Is this custom manifold any good???
 

Hey guys I found a cheap manifold, any of you guys had any experience with it?

Does it mount the turbo in a good location on a Series 4?

And does it stand up to the heat fine or does it crack after a while?

Those crack.

I have access to a tig welded if i put some gussets on the top of it between the engine exhaust flange and the pipes would it be ok? I could tie the turbo back to the motor with a tie rod or similar as well.

I just don't have a lot of spare cash to spend on a manifold and am keen to get one, but they all so damn expensive.

I am sure the main reason those manifolds crack is due to the weight of the turbo plus the heat build-up in addition to the poor manufacturing process. If you are on a budget and this seems like it will work out for you then adding the reinforcements to remove the load off the manifold would help with longetivity, you have the idea.... I have heard the quality of the welds with the cheaper manifolds may not be the best, also the fact that sometimes the flanges are not even perfectly flat. Be prepared to reinforce the manifold and maybe touch up on some of the manufacturing work as a precaution, but if it's something your good at then it shouldn't be a problem.

I haven't heard of this brand particularly, but I am speaking from the "ebay style manifolds" side of things...

Its not the quality of welds, its the tubing wall thickness, and the tubing material.

Get an cast hks manifold if you are on a budget.

^^ What he said, get a HKS or GReady cast manifold if budget is tight. Also note, those cheap POS, eBay JUNK, CRAP, GARBAGE, manifolds are designed for FD's, so using it on an FC would require cutting it up and re-welding the turbo flange so the turbo doesn't hit the LIM or using an inferior on-center turbine housing.

~Mike........

They do make the el cheapo fc manifolds. Actually the welds on mine where very high quality (brought it to one of the best welders around) however like others have stated the wall thickness and material used is the problem area. I'm looking for an HKS replacement as well.

Oh really, I have read they use just 304 stainless steel which is really the most heat resistant stuff. If the problems are going to be with the wall thickness not the welds then I don't think its worth getting it ay.

And yea a HKS cast one would be good but I haven't managed to find one cheap that will ship to New Zealand ay.

Have you checked the sale forums? I think I just saw an HKS cast mani for sale the other day. I don't see why the seller wouldn't ship to NZ unless you wouldn't pay for it. [shrug]

Also, idk where you found this manifold but just because they say it's made of ivory and pixie dust doesn't mean it is.

They are made of 304SS. However that is a loose term, the quality of the metal varies highly from country to country. I have tried re-welding one that cracked several times. You could see the poor base metal impurities boiling out when welding. It just kept on cracking...

It's cheap for a reason... E-bay cheapo specials do quit very quickly.

buy your own material and make one if your on a budget and can weld.turblown sells materials: www.turblown.net/store

Yep. You can even mig your own mani up if you're on a budget.

Beveled/preheated joints are your friend.

Weld el's, son.

weir tech.

http://www.weirtech.ca/

I also found non-welded seam 304 weld els that are DIRT cheap. You weld the seam up yourself. An extra little bit of work for a lower priced quality custom manifold......


Dont run ebay trash.

Yea I have been toying with making one for a while.

Just don't want to make one that doesn't help it go any better. Both the exhaust runners need to be equal length and the wastegate pipes need to be equal length as well ay? I am seriuosly thinking about just making a steam pipe one it seems to be the best way to make one. All the stainless ones sound like they crack at some stage.

Yeah, you could make one out of sched 40 or sched 10....something like that.

Use thick wall tubing and use common sense when bracing the manifold and it shouldn't crack.

Those gussets i see on ebay manifolds look like they just add stress points to other areas of the manifold.

Keep the turbo weight off the runners and stuff should not crack. Find a way to brace the flange to the intake mani, an old air pump bracket, the exhaust flange that bolts to the engine, old emissions bolt holes.... Something.

The only reason i could see to buy a china manifold is IF it comes with an honored warranty.

Sellers say "will not crack". If that's the case, why not offer a 1 year warranty against defects? 6 months at the very least.

Some are better built than others. Again, find a seller that will warranty items when they go if you're on a budget and fabbing is not feasable.