172 Manifolds....

[Jamie]

I know a 182 manifold is the popular choice but having looked at the price of them from Ktec and their 182 to 172 exhaust decat/sports cat its just too(ooooooooooo) much.

I realise the 172 wont pass with a decat and if i fitted a 182 manifold would not want to swap all my stuff each year.

Therefore what other manifolds are there for the 172 which will fit straight on and work with my current exhaust system/future s/s. I did browse google but I am not finding a fat lot.

 

[mini-valver]

The 172 manifold is better than you'll ever need to flow on a standard inlet. A 182 manifold will improve mid range torque but IMO its not worth the swap or the hype over the 172 manifold.

 

[Andyman]

You can pick 182 manifolds up for under £200. Link pipe for 100 for the proper fit one, cheaper for custom that only leaves fitting costs.

If you cant find a friendly mot tester its very easy to knock up a tempory cat and the beauty of the 182 mani conversion is, you can swap them over with only one pair of hands unlike a 172 decat set up.

 

[GazM]

would the 172 not pass the MOT with a 182 manifold and cat? Easy to swap a 182 cat/ decat if it would pass

 

[ben lee]

ive moted a 172 with a decat and it went stright thro the emission test.

 

[GazM]

ive moted a 172 with a decat and it went stright thro the emission test.

Not being funny mate but they barely pass with the cat on, my emmisions were 10x over the limit when i had the mot done with decat. Did he slip you some cash to pass it?

 

[Mark One]

It's not worth doing if you can't do it yourself. I've done a guide and although it takes a while it's quite straight forward. I chopped up my 172 cat pipe and re-welded the flanges on to make a shorter cat for MOT times. With the 182 manifold in there, it's dead easy to swap the decat>cat.
As for gains - the 182 manifold is better IMO, but most of the gain comes from fitting a decat as the 172 cat is particularly restrictive.
I'd recommend it if you can do it yourself.
As far as de-cat link pipes go, I bought the Ktec one (pics in the guide) and wasn't very happy with the quality or fit overall. It works, but you could do better with a custom job.

 

[ben lee]

Not being funny mate but they barely pass with the cat on, my emmisions were 10x over the limit when i had the mot done with decat. Did he slip you some cash to pass it?

nope was a genuine test was suprissed it went thro.

 

[Jamie]

It's not worth doing if you can't do it yourself. I've done a guide and although it takes a while it's quite straight forward. I chopped up my 172 cat pipe and re-welded the flanges on to make a shorter cat for MOT times. With the 182 manifold in there, it's dead easy to swap the decat>cat.
As for gains - the 182 manifold is better IMO, but most of the gain comes from fitting a decat as the 172 cat is particularly restrictive.
I'd recommend it if you can do it yourself.
As far as de-cat link pipes go, I bought the Ktec one (pics in the guide) and wasn't very happy with the quality or fit overall. It works, but you could do better with a custom job.

So in essence its the same as the williams/valver issues just cut the flanges and weld them in the correct places to fit?

Whats the problem with swapping the manis then is it just time consuming? The studs shouldnt be rusted should they? Is it just difficult to get it in and out without a ramp?

If I get a 182 mani and a 182 decat fancy giving us a hand then Mark? Lol.

 

[Mark One]

So in essence its the same as the williams/valver issues just cut the flanges and weld them in the correct places to fit?

Whats the problem with swapping the manis then is it just time consuming? The studs shouldnt be rusted should they? Is it just difficult to get it in and out without a ramp?

If I get a 182 mani and a 182 decat fancy giving us a hand then Mark? Lol.

I see your a member, here's my guide

I'm not quite sure how much you understand about this so please excuse me if I'm patronising at any point.
The 182 manifold is a 4-2-1, the 172 manifold is a 4-1. The 172 manifold is considerably shorter so the downpipe (with cat in it) is much longer. The 182 doesent even have a 'down pipe' as such it just flows straight into the 182 cat.
So, Question: "can I just fit a 182 manifold and a 182 cat"
answer: NO
the 172 exhaust system is completely different and the 182 cat will not fit in the space - never mind the fact that the flanges are different. Hence the need for a "link pipe" or a custom decat. Ktec sell both of these custom parts.

The difficulty in swapping the manifolds is the fact that to get the 172 manifold out, you need to drop the subframe. To get the 182 manifold in you need to drop the subframe RIGHT OFF - see the guide. Subframe removal and refit is something some can do in a little under a day and some people shouldnt dream of.
The conversion took me a day. Where are you based?

edit: your a million miles from me mate!

 

[Jamie]

I think a decat will do just fine.

 

[Mark One]

lol!

Don't worry, they are a pain in the arse too. Access is really tight on the manifold/downpipe join. expect bleeding hands

 

[mini-valver]

Subframe drop is an easy, quick job IF the captive nuts dont spin. Really though, keep the 172 mani and run cams.

 

[Jamie]

Dont like the idea of cams really. At least with a mani the whole ecu and running will remain constant dont like the lumpy idle and hunting noise they throw out. Cams are nearer a grand anyway for them, pulleys and a remap.

 

[mini-valver]

You wont need pulleys. 428's with a good map will idle just fine fella! Honestly, you'll gain very little for the cost with a 182 manifold.

 

[Mark One]

best bang for buck is AWT inlets. and cams can idle fine as said.

 

[Jamie]

Yeah, think I will see how it goes tbh. If it ends up being potentially alot in mod's I think I may look for a different car with easier gains or different all together.

 

[mini-valver]

Throw some cams in, decat your existing system and stick the battery in the boot. Completely different car.

 

[Jamie]

Cheers for the advice matey.

 

[Mark One]

not sure about 'Completely different car'
ASTs required for that