exhaust manifold

[TheJamZii]

Hey Guys

Is there anywhere that sells better exhaust manifold then the stock one for a neon 2000 le

Cheers
James McDonald.

[nerox]

the R/T manifold or a LTH

[occasional demons]

For ease of installation, an OBX stainless shorty/midlength is about the best bang for the buck. An R/T header will need an o2 bung welded in, if you can't find a used one already done.

An LTH will require even more fabbing of the exhaust pipe/cat, extending of the downstream o2 wires....

But don't expect any real gains from the shorty header. You may get a little better sound from your exhaust, but I couldn't really tell a difference between the stock manifold, which flows pretty well to the engine's needs in mostly stock form, and the R/T header.

It may be in part due to the R/T header being matched to the larger ports of the R/T head.

Also, there is a good chance your 2000 has 2.00" exhaust pipe, vs the 2.25" that the mid/late 2001 and up neons had.

Unless you plan on doing more mods to the engine, I would save the header for a future upgrade. If the manifold was cracked, and you need a replacement, that's another matter.

But for a power gain, it by itself is about the worst bang for the buck.

An LTH might be better, but it is also a lot more involved, especially if you need to retain the cat for emissions, and hate a raspy exhaust.

[NickKo]

But don't expect any real gains from the shorty header. You may get a little better sound from your exhaust, but I couldn't really tell a difference between the stock manifold, which flows pretty well to the engine's needs in mostly stock form, and the R/T header.

But for a power gain, it by itself is about the worst bang for the buck.

Bill - I have to disagree !!
( In a good way.)


The problem isn't so much the factory exhaust manifold *itself* - It's the *other* components behind it, that are really restrictive.



Take a look at the 'tech pic' in my other thread:

viewtopic.php?t=66375&highlight=

I think that even the factory exhaust manifold by itself, would flow O.K. - with a decent exhaust behind it.



On my old 1995 ATX {~slug~} SOHC Neon , the biggest single improvement that I made to the engine, came from upgrading the exhaust system.

After I upgraded the exhaust on that car, it could actually accelerate going uphill.... without having to floor the gas pedal !!!
(Actually, that's not too much of an exaggeration, unfortunately.)



But, like Bill said - Whether or not an 'upgrade' is worth it, depends upon how much you are willing to spend.


- Nick

[jrumann59]

An OBX or Megan Racing Header is shorty they are slightly better than stock due to slightly bigger primaries and smoother air flow the downside they use cheap SS that will eventually rust out.

TTI makes a nice mid length header you may need to massage the firewall and will need to have O2 wires extended at least for the DS O2 sensor.

LTH will net you the most gains but fitment can be an issue.


If you go LTH for longevity sakes I recommend a coating of some sort our they will not last long.