air to water is shit for daily. but super efficient for short burst stuff, and use ice.

v-mount to me is a waste. it works, but 99 out of 100 setups have a hacked up car and you have to run a vented hood (if you're into that).

shorter ic piping is not better response. the differences are negligible really, unless you're comparing piping lengths from 240 v-mount to a fmic kit on a suby (which has like 20 feet of ic piping)

powdercoating can reduce efficiency, since it is a thicker base, and can clog fins. rattle can isnt much better but you'd really have to stop and spray on one spot for it to clog up a fin. rattle can usually looks like charred asshole though.

the proper process to get a "stealthy" black IC is to have it anodized. anodizing is a process done to the metal, not a coating, so the metal retains its properties for the most part.

and IMO, in final, just get a FMIC. if you wanna be stealthy, get upgraded SMIC (ARC, mk4 supra), or use black mesh to kinda hide it. 6 billion SR owners who use FMICs can't be wrong lol (or can they?)

if you're overheating, you're either not using the stock clutch fan and shroud, or you need to step up to a koyo.