Just figured I'd chime in. I'm coverting for the stock intake mani to a 2.4 unit and adding a water to air with the stock intercooling system + H/E. As far as it being bulky it's going to be easier to mount than running an a2a into the bumper.

There is a perfect place for one right in front of the oil filter behind the radiator. the piping is going to come right over the motor into the w2a where it does a 180 and then another 180 into the intake mani. I'm going to start the project in September and I hope to be done before the track closes for the winter in October.

 

you are getting it all wrong. The temp of the charge air is going to be the same in either system. The air that is doing the cooling of the core in the air/air intercooler which cools the actual charge air is always going to be ambient, or very close to it. The liquid in an air/liquid setup (not just water) will eventually heat soak way past the temp it was in ambient air and lose it's cooling advantage over an air/air core. air/liquid is better for dragging, but over long distances air/air can't be reliably beat with a system that is suitable for daily driving.