
