So I'm generally not one to redo work so I'm thinking, while I have the turbo out for the 71 and O2 housing upgrades, should I look at doing something with the exhaust manifold? I can do a ported setup through MAP which I like because I can keep the stock heat shield. For $100 more I can pick up their short runner manifold which seems like a good, happy medium between a full tubular setup and a basic port job. What are my options for temp control on the MAP manifold? Anyone have any firsthand experience with it?

 

i have their short runner manifold. its a nice piece but im sure its a rebranded titek or whatever jdm one. i had mine temp coated but its still hot as crap, maybe not as hot as if it wasnt.

i think u should upgrade the stock manifold. since its already out its easy to do.

 

Any manifold that does not fit the heat shield, you can have it ceramic coated. I got mine done in gold.

 

you probably wont notice that much of a gain with a ported manifold and you would make more power spending that money towards a green upgrade. the 71 is nice but what the point? it will create too much torque where the engine cant handle it, and it will fall off way to early. go with the green now and save up for the map long runner or the toxic fab stock replacement as those will give you a nice amount of power over a ported stocker. good luck!

 

^^^ Yeah, I agree. Plus if you were to port the manifold, you might get some inversion, so you'd have to port the turbo hotside as well, and if you were to do that, you might as well port the O2 housing, and intake manifold....sigh! That's the route I took thru Curt Brown (he did a great job), and I made very good power with my last tune. Sure, a tubular manifold would gain a few more horsepower, but for the price, is it really worth it (and you'd have slightly more lag)? Unless it's your last mod, you're better off putting your money elsewhere (like bigger turbo, E85, or cams). I'd say, if you're happy with your turbo, then port everything. You have many options!

 

Downtime. My IX is my DD and I don't have access to another car. I am under the impression I have to send my turbo in for a Green upgrade whereas with the 71 I can get everything minus the hotside and do it all in a day on the weekend. I can't have my car down for three-four business days while I wait for a turbo upgrade to be completed, unfortunately.

I do appreciate the guidance though, it does sound like a ported manifold on this setup wouldn't give me much "ROI" if that makes sense.

 

By "inversion" are you talking about surge? I have never heard anyone use this term in all of my time on evoM. Anytime you can have parts ported, it is a benefit flow-wise and no where does the "rule" state if you have this ported you should have that ported. It is a good rule-of-thumb to know that there is untapped power on the table when you do not have certain parts ported.

For the tubular manifold discussion, I am not sure what you are talking about when you say a "few more horsepower" as that is pretty inaccurate. There are many tests on this forum showing great gains (~20-50whp depending on turbo application) with a tubular manifold with only a minimal increase of spool (~150-250 RPM). If you do not want to go the tubular route, then I would look into the Buschur or Curt Brown ported OEM exhaust manifolds respectively.

Then you mention cams in the equation which will also push the powerband to the right a tad depending on your turbo application as well.

 

Veering back to the 71HTA vs Green argument; that kind of thing can get out of control quick - a Green isn't much more than a 71HTA... a red isn't much more than a Green, etc... My tuner will be able to keep torque in check I am sure, he knows stock block IXs very well. The 71HTA is capable of 50 lb/min which is plenty. There are a few charts kicking around here with 400 awhp on mustang dynos which is plenty for my goals. Lastly, if I were to order a brand new JB HTA Green I'm looking at $1000 more than the cost of the HTA upgrade for what, an additional 50 whp potential?

 

I have seen a few 71HTAs here in Arizona make 480whp and 480wtq.

 

I've decided to leave the manifold and hotside alone for now. I am applying that $300-$400 towards GSC S2s and GSC beehives. I feel like those are a better bang for the buck and I'd really rather have those in place before Devin gets his hand on the car for my tune. October is going to be a fun month