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That "wastegate dump" is absolutely hilarious. Just a complete joke. I'm sorry for the headaches you've had to deal with from Kmod, they're a perfect example of horrendous customer service. I'm amazed they're still open.
Honestly if you paid on a credit card I would have tried getting a refund on it through your bank/CC company, and keeping the kit until it was squared away.
Finished wiring in the fuel pump today and tested it. All is well and surprisingly the fuel regulator kept 50psi. I figured it would sky rocket since it was setup for the stock pump. Also finished wrapping my hot pipes and made sure to cover that ugly *** Kmod logo on the manifold. Bolted all the hot pipes in and started getting the car ready for the initial start up. Gonna give Derek Robinson at Innovative motor works a call soon and pay down on my tune so I can get a base map. I don't plan on driving it under boost but I do want to drive it enough to ensure the coolant system is burped and functioning properly. Also I want to make sure all is well with the freshly built transmission and new engine before going to get tuned since I live 8 hours from their shop.
Also finished wrapping my hot pipes and made sure to cover that ugly *** Kmod logo on the manifold. .
Just know that wrapping the headers will shorten their lifespan. Don't know if you particularly care too much about that at this point since I think we're all on the "**** Kmod" train anyway.
Their welds look pretty but honestly I've always wondered about the penetration. Their welds look shallow, or like they're grooved in between the piping.
Their welds look pretty but honestly I've always wondered about the penetration. Their welds look shallow, or like they're grooved in between the piping.
I'm going to be 100% upfront here and also say I've never welded a single thing in my life, this is just what I've read and what I always thought of when I saw the Kmod manifolds.
If the welds are good then that's at least good news. And honestly the manifold looks pretty amazing, it's just a shame their such a **** company and the rest of their kit is shoddy.
Just a word of caution about silicone couplers. Get the ones from silconeintakes.com, They are thick and have 4 plies of stitching. Sucks when you have a sweet set-up and a burst silicone coupler sidelines you at an event. Ask me how I know.
Just a word of caution about silicone couplers. Get the ones from silconeintakes.com, They are thick and have 4 plies of stitching. Sucks when you have a sweet set-up and a burst silicone coupler sidelines you at an event. Ask me how I know.
Vibrant also makes really nice reinforced couplers.
I make sure to always use those on the compressor outlet because the housing will typically get hot enough to melt and tear the cheap rubber AutoZone ones.
Just know that wrapping the headers will shorten their lifespan. Don't know if you particularly care too much about that at this point since I think we're all on the "**** Kmod" train anyway.
Their welds look pretty but honestly I've always wondered about the penetration. Their welds look shallow, or like they're grooved in between the piping.
I don't find that statement to be true at all. At least not when the exhaust manifold has been well-constructed. I've had wrap on exhaust manifolds for many years that never compromised the integrity of the welds of the exhaust manifold, or have any other ill-effects.
Like with everything else, preparation of the application is key. (How you you prep the wrap to put on the exhaust manifold, and how well the manifold is constructed.)
I don't find that statement to be true at all. At least not when the exhaust manifold has been well-constructed. I've had wrap on exhaust manifolds for many years that never compromised the integrity of the welds of the exhaust manifold, or have any other ill-effects.
Like with everything else, preparation of the application is key. (How you you prep the wrap to put on the exhaust manifold, and how well the manifold is constructed.)
What would be your recommended procedure on that then? (Maybe send me a PM on this so we don't clutter the build thread).
I'm legitimately interested because I'm ALWAYS looking for good ways to keep engine bay temps town, but I've consistently heard nothing but bad news about wraps on every article I've read. I've wrapped down pipes and dump tubes before but wasn't as concerned with the longevity of those pieces since they're significantly easier to fabricate than a full manifold.
What would be your recommended procedure on that then? (Maybe send me a PM on this so we don't clutter the build thread).
I'm legitimately interested because I'm ALWAYS looking for good ways to keep engine bay temps town, but I've consistently heard nothing but bad news about wraps on every article I've read. I've wrapped down pipes and dump tubes before but wasn't as concerned with the longevity of those pieces since they're significantly easier to fabricate than a full manifold.
stainless manifold. I prefer lava wrap but either one should be fine.
water can get trapped between the wrap but when using stainless it's not an issue. Also it's best to coat it before wrapping
I have greatly considered the idea of the manifold's lifespan being reduced by wrapping it. But I do feel that its still going to last me several years if treated right (unless the welds don't hold).
The thing that made it ok with me was actually several things lol.
1. I do not care for Kmod in the least degree and if I hadn't wrapped the manifold I was planning to grind the logo off the mani.
2. I have several things behind the engine that touch the hot pipes. (heater hose, main harness, and oil feed/drain to turbo)
3. the theory I have read about is like stated above when they get wet they hold moisture. Everything I wrapped was in the back of the engine bay and at least a foot from the ground. hopefully for the most part they stay dry.
4. Engine bay temps to me was a must to keep down and I really didn't have interest in tucking brake lines. I realize many don't worry or tuck the brakes but I am looking at long term usage.
5. I have done a little research on hood risers and I personally wouldn't want to use them
I hope making this in a list didn't make me sound like an ***, that's just several reasons that I felt best suited why I wrapped them. Now that they are completely wrapped I gotta say I like the look!
I have completed about 90% of the build (other than misc. wiring reinstalling the interior and burping the coolant) Today I fabbed up my intake and let me tell you what a hellacious intake I have made! I wanted the biggest K and N Filter I could possibly fit in the engine bay and well I got it! It took a lot of eyeballing, a lot of homework, and a lot of thought but it really worked out well. The filter is for a audi R8 and the dimensions were 4in boot, 6.25 in wide and 7.5 in tall. Believe it or not this filter fits perfectly under the hood and can flow a **** ton more than the rest of the setup. I do plan to go bigger in terms of power and setup in years to come and I figured the filter is going to be around 50 bucks regardless so why not keep the same one. It has a 1 million mile guarantee and It looks bad ***....
