Lets talk aftermarket turbo manifolds.
 

I am torn on which route i want to go with a turbo manifold.

I am tempted to spend the money on a "commi"-fold from china but i know how they are quality wise. Bolt holes like to not be spaced well....

Then the option for finding a used HKS casr manifold comes up. They only seem to have new ones for the FD (figures)

Then there are places like Turblown who make VERY nice pieces, but at the cost of about two weeks pay...

Can anyone share their thoughts and experiences?

I need a turbo, so i might as well go T4.

The rx7store.net manifold may look like it's the same as the chinese ones, but it's actually much better quality.

after looking at it, i would almost bet money that its a commi-fold.

fab up your own. it's what the cool kids do. I'm honestly going this route because the turbo i'm putting on is MUCH larger than stock. Also makes things easier to fit my wastegate on and what not too.

i really don't WANT a huge ass turbo. Its just that hybird stuff seems to limit a lot of my options. For what its worth i really want to just get myself a used cast manifold im thinking.

It is :)

I'd recommend A-spec for a quality manifold. Only downside is for the FC the manifold is only avalable as a package with turbo wastegate downpipe lines/fittings/etc. Although it can be a pricey package altogether, its all super quality stuff that you'll need anyways for goign single. I purchased a 3574 kit in their august sale last year for about $2400.

EDIT: Noticed your last post. The cast stuff is also great, I've ran one for YEARS and loved it but wanted better spool up etc. If you're planning this route take note of the engine flange as I had a used one and needed to get it surfaced because of some tiny exhaust leaks there.

i am not opposed to just getting a package deal, but ill have to price compare.

The GT35R kit would probably be "up my alley" per say, but i all depends on pricing.

My other consideration is tuning. I dont want to go way out into left field on having to get a over the top ecu (ie haltech) I would rather it remain somewhere in the range of stock computer with something like an Rtek 2.0 or the like.

I highly recommend the RTek 2.1 (It's what I currently am running in my car: S4 NA). Also the AFM delete may be coming around shortly (read about 6 month time line before production). They're in the testing phase of that.

that would be nice.

Now not to say that if i get a good deal on a used Haltech or the like, i would be on it. My biggest mistrust of my car is the original wiring.

The other thing is i like my car for its handling, mountain road fun (1/4 the reason im moving to colorado) not really for its 1/4 mile times.

Turbo shouldn't really effect your ability to handle, it just alters your torque curve. You'll need to become familiar with it before hitting the mountain roads like you used to, but that should be it.

i was more mentioning i dont have use for a T1000 or whatever people are lusting over these days. But a GT35R type turbo would probably be about perfect, or anything else ball bearing....mmmmm.....

Oh i see. I'm going to use a 60-1 ;) with ceramic ball bearings :D

They must've improved the quality of the chinese manifolds then, because my friend looked at the rx7store manifold and an ssac manifold side by side and could tell the difference.

there are generally more than one manifold made there, especially for the FC

He's running a GT4088 on 23PSI and hasn't had any issues with it yet, it's been on there at least 6 months now.