Thoughts on this turbo manifold £108 delivered

[jvanzyl]

So this arrived today- took a couple of weeks..

[J88TEO]

Either made in Thailand or China, looking at the quality of the welds/joints.

[Alex Knight]

Looks fuckin' guff.
What a piece of crap.

[Gaz2405]

I'd still send it......

[jvanzyl]

So when comparing this to another option (ie zero exhausts) which will be about £1k is the consensus that it's worth saving £900?

[Call the midlife!]

Bang it on, send it till you bend it!
Bottom line is if you once build your set up around it and it only last a year you can get another one and you're back in business.
Does look a bit busy on the joins and elbows though?

[jvanzyl]

Consensus seems to be ugly but serviceable.. to be honest I'm ok with that.

[Alex Knight]

It'll crack, and you'll end up doing the job all over again to get it welded up and/or replace it.

Yes, it's cheaper, but that's only one factor.

What about the time and hassle of having to remove the whole lot again.

And you know it'll fail at the least opportune moment.

You pays yer money, you takes yer choice.

Me? I've learned a long time ago that if you buy cheap, you buy twice.

I prefer to use quality parts that I know will provide a quality outcome. But hey, not everyone will/wants to learn that lesson.

[jvanzyl]

Well - that's sounding like you had a bad experience...

Just to set context here, I'm aiming at 200whp and for every day reliable commuting.. it's not going to be tracked.

[Alex Knight]

Yes, and many, many others I've known in the last 20 years of tinkering with cars.

Back when I used to be into turbocharged cars, I gave up on stainless tubular manifolds and stuck with cast ones and quality, MLS OEM gaskets. 100% reliability since then.

I can only imagine with the advent of more and more Chinesium, the issue has only gotten worse and more widespread since then too.

Tbh, your power goals are irrelevant. All turbos get hot. That's a fact.

But hey, you do you.
You can't say you weren't warned of this, and I absolutely reserve the right to say 'I told you so' when the time comes.

Good luck.

[Zxrob]

Consensus seems to be ugly but serviceable.. to be honest I'm ok with that.

Sounds a bit like one of my old girlfriends  

Rob

[shnazzle]

200whp is a lot to squeeze out of an otherwise stock mr2 block.
That's more than the SP240 made at the wheels.

That mani is usable at best but you got what you paid for right? You were never going to get quality for 108. So in your head you've already made the decision or you wouldn't have bought it.

It'll work. But for how long? Who knows. You could get a few years of happy motoring out of it.

One other consideration... It's huge. Trial-fit the turbo and pay attention to clearances for pipework etc.

Also, check that the flanges are straight and true across all axes. There's a decent chance they've warped stuff with that welding.

Do the bolt holes align?

Place an oem gasket against it and make sure the runners even line up with the ports

[jvanzyl]

Thanks @shnazzle - ok maybe best to make it 200bhp ....

Good thing I have that spare engine sitting around, I'll try and have a look today to see how it all lines up.

[jvanzyl]

Mocked up the manifold and turbo. didn't clock it, so it's round the wrong way but at least gives the most conservative measurements.

[Call the midlife!]

External wastegate?

[jvanzyl]

External wastegate?

Can do, or I can get a Garrett actuator...

[Call the midlife!]

It's just that I couldn't see a bracket or lever for an internal and was going to suggest clocking it to make sure the wastegate actuator is in line before taking measurements.
But obviously that's not going to be an issue, as long as the intake pipe work will clear the bell housing if you're mounting it the other way in the end?

[jvanzyl]

Turns out I have the actuator and the bracket in the box.. Will try and get it assembled and clocked and try again another day..

Then I need to decide on all the rest of the jazz..