why wont someone step up and make a 3" dp?

[TType84]

okay.. i know its possible..

if you can fit a 3" dp on a supra, a WRX , and all these little TINY engine bay'd import cars there is no way you cant fit one on a hotair.

i know they fit, lee made them.

i know they fit, someone on this board had cotton weld a THDP top to a custom made 3" bottom..

bgc made a 2 piece one.. who cares if its 2 piece if it fits...

who else? trey had one too..

why wont anyone just make a few more?

ITS OBVIOUS THEY WILL SELL...

 

[FJM568]

It really is too bad that Action Fab is no longer making them or possibly no longer in business...Um, the custom made bottom is actually an Action Fab lower section from the 2 piece DP they used to have...The upper portion was cut up and hacked and rewelded into the TH upper that you can see in the first pic(overhead shot) of my relocated TB pics in the sticky...

I think the biggest reason is the cost to do it and what they would have to charge the customer...The price is the biggest thing...I was told that to reproduce a DP similar to mine(TH-style 3"), it would cost at least $700 for the vendor to be able to make any money and make it worthwhile...Does anyone really want to pony up with the dough to buy one at that price??? And not convince someone to make a run of them and then not buy them because they can't afford it because it costs too much??? Really, how long did Trey sit on his because no one was buying them back them...How many years were his collecting dust until he finally sold the last one...That's how many years he was sitting on money he spent but never saw the proceeds from...Heck, he probably lost money on the deal...

I don't know...Is Zero-to-Sixty Performance still around??? Maybe they could set something up with whoever made the last run for them...

Doesn't Kenne-Bell just sell the DP separately??? Or will it not fit w/o the rest of their header setup???

There is an awful lot of right angle bends in the 84/5 DP setup and a lot more complicated fitment than with the 86/7 setup...It just makes the manufacturing procedure that much more complicated...



Hehehe...Maybe you could start a G.P. with Keith Mease??? Relax...Just a joke!!!

 

[TType84]

thought it was you..

atr has the pipe in 2.5"

there IS enough room for another 1/4 inch on each side..

 

[drew sharpe]

Try contacting Reid at Turbo Specialties www.turborepair.com .He made me a 2 peice 3 in dp for $200 a few years ago. I believe he still makes them

 

[turbowrenchhead]

I bought one of the twelve dp's from zero to sixty. They don't make them anymore. I bought mine used for 150. I had a terrry houston mach made from the flange of a stock elbow. I spent 200 on that. I still have it in pieces since the car won't be put back together till next year. I need to get the 3' fabed up to the t.h. flange. I don't know how well its going to fit but it will flow great if it fits.

 

[GNeric]

I made mine, which is similar to Jim's in looks, for around $100 in parts. Mine doesn't have the good flange like Jim's though. I had an old turbo elbow milled so it was about 1" thick and got some 3 inch mandrell pipe and some nickle rod and spent about 2 weeks measuring, cutting, hammering and welding and it is finally done. There is still plenty of room to change plugs and it is a 2 piece design. I have a couple pics if anyone wants to see how crappy...uh how it looks now.

 

[Hot84]

3" downpipe (84-85) replacement

this site claims to have one but i couldnt tell you what it looks like.

 

[turbowrenchhead]

I called esp and asked. They don't carry it anymore. They probably never carried it.

 

[TType85]

Originally posted by TType84
okay.. i know its possible..

if you can fit a 3" dp on a supra, a WRX , and all these little TINY engine bay'd import cars there is no way you cant fit one on a hotair.

i know they fit, lee made them.

i know they fit, someone on this board had cotton weld a THDP top to a custom made 3" bottom..

bgc made a 2 piece one.. who cares if its 2 piece if it fits...

who else? trey had one too..

why wont anyone just make a few more?

ITS OBVIOUS THEY WILL SELL...

Why do you need a 3" DP? I had the 2.5" ATR on the car and ran 117mph at only 21psi through it. I know I could have gotten much more out of it with that DP.

 

[6SENSE]

Yep they used to sell it

ESP (Eastern Performance right?) is where I got mine from a few years back. Its a 2-piece unit that I was later told looked like/was an accufab. It probably was, and thats why it took 8 months for Eastern to get it to me!!!
Cost was under $200 and its still on my car now. It has a nice size dent from the a-arm that I hear they all get, and (beware) of course a lack of room on the pass. side. I guess that is why they made it 2-piece, because trust me, you aint changin any spark plugs with this pipe in place!

