What are the advantages and disadvantages of cast iron vs. SS manifolds for single turbos?

Thanks,
David

 

i gather you mean mild steel, not cast iron???
or are you refferring to the standard manifold??
if you mean an aftermarket ss manifold in against the standard cast iron manifold, get the ss one!
it will last 10 years no worries
and be better as it will be desgined for more power, not for aesthetics in an oem application

 

i sounded like a tool then
wot im trying to say, the standard manifold is more restrictive than a properly made aftermarket manifold

 

No offense taken. Actually, I was referring to manifolds for a single turbo conversion for FD series cars. I believe HKS makes a cast iron manifold which places the turbo next to the motor. Other companies fabricate stainless steel manifolds which place the turbo further forward in the engine bay.
Cost?
Durability?
Flow characteristics?
Weight? SS wins here.

Thanks,
David

 

I will be using the hks cast for my fd. I am not a turbo expert but, from what i have herd. Cast retain heat better than the ss ones do. there are good and bad about cast tho. I think the closer to the exhaust port the better, less time for the exhaust to travel to get to the trubo. most stainless manifolds are farther away from the exhaust ports. this probably is not that big a deal on a rotary cause of the larger amount of exhaust puls they put out. I think both would work well. the cast will have a better chance of cracking over time due to the constant hot and cold periods. and the stainless will probably last a lot longer. I think it is how much you want to spend. I would like to of had a stainless, but I cant afford it. and I like the turbo down lower, if i wanted i could run the airpump still.
not sure if any of this helps, but maybe one of the experts has better advice.
-James


------------------
mako-
93 montego single turbo haltech ect.. soon to be done!
90 Integra daily dragster

 

cast iron is better than S.S. taking heat. the problem with cast iron is that it's soo heavy and hard (expensive) to make a manifold w/ equal length runners...S.S. is much easier to work with



[This message has been edited by Poweraxel (edited June 05, 2001).]