to tell you the truth I had a drag manifold and the shit cracked. then I bought the ss one off ebay just to get up and running again and it did just fine with my ls/turbo hatch. don't get me wrong there are still plenty of other manifolds that are way better. but I see no problem in getting it for just a cheap build. I ran a 13.5@106 with shit tires with just a stock ls/turbo setup running the hack.
SS AutoChrome Manifolds
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mattcalica
Senior Member
i am running that manifold and you know what? with the right braces in the right spot, and a little rewelding, the manifold holds up great. dont expect it to last right out of the box, but with a little reworking, its a great manifold for a great price.
Cashizslick
!i!i!i!i!i!i!i!i!i!i!i!
Thats the general consensus. if you are serious about runnin that manifold then make sure you adequately re-inforce it.
Speaking from experience, I've had two of these manifolds on a turbo LS, with a T3 .50trim turbo putting down 210-220WHP.
The first manifold cracked after ~6 weeks. The wastegate basically sheared off of the side of the merge collector. 100% unmodified manifold from SSAC.
I returned it on warranty and got a second one. The second one received some additional love before going on the car. First and foremost, a piece of flat bar was welded from the turbo flange to the wastegate flange in order to provide a compressive load and stop the wastegate dump tube from shearing off. Secondly, I spent literally about 45 minutes with an air grinder polishing up the inside. Special attention was taken to remove all obstructions to the wastegate exit that were present in the form of unevenly cut pipes. Also, the merge collector itself was cleaned up slightly.
The second manifold lasted ~2 months and I totalled the car. I've already sold it as part of my old turbo setup, so I'll let you know how long it lasts in its next owner's car.
I've got some pretty good digicam pics of the modifications done in round 2: http://www.pgmfi.org/~blundar/ssac_mani_try2/
The manifold is of budget origins, shit quality but I think is great value for money IF YOU CAN WELD and take the time to love it, since the people who made it sure didn't give a fuck when they created it.
And FWIW, .48AR .50trim T3 turbo, 3" downpipe, no cat, 3" pipe straigh back, 3"in/4"out Apexi N1 muffler with open dump tube, had ZERO boost creep issues with 5, 7 or 10psi springs.
The first manifold cracked after ~6 weeks. The wastegate basically sheared off of the side of the merge collector. 100% unmodified manifold from SSAC.
I returned it on warranty and got a second one. The second one received some additional love before going on the car. First and foremost, a piece of flat bar was welded from the turbo flange to the wastegate flange in order to provide a compressive load and stop the wastegate dump tube from shearing off. Secondly, I spent literally about 45 minutes with an air grinder polishing up the inside. Special attention was taken to remove all obstructions to the wastegate exit that were present in the form of unevenly cut pipes. Also, the merge collector itself was cleaned up slightly.
The second manifold lasted ~2 months and I totalled the car. I've already sold it as part of my old turbo setup, so I'll let you know how long it lasts in its next owner's car.
I've got some pretty good digicam pics of the modifications done in round 2: http://www.pgmfi.org/~blundar/ssac_mani_try2/
The manifold is of budget origins, shit quality but I think is great value for money IF YOU CAN WELD and take the time to love it, since the people who made it sure didn't give a fuck when they created it.
And FWIW, .48AR .50trim T3 turbo, 3" downpipe, no cat, 3" pipe straigh back, 3"in/4"out Apexi N1 muffler with open dump tube, had ZERO boost creep issues with 5, 7 or 10psi springs.
Sil VurFoX
Member
I should have taken pictures this morning for you guys. My SSAutoCrap exhaust header has busted for the second time. 1. st the external wastegate split 3/4 of the way around the diameter of the tube and tried to jump through my hood. 2. where the footprint of the exhaust housing mates, it cracked 1/2 of all the poor welding they have on it. My local welder has the exhaust manifold and I'll have it back tomorrow so I can take some pics of all the re-work you have to do on a crappy manifold. Call south florida performance like I did and get a good EM for about 5 nuggets. My 2 cents guys.
jeffsciv23
Senior Member
i took mine to my friend that works in a welding shop for him to check it out, all the welders there said that the reason it's probly been breaking for everyone is that they tried to weld two differant metals together with shitty rod. i went and got some "super missle" rod for them to reweld it with a tig on friday. i'm pretty sure it will still break but it just might not break as easy with that. another guy used a piece of 1/4" steel bar to brace the manny to the block just for extra support. i might try that also.
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