 

[FJM568]

Re: Yep they used to sell it

Originally posted by 6SENSE
It has a nice size dent from the a-arm that I hear they all get, and (beware) of course a lack of room on the pass. side. I guess that is why they made it 2-piece, because trust me, you aint changin any spark plugs with this pipe in place!

Hehehe...What are you doing with my DP!!! Probably dented just like mine...Except when I had mine converted to a TH upper, I had the whole thing coated(Don't know who it was that did it, but whoever Jack Cotton uses back east)...And yes, changing plugs is a bear...It is just another "routine" maintanance thing that I absolutely dread doing, and why I don't suggest or recommend that anyone put a 3" pipe on their car...You think it's hard to change plugs with the stock DP, just remember what I'm saying...

 

[WFO]

i pull the top piece of my 3" lt dp off to change the plugs.

later,sean

 

[TType84]

Re: Re: why wont someone step up and make a 3" dp?

Originally posted by TType85
Why do you need a 3" DP? I had the 2.5" ATR on the car and ran 117mph at only 21psi through it. I know I could have gotten much more out of it with that DP.

dont need it..

how fast would you have gone with the 3" instead of the 2.5" ? thats what im wondering..

 

[Buick From Hell]

Originally posted by TType84
....ITS OBVIOUS THEY WILL SELL...

I hate to sound like a pessimistic old fart, but I can tell you from personal experience, that when it comes to selling things for turbo buicks, nothing is OBVIOUS!

And that "nothing" looms ever larger when the word "hotair" is involved...for example, one of my biggest selling items is simply an engraved, black anodized aluminum plate that covers the coilpack. I've been selling these for 3 years now. I've sold exactly TWO that will fit a hotair coilpack.

For nearly a year and a half, I've been trying to bring a certain buick item to market, for ALL TR's... We've had several people interested, some asked repeatedly... A month ago they became available, and when they did, 3 of our "repeatedly's" ordered, and 1 "fresh" customer ordered. But nothing since... I can't remember HOW many people told me "you'll sell HUNDREDS of these!!" I spent $1000 in outside costs, and I've recouped $560 of that so far...I figure if I'm lucky, it's going to take me 6 months to sell my original stock and and cover my investment. With this in mind, is it economically viable for me to continue to go in debt $1000 when I KNOW it'll take 6 months just to cover that debt? Of course, it's possible to manufacture this item TO ORDER, and then my costs would be recouped immediately....however, doing this would add nearly 50% to the retail cost; not the best buyer incentive!

I fear this is why you won't be finding a supplier for 3" hotair downpipes anytime soon, as they'll face the same problem: not enough sales to warrant any type of "mass production", and no one will want to pay the "made-to-order" price...

sorry, just my opinion...

 

[TType84]

what item is that ? just wondering..

kevin i have a question to ask you.. i have an idea..

 

[Darkside]

How about we beg Lee Thompson to death to make a few more 3" down pipes?

 

[fireberd350]

i was doing a search and found this post and i have a 3" downpipe on my car....dont know the make of it b/ci just got the car but ill take a pic soon.....i know the prev owner said it was the very last one....oh and yes i will be changin my plugs soon and no i am not lookin forward to it at all

 

[Turtle TR]

Originally posted by Darkside
How about we beg Lee Thompson to death to make a few more 3" down pipes?

should've jumped on the band wagon in december when he was making them. I bought one and I'm VERY HAPPY with it. I just have to install it in and fab the external wastegate up. laziness at it's best. A one of a kind deal from a one of a kind man. who know's he might do it again.

 

[Matto]

Get ahold of Lee Thompson

Hey this is Matt Wenning, I think Lee has made some 3in DP and still has a few left. He wants I think 365 (Im not sure though) for them. They are built with great craftsmanship and Look bitchin. I wish that I would have not bought my ATR 2.5 DP before I knew him. Anyway give him a holler.
Matt Wenning
Oh one other thing before you talk to him, IT WILL REQUIRE AN EXTERNAL WASTEGATE, which is better anyway.

 

[turbo6x2]

I have one of the Lee Thompson 3" down pipes and in process of the complete fabrication. This was excellent craftmanship and Lee is top notch in my book. We are having the crossover flange welded in this week for the external and then had to fab a pipe assembly for the ATR exhaust. The plugs will be a challenge, but they were already. One in particular, but I think if you just unattach the tope part should be able to squeeze in there. I also bought what I believe Buick from Hell is referring too, hopefully I'm on that list he mentioned. Sitting on the dining room table waiting for it's new home. I'll advertise where it came from when I'm at Norwalk and Bowling Green, trust me I appreciate you stepping up and doing the hood shields for the hot airs. (I assume this is to what you referred) Thanks!