15 replies to this topic

[benspickup2011]

Considering turboing my mini pickup, dont want to butcher the shell and came across these manifolds, are they any good, has anyone tried them out? cheers Ben

[mini13]

they are good, been used on enines making well over 200 hp

[GINO R32]

Iv got this setup in mine
spot on

[benspickup2011]

Craking, iveonly seen thephotos on thenet but it looks a quality setup. Im ony after a lowboost and around 120bhp, nothing to crazy, what sort of costs are involved in doing this? would you get the manifolds and all the pipework and s/h turbo for under £600.ive got to build a engine anyway so can sort of ignore the cost of the engine but cant afford for the budget to run away with me, Thanks Ben

[benspickup2011]

Also do they take a lot of setting up? I had a jonspeed supercharder kit on my cooper and it took quite alot of time and cash to get running right and even then i dont feel it delivered what it promised

[Turbo Nick]

well the manifolds are £350ish new or try 'matty' on turbominis for a similar setup, so should have thought you would get a turbo and pipework for £250, it'll cost you a bit more to get the rest of the stuff though like carb/inlet/plenum, fuel pump, reg, intercooler etc

[Wil_h]

I also think you'll struggle with £600, but not impossible.

Also do they take a lot of setting up? I had a jonspeed supercharder kit on my cooper and it took quite alot of time and cash to get running right and even then i dont feel it delivered what it promised

This is not uncommon with the suckthough SC setup. There are a lot of issues with these installs that mean the setup is a big compromise, hense they are trick to set up. I have found turbos relatively straighforwad to get right.

[E.L.M.O]

Considering turboing my mini pickup, dont want to butcher the shell and came across these manifolds, are they any good, has anyone tried them out? cheers Ben

Its what I will be using on my pick up before I got vaux.

[benspickup2011]

Ive got a plenum off a metro turbo, do you use this as is or does it need modding? Il be ok chopping some stuff as i can Tig weld alloy stuff at work in my spare time. Theres a very dead metro turbo at my parents house that hasnt moved for donkeys years so could liberate the carb, pump and regulator, dizzy off that. Where do people get there flexi pipes from to conect everything up? I was going to go down the route of 286 cam, stage 3 head etc but they can be quite nasty to drive and not that powerfull, Thanks for everyones thoughts, Cheers Ben

[benspickup2011]

Also for the mirage manifold will any T2 turbo fit or does it need to be off a certain car, Thanks Ben

[Monstrous]

Renault 5 GT turbo is the T2 you want

You can use the standard metro turbo plenum yes, if you want an intercooler, you'll need to cut off and re-weld the inlet to the plenum at a more horizontal angle. Apart from that you can use everything off the metty turbo for a T2 setup.

[benspickup2011]

If i run with lowish boost ( around 10psi) would a intercooler improve reliability and power by much? Best place tosource a decent turbo? guess they'l be big bucks for a new or recon one? Thanks Ben

[Wil_h]

Yes, fit an intercooler.

T2s are getting thin on the ground, but ebay is probably the best source still. I think that a GT1548 should also fit on the mirage manifolds, this is a T2 (of the same spec as the R5 one by any other name).

Although having said that the 1548 is not that easy to find either.

[deanymini]

The mirage manifold route sounds like a great way to go for more power. Can you strap it onto a 1275cc A-series without changing the compression ratio?

[oliver122]

have a look on turbo-mini , heres what i found

9.4-1 Standard Metro Turbo compression ratio. Suitable for standard 7psi of boost, a little more if an efficient intercooler is fitted.

9.0-1 Suitable for about 10psi or so.

8.5-1 Suitable for about 15psi or so, efficient intercooler essential.

8.0-1 Suitable for 20+ psi Efficient intercooler essential. Undercrown jets advantageous.