Megan Manifold or Stock ?

[NiZMo1o1]

I have a blacktop S13, im looking to upgrade to a T28 from either a s14 or S15,

Ive heard others that the stock manifold is better than aftermarket ?

http://www.zilvia.net/f/showthread.php?t=144499

This is the reason I ask ^^ is it worth it to get a tublar style ? or just keep the stock manifold ?

[azndoc]

Search. I know it's been discussed a few times already.

I did the MR manifold for a year or so, it didn't crack on me. Now I upgraded to a Tomei one and love it. Some MR last and others don't. Just how it goes with MR manifolds.

GL

[arkive43]

yea aftermarket mani any brand is less restrictive. megan is a lil better than ssautocrome. but will do the job...i say go for it you can get the flange cut(fogot what its called exactly) to lessen the strees from the weight of the turbo so it will not crack.

[swayray]

they are ok... although they crack past 360 hp...

also make sure you retain you bolt brackets.... else your turbo inlet bolts will always come out loose....

oh yeah... its best to match it w/ a flex downpipe... i almost forgot to mention that....

[NiZMo1o1]

they are ok... although they crack past 360 hp...

also make sure you retain you bolt brackets.... else your turbo inlet bolts will always come out loose....

oh yeah... its best to match it w/ a flex downpipe... i almost forgot to mention that....


Flex downpipe? because of viberation?

Currently the car has a aftermarket downpipe already on it.The Megan manifold seems like its almost stock ( As far as where the turbo and the charge pipes go)

[kensreliableb18b]

they are ok... although they crack past 360 hp...

also make sure you retain you bolt brackets.... else your turbo inlet bolts will always come out loose....

oh yeah... its best to match it w/ a flex downpipe... i almost forgot to mention that....


you mean you've seen them crack when pased 360.

seen MR hold up to 400+ to wheel. some crack.

oh, and those brackets? doesnt matter, shit will back out if they want to--locking plates or no locking plates.

[NiZMo1o1]

you mean you've seen them crack when pased 360.

seen MR hold up to 400+ to wheel. some crack.

oh, and those brackets? doesnt matter, shit will back out if they want to--locking plates or no locking plates.


hmm in that case will the stock manifold hold that much without cracking ?

I would like to try to push 350 but no more than 400...

[90widebody]

I have the Megan Racing Manifold, Turbo Outlet and Flex downpipe and have great sucess with it. I have a Blacktop with S15 T28 and it works great. Like they said above if you want to go over 360hpiih you will want something better. I am pushing 320whp with no problems.

[kensreliableb18b]

hmm in that case will the stock manifold hold that much without cracking ?

I would like to try to push 350 but no more than 400...

if you're hesitant because you're afraid the mani will crack, just stay with the stock mani, it'll be fine.

i've used an mr mani, holds up fine, as have others. price is cheap, so why not?

and for people who wanna spend money on a fullrace, spend it on their topmount, not their bottom.

[swayray]

^^^^^

yes... yes and yes....

if you are planning on investing alot of $$$ to push no more than 400 hp... you'd be better off investing more $$$ on a better manifold... eg... azndoc's Tomei...

listen to the doc... he is a smart d00d....

mine crack at 250hp (w/ version one) i drove 3-4 events per month and daily drove my car back then... no flex pipe and bolt brackets (i used the red lock-tight but that did not work)

version two had better welds but after constant use w/ 360 hp... it would still crack
mine held on well w/ the flex pipe and bolt brackets on w/ no issues...

i'd still recommend a better one if youre planning to get close to 400 hp....

[DJ_Sunrise]

i love seeing people dump money into their cars and buy cheap shit megan racing. its cheap. you get what you pay for. no, its not worth it. the reason you need a flex section in the dp is to reduce the chances of it cracking. also, you should buy CS exhaust hanger bushings to further help out. spend your money on worthwhile shit like the Tomei Expreme. A ton of people on these forums have these mani's and absolutely love them. thick ass flanges and runners, amazing spool, much better power. full race is expensive as shit. great, but expensive. Tomei is middle grounds.

-Bart

[johngriff]

How many people have used the DCSports/AEM bottom mount mani? Any better in terms of quality?

[driftertim]

I think the stock one is good for your application. Once you have the coin to get a downpipe with a flex in it and can afford a quality manifold like DC, Tomei etc... keep the existing one, if youre really horney for flow get it ported and use brand spanking new nuts n bolts from a Nissan dealership. you see the guys in Japan who know their shit use the stock Mani- as well pushing 300++ thats my 2 cents

[azndoc]

Thanks swayray.

