BMW E30 M52B28 HX35 Turbo Manifold

[ThatSoftwareGuy]

Hi guys,

After running my BMW E30 M52B28 swap it is time to move forward with forced induction.

I am planning to install a Holset HX35. Unfortunately I am not skilled enough to make and weld a custom turbo manifold. Also, I don't want to spend to much money and time on this.

Are there any "plug and play" top mount turbo manifolds for the M52B28 with HX35 for the BMW E30?

Already did a lot of research, but I still can't find an ebay or similar turbo manifold that would do the job.

Thanks in advance everyone.

[ThatSoftwareGuy]

The ones I found. However, these are not twinscroll as the HX35 which I am planning to purchase is.

https://www.laurent-motors.com/en/bm...0e34-bmw-.html

http://www.rapidspoolindustries.com/...50-s52-t3turbo

https://hopwoodmotorsport.com/shop/m54manifold

Please let me know if anyone is having experience with these as direct fit / "plug and play" or having a better alternative.

[Northern]

I think that "Laurent-motors" one is just the same as the 24v rapidspool manifold that a lot run. I don't want to speculate about why they are so similar, but I'm pretty happy with mine.

24v in an e30 is tight on the exhaust side, so it does a good job fitting everything without a BFH.
I initially had an HX35 machined for an HX40 compressor wheel, and the beauty cover needed to be notched to fit the compressor housing if I wanted the outlet to point down to have the charge piping run under the high beams.

The big downside is that the wastegate gasses have to do a long 180deg tube to find space to mount, some people have boost creep issues.
I have an 8psi spring and at the manifold I still see up to 9.4psi. Some people have no creep, others have it worse than me.
If you contact Otis, he can make you a top notch custom manifold to your specs, but there's a price difference over the off-the-shelf stuff he sells.


Another option is PPF in Sweden: http://server.pure-pf.com/webshop2/e...and-collectors
I think they can do pretty much any option you want, and they're very well proven, just not so well known in NA.

I also see at least one guy who keeps pushing Mint Performance stuff. They look nice, but I don't know anyone running one and I have no idea how well they work.

[zwill23]

I went with a mint performance manifold on my M20 and although the quality does seem there, the owner of that company is an absolute child. I pray I never have to deal with a lifetime warranty issue.

I spent 6 months dealing with Mint Performance and the owner Colton. After a long wait I finally received my manifold after 3 months from initial order, only to find out they mixed up my manifold with someone else and I received a 44mm wastegate provision instead of a 38mm. Colton tried to get me to keep the manifold I ordered despite him being aware the wastegate was well oversized for my setup. After finally agreeing to taking the manifold back and adding a 38mm flange, he gave me shit for the shipping cost because I insured it for the full price of what I paid. It took nearly 3 more months to finally receive my manifold again when I was told the modification would take a week. To top it off I had to absolutely hound Colton to refund the shipping.

The manifold looks very impressive, but Jesus Christ I had the worst buying experience of my life dealing with MintPerformance and particularly the owner.

[ThatSoftwareGuy]

Thanks for your response and useful information Northern

In the meantime I purchased the turbo manifold below. Could you or anyone tell me which one this is? There is no label or part number on it at all. However, the quality of the manifold like the welding and finishing does look quite good and not Chinese crap.

I found this one by accident for sale in combination with a HX35 and M52B28 (which I can use as spare engine or sell it) for a price I couldn't resist. Did all the measurements in my E30 M52B28 and it looks like it should just fit below the engine bay cover. It will be tight, but will see this next month when I will start on the turbo installation.

The big downside is that the wastegate gasses have to do a long 180deg tube to find space to mount, some people have boost creep issues.
I have an 8psi spring and at the manifold I still see up to 9.4psi. Some people have no creep, others have it worse than me.
If you contact Otis, he can make you a top notch custom manifold to your specs, but there's a price difference over the off-the-shelf stuff he sells.

I think my manifold is also having this as you can see. The wastegate opening on the manifold is ending in the front wherefore I do need a 180deg tube to route the wastegate to the exhaust side after turbo. Or aren't you meaning this?

[ThatSoftwareGuy]

I went with a mint performance manifold on my M20 and although the quality does seem there, the owner of that company is an absolute child. I pray I never have to deal with a lifetime warranty issue.