That all being said. I finished up some vacuum lines, primed the turbo several times with the injectors and coils unhooked, then pulled the oil feed at the filter to ensure that the turbo had been getting oil, I setup Kpro for the deatchwerks injectors and changed the iacv setting for the new engine ( old one was deleted) and then the magic happened.
Not really it spit and sputtered in a glorified attempt to start but would die off before being able to idle on its own. It was so rich that if it set a minute or two I could hit the ignition and it would fire up for a split second and die. But I got in touch with the shop that did my fab work and trans rebuild and got a basemap to burp the coolant with. I didn't have time to try it out today but I will report in tomorrow.
took this pic right after finishing all the exhaust wrap....didn't realize what a crap photo this was!
Oh and btw Dark teg I totally agree with you on the couplers and silicone intakes does make some damn good ones. Unfortunatly the two on the bottom pipe with bad fitment were the only ones that will fit there and they are hella thin... If they blow I will likely sell the intercooler, sell the piping kit to someone with the right intake manifold at a very discounted price, and do a center feed setup with 3in aluminum piping, vband joints, and a backdoor style intercooler. That's overkill at this level but I am not staying at this level forever. I honestly wish I had meet the guys at Freedom motorworx sooner. I would be running all custom pipes, hot, cold, etc.
What would be your recommended procedure on that then? (Maybe send me a PM on this so we don't clutter the build thread).
I'm legitimately interested because I'm ALWAYS looking for good ways to keep engine bay temps town, but I've consistently heard nothing but bad news about wraps on every article I've read. I've wrapped down pipes and dump tubes before but wasn't as concerned with the longevity of those pieces since they're significantly easier to fabricate than a full manifold.
You're thinking of the old soaking method where you soak the fiberglass based wrap in water then apply it on, and all that jazz. With pre colored black wraps and titanium DEI wraps with better materials, there hasn't been a problem in years.
So I don't have any golden nuggets of wsdom or secret methods.. I just use good material
I was just going to say that lava wrap/titanium wrap on manifolds won't compromise anything. Wrap it tightly and securely w/ the right overlap. The fiberglass based (soak it first, pull it tight wraps) are better left on exhausts, painted headers etc (or on coated manifolds). They go on damp and basically constrict as they dry.
One thing I'd add is a bracket of sorts to that lower charge pipe to keep it from vibrating and also get the stress/fatigue off the hump in the coupler which would lead to a tear in even the best coupler over time. I'm all for a silicone multi ply coupler! I stock hundreds, and have used thousands over the years. I may have replaced 5 due to some sort of tear, zero to a pressure burst.
One thing I'd add is a bracket of sorts to that lower charge pipe to keep it from vibrating and also get the stress/fatigue off the hump in the coupler which would lead to a tear in even the best coupler over time. I'm all for a silicone multi ply coupler! I stock hundreds, and have used thousands over the years. I may have replaced 5 due to some sort of tear, zero to a pressure burst.
the problem with that lower charge pipe is a story in its own. basically the kit doesn't fit my manifold and Kmod offered advice that I cut a certain part of pipe to make it fit. That wasn't working so I simply took that piece out. its hard to explain but it was at such an angle when I kept that piece that even a 45 degree coupler would not have made it fit. unfortunately the front coupler on that pipe is bent downward and the back coupler is bent upward.
I hate that it is like that, I really do. But until I get a couple custom made pieces its just not going to work. It would be a real shame if I blew a coupler at full boost and harmed my turbo because of this. I like the idea of bracing it though that will probably help it to make it until I can get a custom piece. It if wasn't aluminum you guys would have already seen my mad welding skills.....lol at my welding skills.
I do wonder if I could get by better using two of these? they are a 30 degree bend. I would first want to figure out a way to see what angle my current pipes are at. These couplers are 17 bucks a piece so after shipping that turns into a 40 dollar question....
Ok so here's an idea! This is the front coupler. Its not exactly a 30 degree bend, eyeballing it I would say its more like 20 degree. I cannot get the picture of the back coupler to load for some reason but it is at the same angle only flipped upside down. With both couplers fighting each other I believe that replacing the back one with a 30 degree coupler will give more angle in the back and straighten out the front one, at least a little. Also this would help tuck in the piping as its hanging a little low for my liking but hey, nothing else in this kmod BS has been correct either.
I am going to order one and if it doesn't completely fix it I may just hack up that extra piece I deleted and give myself a little more angle.
It would be a real shame if I blew a coupler at full boost and harmed my turbo because of this. I like the idea of bracing it though that will probably help it to make it until I can get a custom piece. It if wasn't aluminum you guys would have already seen my mad welding skills.....lol at my welding skills.
Luckily with the turbocharger you have, the likelihood of overspinning the unit from that condition is very slim, unlike with the journal bearing systems in which that sudden change in pressure from the coupler popping off would cause the trust bearing /collar to shift, causing issues. The Ball-bearing race cages are much more robust to handle such a situation.
I would also stay away from the 3" intercooler pipng. Unless you're going for over 850whp+, your airflow isn't making enough speed to warrant that. 2.5" piping goes a very long way.
Goldiewang: Do you have a pic of the charge pipe in a bind off the car? ( I just happened to have a 92-95 K car sitting here w/ that same intake manifold on it)
10-11-2017, 02:36 PM
re: Goldiewang's K20A Swapped TR3030R "VelociRaptor" Project Build