I mean the MR exh. manifolds are pretty cheap on egay and their everywhere. Buy one try it out. But my suggestion is that you buy a S15 metal exhaust manifold gasket. It's mulit-piece and works awesome. Better than the POS that MR ones comes with. Also change the rectangle gasket that connects your turbo and the manifold together section. You might as well.

The MR downpipe with the flex section will prolly help. Fitment sucks on it though, really close to (actually up against) the bottom frame rail.

Try it all out and decide for yourself.

[Dousan_PG]

if ur making 400 hp w/ a megan mani
u suck

get a real quality mani and not only make more power but also have a manifold that isnt a piece of shit.


for stock, sure, i'd rock a megan.
why not.
if it breaks who cares. shits cheap

making decent power. get real.

[ixfxi]

ive always wondered.......................... why?

you start with stock. if you want to experiment, especially with something iffy.. buy it used. or buy it dirt cheap where its not a big hit in the wallet.

then, when you've fucked around with cheap shit and learned your lesson, buy the quality that you can afford.

some people just need a lesson in budgeting. theres nothing wrong with stock, it works until a stud snaps and seizes in the manifold. then what? then get another for 20 bones, or ditch it and get something better.

personally, i HATE.. and I mean fucking HATE dealing with cheap shit. if the manifold cracks and I have to end up unbolting a bunch of shit just to change something, that pisses me off. i love buying quality parts, and am willing to wait.. save.. and sacrifice so i can eventually buy something good.

[fliprayzin240sx]

Me personally, I think any aftermarket manifold will crack. Just a matter of time. Ofcourse the quality ones will last longer than others. Only thing you can do is try to alleviate it from happening by adding a flex pipe in the dp, getting stiffer mounts to keep the engine from torquing sideways and stressing the maniforld.

But if youre really worried about cracking it, stick withe stock one and just port/hone it out so itll flow better. I dont think theres much of a difference between the stocks and MRs.

[CKAMC]

lol last i remember blair still had a stock manifold on his car and was pushing 350 to the wheels

[DriftSpecS14]

i have seen dyno charts of tubular manis against stock and tubular actually cause a loss in power.. stock mani FTW hone the stock mani and keep your midrange

[fliprayzin240sx]

Better yet, upgrade to a top mount and ditch the T-2 flange. T-2 flange is the biggest thing that holds the power down.

[NiZMo1o1]

Thanks for the input guys , I used to own a Fully built KA-T Altima , Stolen then had a s13 coupe with a KA-T and sold it, then went into Maximas for awhile , Still own 2 Maxi pads, but Until my recent purchase I had no clue that the aftermarket compansy for SRs out there, I didnt realized Megan was your typically Ebay stuff.
The U13 Altimas and A33 and A34 Maximas didnt have this much of an impact.

I know some of you guys are tired of seeing these threads but for some reason my Search never comes back to the answer im searching for.

I still have alot of research to do , and I want to appericated you guys for the info and heads up. I guess 300-350 would be enough cause im not setting the car up for drift , just something for my weekend to cruise South Beach with.


Thanks again,
-NiZ

[NiZMo1o1]

Better yet, upgrade to a top mount and ditch the T-2 flange. T-2 flange is the biggest thing that holds the power down.

Yea im sure that would make some power but I already have it setup with the pipes for bottom mount and I dont want to dump too much into this car,

I Invest 15gs on the Altima in 1994 to get it where it was and it was stolen in 2000. I just want something fun to drive on the weekends.

It is a addiction but imma try to keep it simple with bolt ons for now and maybe a upgrade turbo.

[CKAMC]

HKS top mount 50 size runners....T4 flange

on the cheaper side peak performance has a nice T3 top mount

is 42.6/42.7 the magical runner size for these manifolds?

