I am putting together my entire exhaust system for my X, one thing i cant seem to find a lot of info on through searching is porting/polishing/ceramic coating the stock exhaust manifold compared to purchasing/upgrading to an aftermarket exhaust header/manifold.

Can anyone help discuss the pros/cons to port/polish/ceramic coat the stock exhaust manifold vs upgrading to an aftermarket exhaust header/manifold?

Are there any power or strength issues or limitations to going with the ported stock mani?

MAP has their porting/polish/coating service for the X priced at $469.99

An example of upgrading the exhaust mani/header would be like the MAP tubular exhaust manifold priced at $899.99.

If im not mistaken, this choice can be affected by what turbo i plan to upgrade to in order for the turbo to bolt up correctly/right size etc correct?

Please advise!

 

Unless you go to a t-3 setup fit to the turbo will be the same. The tubular will be the same bolt pattern as the stocker.

You won't be able to reuse the heat shield on the tubular. Stocker is cast and therefore stronger than tubular in theory. It will make less power on the top than a tubular. So if you are trying to max out an aftermarket turbo stocker will be a restriction. If you are staying with stock turbo or the smaller aftermarket stock frame turbos you will be fine with the stocker ported. Tubular manifolds supposedly add a small amount of lag compared to the stocker. Keep in mind that Map will give you credit when you send your stocker in while buying a tubular manifold, which helps with cost difference. Lifetime warranty on their manifold too I think.

But you are 100% correct with matching it to your desired turbo. Either way coat the manifold whichever it is.

 

Thanks for your reply, i appreciate the information! Sounds like ill keep the stocker and get it ported and coated.

On another note, i have heard that while ceramic coating an EX manifold will reduce engine bay temps, it also insulates the heat and can cause the manifold to be more prone to cracking?

 

And keeping the heat inside makes more power too