Example car: Subaru WRX
If you upgrade nothing on the vehicle asside from the intercooler being moved to the front, at what point is the car faster.
A longer, larger series of pipes, with a larger intercooler core would take longer to pressurize than the smaller intercooler that sits atop the engine. The front mounted intercooler however would be brining in a much colder intake charge which produces more power. So at what distance would the front mounted intercooler car (longer pipes, larger core to fill, but colder air) win in a race compared to a stock intercooled car (small core, short pipes, hot air because it sits above the engine). Both cars of course identicle setups with no modifications.