[jspecusa]

it's not hp that cracks the manifold, it's how hot it gets.
people who have daily drive the car around would have less chance of cracking then a guy beating on the engine going sideway at the track.
another reason why it cracks is because people have too low of exhaust/downpipe and every impact will go toward the manifold at the end it'll just crack.
I have use many type of aftermarket manifold over the years even the $1,600 cracks.
at the end I only trust cast iron manifold/log style, cuz if you ever driven a 300+hp s chasis you'll know traction is the biggest problem so for a street car no need to go over 300hp.
on a full race car you might as well get a custom manifold made and use quick disconnect.
in any type of racing people can tell you it's all about the $$$ spend.
good luck,

sam

[ixfxi]

it's not hp that cracks the manifold, it's how hot it gets.
people who have daily drive the car around would have less chance of cracking then a guy beating on the engine going sideway at the track.
another reason why it cracks is because people have too low of exhaust/downpipe and every impact will go toward the manifold at the end it'll just crack.
I have use many type of aftermarket manifold over the years even the $1,600 cracks.
at the end I only trust cast iron manifold/log style, cuz if you ever driven a 300+hp s chasis you'll know traction is the biggest problem so for a street car no need to go over 300hp.
on a full race car you might as well get a custom manifold made and use quick disconnect.
in any type of racing people can tell you it's all about the $$$ spend.
good luck,

sam

greatest advice, ever.

even monkeys fall off trees. all manifolds are destined for failure on turbine pushed cars, but cast iron is for the win. unless you're running a different style turbo that requires a custom manifold setup, cast is OK (for me atleast.)

http://www.flyinmiata.com/turbos/images/IMG_4112.jpg
^ check out flyin miata, their new manifolds are also.. cast iron. [email protected]

[eastcoastS14]

^^ Jspec speaks words of truth...over 300whp on a street car and traction will be a serious issue, Ive had that much hp and my current 240 is gonna be 250-270whp range cause 350whp was just insane...also my top mount cracked...so im goin KA-T with a megan or an ssautochrome on this one....if it breaks fuck it ill get another one since theyr so cheap

[DJ_Sunrise]

like ixfxi said.. going in to replace shit just cuz it cracked or broke pisses me off too. like my megan turbo outlet.. ive been running my tomei mani, mr outlet, dp, apexi n1 dual together for about a year.. i just realized it cracked at the 5 bolt flange. who knows how long ago that exhaust leak was there.. POS. now i have to unbolt the mofo and replace it along with gaskets..money needlessly spent. had i bought greddy or tomei outlet.. this BS wouldn't have happened. spending $200 on tomei over $110 for MR would have basically balanced itself out. rawrrrr. i just bought tomei outlet.. no more worries of it going bad, atleast for a lot longer than a year. the gaskets and hardware included with tomei products are OEM usually.. not cheap hardware. the gaskets and hardware that came with my tomei mani were all oem. all crush seal gaskets, and exhaust mani gasket was s15 multipiece. yummy :) if you do go with MR, make sure to buy OEM gaskets and hardware.. and retap any threads that stuffs not going in like a hot knife thru butter. this will make the setup more reliable.. and at the very least easier to replace if and when the mani cracks :). the dc sports manis are also quite good.. quality pieces. but.. for the price of that manifold + oem gaskets and hardware, i figured i would spend an extra $100 and go tomei. hope any of this helps you man

-Bart

[steve shadows]

I have a blacktop S13, im looking to upgrade to a T28 from either a s14 or S15,

Ive heard others that the stock manifold is better than aftermarket ?

http://www.zilvia.net/f/showthread.php?t=144499

This is the reason I ask ^^ is it worth it to get a tublar style ? or just keep the stock manifold ?


just keep the stocker.

btw on the issue of using the cast/log style for longevity and brute force at sub 400whp levels.

the treadstone manifold seems to be getting decent reviews on FA, but you will need to port match the bitch.

[axiomatik]

someone did a dyno test between a cheapo tubular (ebay or megan) and the stock cast iron mani and found that the tubular didn't really add any power. You're really just paying for eye candy and less durability. stick with the stock mani for now, replace it when you can afford a better one. and make sure to add a flex section to your downpipe. when your exhaust moves around or hits a bump, it acts as a giant lever-arm on your mani, causing cracks.

[Shaminii]

I'd say go for it. They're cheap anyway. What do you have to loose?

[steve shadows]

I'd say go for it. They're cheap anyway. What do you have to loose?

constant cracking, annoying fitment issues, no overal gain in performance...:wackit:

Im a big fan of ugly but works.

or clean but works.

shiny is the best marketing ploy ever.

If your running a T2 footprint turbo with any compressor smaller than a to4 40 trim, then you really don't need anything different an dit will not make any noticable change in power.

Save some money, buy a better turbo or get your stock one upgraded by me or some other turbo shop (ie comp wheel, clipped turbine, rebalanced etc).