one of the threads got me thinking today. what's the deal with cast manifolds and is one REALLY that much better than another? in just cast iron we have

1. inline pro @ $375
2. spoolin @ $225
3. blox @ $215
4. random ebay listed manifold @ $70

anyone ever get dyno time in on some of this stuff?

inline



blox



typical ebay manifold



the spoolin cast looks awful similar to the ebay manifold...unsure if it is but how many places really make these things?

Not sure about the ebay manifold and the Sp but when using the blox on a vtec head you have to use a wastegate elbow or it hits the head. When runnign the Ip manifold there is no issue with that. Which means it's just a bit longer runner wise. Also I barely had to grind my block with the Ip but when I had the blox I had to grind the crap out of it.
I also know the Ip manifold has been used on 500+ hp cars.

I will be putting on a blox replica one in the next month or so when my build is done. I chose that one because mainly of the wastegate placement and the cost. Both inline pro and blox have the wastegate where the 4 runners meet so it'll help keep boost in control better. Inline pro is proven awesomeness and blox is a great cast manifold from what I hear.

The Inlinepro unit is designed better, but I am not sure if they have changed their design over the years. It's mainly due to how the runners are merged into the flange.. Each runner has its own separate path until it reaches the flange on the Inlinepro unit. Although on the pictures above, the Blox one has a similar design.

Other log manifolds, or tubular logs have the biggest downfall, which is having cylinder 1&2 and 3&4 firing against each other.

Aside from the Inline Pro manifold being cast STAINLESS, it appears to have a much better finish/quality of casting, runners appear to be larger in diameter (see the indents for the fasteners) and its been used on 700+hp cars

the cast stainless is $495, cast iron is $375, they make both.

which brings up another point. is there any a performance difference between those two?

I think the inline pro has the best design. Used one for a long time, and loved it. I dont know if they are, but the runners of the inline pro look bigger like garage 808 said. Inline Pro offers a lifetime warranty as well, though I never had to use it. Ive seen a couple other threads with people running no name manifolds like the "typical ebay manifold" in the 1st post were having problems with boost creep, some one suggested it was the location of the wastegate flange.

oh some ebay manifolds have just wretched WG locations. some position it in the middle of the drivers side runner. others like the blox have a decent one but require adapters to clean most WG flanges which adds to their cost.

what i would really like to see is runner cross section measured as well as length. i'm probably buying an inline, not sure if i'm going stainless or cast just yet but would enjoy CC'ing one vs a knock off if i could find one. would be fun to see what the overall volume of each manifold is

Based on whatever I've read, it seems the only issue is where the wastegate goes so that you don't run into creep issues. I had a turbo accord and the cheaper designs had the wastegate right on the cyl 4 primary so it took cyl 1 exhaust forever to get to it. Honestly, for cheap cast manifolds, these all seem "ok" with WG placement and i don't think they'll crack to easily.

the Blox manifold does also.

I only had to grind off the webbing for my turbo to clear using the Blox manifold. the wastegate placement looks the same as the IP but the runners do look larger.

Good question! Was wondering the same thing.

Can anyone explain?

Instead of waiting for someone else to answer I called them directly and asked them the difference between the two.

The stainless steel is 4lbs lighter, and slightly smaller (but has the same runner lengths), it also offers a lifetime guarantee. Cast manifolds are more prone to cracking if you dropped it as well. I wouldn't see that happening with a stainless steel manifold if that ever happened.

I'm runing sp log on a stock gsr and made 326 on 9PSI. My tunner said he was surpised my log put down some good numbers. Could have made more but my 440 injectors were at 90% duty cycle. I also have no clearance issues running a garrett 57trim t3/4oe.

in for more info and maybe dyno sheets?

Stock LS w/ S2 intake manifold
Garrett t3 turbo (60 hot, 48 or 52 cold)
Blox cast manifold
Precision 350hp intercooler
550cc injectors
2.5” IC piping, downpipe and exhaust
9.2psi Tuned on Neptune

^beautiful torque curve!

Great graph!

what are the changes to the 3 plots?

Stock GSr Skunk2 mani & 68mm T/B
Sp mani & 2.5 Downpipe
Sp piping 2.25 cold side 2in Hot
Sp Intercooler
Garrett T3/TO4E 57 trim 63.A/r
440cc Injectors
Hodata s300
Boost by gear 9psi

Completely stock ls with arp headstuds
Blox mani & 3" Downpipe with catless 3" exhaust
2.5 Ic piping
Cx racing Intercooler 27x10x3
Precision SC34 T3/TO4E 57 trim 63.A/r
1000cc Precision Injectors
Chipped P75 running crome free
Tuned @ 10psi

My last B16 81mm with the Blox got 400hp with a crappy TO4B at 31lbs. Now got sleeved 85mm and TO4E 60/63 shooting for close to 500 with race gas. Seen a GSR with a cast iron doing 600+

i got the IP t3/t4 and have to say quality is amazing aside from dude ****in up the wg thread hole i gotta fix now