I spent 6 months dealing with Mint Performance and the owner Colton. After a long wait I finally received my manifold after 3 months from initial order, only to find out they mixed up my manifold with someone else and I received a 44mm wastegate provision instead of a 38mm. Colton tried to get me to keep the manifold I ordered despite him being aware the wastegate was well oversized for my setup. After finally agreeing to taking the manifold back and adding a 38mm flange, he gave me shit for the shipping cost because I insured it for the full price of what I paid. It took nearly 3 more months to finally receive my manifold again when I was told the modification would take a week. To top it off I had to absolutely hound Colton to refund the shipping.

The manifold looks very impressive, but Jesus Christ I had the worst buying experience of my life dealing with MintPerformance and particularly the owner.

Thanks for answering. Unfortunately I am having a M52 engine within my E30 whereby this manifold is probably no option. Saw they are also selling one a for the E30 with M52 engine, but it is laying above my budget for only a turbo manifold.

Sad to hear that you spend such an amount of money on a manifold and the buying experience is that bad.

[zwill23]

Thanks for answering. Unfortunately I am having a M52 engine within my E30 whereby this manifold is probably no option. Saw they are also selling one a for the E30 with M52 engine, but it is laying above my budget for only a turbo manifold.

Sad to hear that you spend such an amount of money on a manifold and the buying experience is that bad.

I know my response wasn't all that helpful from an M52 standpoint, but I felt like I had to provide my experience with them if you were considering going with the M52 manifold. It wasn't an easy decision pulling the trigger on mine from a cost perspective, but after reading a lot of experiences with manifold cracking and creep issues I decided to take the dive. Do it right the first time and all that...

Anyway, good luck with your build! Glad to see you pulled the trigger on a manifold.

[ForcedFirebird]

I went with a mint performance manifold on my M20 and although the quality does seem there, the owner of that company is an absolute child. I pray I never have to deal with a lifetime warranty issue.

I am local to Rapid Spool, and yes, everyone copied Good & Tight . Also to note, since we are friends, we chat often about business since we are both heavy into vintage BMW's, I cant believe how many times he warranties the product - always is on top of emails, and will even customize your manifold to suit (or make one from scratch). All around genuine dude.

Unfortunately, I believe the 24v e30 manifolds are up for a V2.0, and might be sold out ATM (my shop has been out of stock on them for a minute).

[Northern]

I think my manifold is also having this as you can see. The wastegate opening on the manifold is ending in the front wherefore I do need a 180deg tube to route the wastegate to the exhaust side after turbo. Or aren't you meaning this?

I'm not sure who makes that one, but if it fits the car, and the turbo oil drain/compressor housing/wastegate don't clash, I'd probably run it like that.

You might be able to tie into the rest of the exhaust from the wastegate by running it under the exhaust manifold? It might end up being decent routing. I think my biggest worry is the wastegate/turbo/drain clearance.

[ThatSoftwareGuy]

I'm not sure who makes that one, but if it fits the car, and the turbo oil drain/compressor housing/wastegate don't clash, I'd probably run it like that.

You might be able to tie into the rest of the exhaust from the wastegate by running it under the exhaust manifold? It might end up being decent routing. I think my biggest worry is the wastegate/turbo/drain clearance.

Can't also find any info on the manifold. Maybe some luck later.

Did not measured yet the clearance from manifold wastegate opening - front engine bay, but I think a wastegate and 180deg tube should just fit. And from there I am planning to run the rest under the exhaust manifold where it should join the downpipe somewhere again as you said.

Hope it will all fit and no other manifold is needed, but this I will see end of July. If someone in the meantime recognizes mine manifold so I have some more information about it, please let me know.

UPDATE 6-6-2020 11:25:
Found some similar shape turbo manifold as the one I have. Shape is similar as the Maximizer Turbo Manifold sold at Megatuning: http://www.megatunning.com/maximizer...52-s50-s52-t4/
Which is the same as the Becker Performance one https://www.amazon.ca/Becker-Peforma.../dp/B01M0G7FBZ
And OBX Turbo Header one: https://www.ebay.com/itm/OBX-TURBO-H...-/182554740958

These are all designed especially for the E36 chassis, so hope it will fit mine E30 as well. We will see. Keep you updated guys.