Exhaust manifold from hell

[impinhigh]

R16 Stock manifold and exhaust
The pull of the drive train over the long weekend went pretty much as planned with the following exception:

Could not get the exhaust manifold to release from the exhaust pipe, did get the 3 nuts and the tri-angular shaped flange to pull back but, still could not separate the two parts. We had to resort to disassembling the manifolds from the head and removing the starter motor to snake the motor around the loose exhaust manifold….. major pain.

The manifold is still attached to the exhaust and in the engine compartment as we speak. Before I go in with a cutter, am I missing something?? Shouldn’t it just slide out?

thanks
Matt

[SLOroadster]

The stock manifold is a P.I.T.A. for both cars. It should just slip apart after you remove the nuts and bolts. One thing that will make your life a little easier is using a 2 liter starter (its shorter) and headers. I'd guess that your manifold is just rusted together and if you smack it with a rubber mallet a few times it should come apart. You might spray some WD40 on it and let it sit for a little while.
Good luck,

Will

[S Allen]

Yeah, they are pretty much a pain in the -ss. On my 65 1500 with the R16 in it I had to remove the leaky old stock R16 manifold to put a header in its place. I did not have any trouble getting the tailpipe seperated but I could not get the darn thing out without pulling the motor. I loosened up the motor mounts and jacked her up as far as I could and still no joy. I finally broke out the Sawsall and cut the thing out. It leaked anyway. I would recommend a penetrating fluid like PB Blaster. WD-40 is okay but it is better at displacing water than loosening up rust. Spray some of the PB on let her sit for a few hours and the rubber mallet should pop her loose. I am pretty sure Walmart carries PB Blaster. A word of caution though--PB Blaster is highly flammable and you should not apply heat from a torch unless you like to fight fires.

Steve

[impinhigh]

Will & Steve,

I’ll give the PB a try tonight but since you brought up the subject of Headers, should I replace the stock manifold with a Header? I’ve read that it makes little difference in a stock R16. I will need to shore up this stock unit as I see cracks in the transition section. Is the 150.00 Header worth doing for other reasons than performance?
BTW-I did a compression check right before the pull and here’s what I found
1-165
2-158
3-160
4-165
This appears to be in good shape, correct?

[S Allen]

I think spending $150.00 on a new header is money well spent 1600 or not. The design on the stock exhaust manifold was good but a header provides even smoother flow. That is a first step in the direction of having a peppy R motor. Next--when time and budget allows you can slap a bit more radical cam in and an EI dizzy and you will be surprised at how well an R16 can run. They are great little motors. I say go for the header. My two cents anyway.

PS:Those compressions are really good for a typical motor. She is still pretty tight!!

Steve

[Russell Roach]

Matt,

My 2 cents worth! Throw that manifold as far away as you can call Dean at Fairlady products and get one of his JET HOT coated headers around 250 but well worth it. Let me know when and if you plan to do cam work I have acouple of grinds that work really well.

Best of Luck,

Russell

[impinhigh]

Ok, so it sound as if the header is an essential at this point…I already have a GB dizzy installed so I got that covered. I never have enough money but, I do have is time and opportunity as the engine is out of the car and will be for the next 60 days or so. As somewhat of an engine building novice tell what does it take in time and money to hop up the cam in this stock R16?
Matt

[S Allen]

I was hoping Russ would chime in first. Your best bet is to give Joe of American Cam Grinding a call (909-599-1225) and discuss the griinds with him. Tell him you want to give your 1600 a little more pizaz<SP> but still keep it street driveable. I believe he can grind you a cam and you send your old one in as a core. I could be wrong on that but call Joe as I have heard nothing but good things about him. The cam swap is relatively easy especially since you have the engine out of the car. I think Robert Browne paid less than $100.00 for a cam for his stroker. Russ, anything else to add?

Steve

[Russell Roach]

Steve,

Absolutely right! Joe Bray is a class act and awfully knowledgeable about our engines. Matt I don't know what you are looking for my cam is really alot more than you would need for street use its 450 lift 290 duration I'm also running smal block chevy valve springs and it's really lopey. To quote a friend" I didn't know a four banger could sound that way" I went from hey it runs nice to HOLY SH*$ this thing screams!!

WWW.Americams.com

Let him know who referred you let him know we are being loyal.

Best of luck,

Russell

[Russell Roach]

http://americancam.tripod.com/

Sorry posted the wrong website.


Russell

[impinhigh]

Thanks Guys! I'll give Joe a call and let you all know what happens.
Matt

[SLOroadster]

I have a set of the jet coated headers on my car they keep the engine bay far cooler than noncoated ones. I got mine from CDM for about $250. If you really want to have some fun, scrounge around and see if you can find an intake for a set of 40Phh Mikunis. Those with a hot cam will make your car really go.

Will

[Ponder]

For me to be strictly legal in H stock autocrossing, I'm going to have to find a OEM exhaust manifold. I assume finding a used one that's in decent shape would be well-nigh impossible. It doesn't seem like a good condition used manifold would be the type of thing that would exist. Rallye has them and are pretty pricey.

Rallye also has a resonator for sale. In Grassroots Motorsports early this year (?), they had an article on improving the performance of an MGB. I've kept the magazine around somewhere as I think it's a pretty good reference for what I'm needing to do. They had an MGB on a dyno and were trying things. They change the "cat"-back exhaust (header back, anyway) and then, I got the impression, that they added a resonator. This improved their dyno numbers by a couple of HP. I had this filed in the back of my head until I found Rallye's resonator.

What is a resonator? What does it do? How does it increase HP? Is it used in an exhaust system with the muffler or did I read it wrong and it replaces the muffler?

Thanks in advance,
Steve

[S Allen]

Ponder,

I am no expert by far but resonators have little to do with actual pefromance and more to do with the sound of the car. When a muffler alone cannot reduce the noise of an engine by itself, sometimes a resonator is added at the end. Resonators are kind of like a muffler, but they are usually just straight thru. Where as mufflers have a series of holes and passages to reduce the engine noise and as well as create backpressure. Resonator tips are added at the end of the exhaust system to take care of any noise that has made it through the muffler or to provide a deep exhaust tone. Any way, that is the way I understand it. I could be full of it though!

Steve

[Russell Roach]

steve,

I have a stock exhaust manifold you can have! Just pay for the shipping. It will be one more peice of junk I don't have to look at.

Russell