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Vitesse 1600 stainless manifold


Hiwex

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Hi, I’m looking for a stainless manifold for my 1600 Vitesse.  Rimmer don’t offer one, yet they offer a Mk1 2000, which has me wondering what the difference is between the Mk1 1600 and 2000 head?  My question is will the 2000 manifold fit, or can it be made to?

Anyone know?

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My first instinct was to check Canleys Parts Manual - the online  pictures are easier for me to follow - and they list the same original manifold for both Vitesse 6 and Mk1 2 litre, part number 306483. From this I'd reckon they're the same.

Wins International list the same in stainless for the 1600 and Mk1 2 litre, and the GT6 MK1, but a different version for the Mk2 2 litre Vitesse and later GT6 - I'd guess that confirms it. (But their price of £60 seems strange compared to Rimmers - and they've marked it 'when available')

 

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It's possible the shape of the lower part of the 2000 Mk1 tubular manifold could be different, even though the mounting to the cylinder head is the same. It's likely the original downpipes followed different routes from the cast iron exhaust manifold - the Vitesse version has to fit into a tight space between chassis and bellhousing/gearbox. I would guess there's more space between the gearbox and floor of the big saloon. I don't think it's safe to assume the 2000 Mk1 manifold will fit.

Pete Lewis will almost certainly knows the answer, as he used to have a modified Vitesse 6. No doubt he will be along soon.

Nigel

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head and porting for 1600 and 2ltr mk1 is exactly the same  so it fits both equally as well .

think from memory my 631 was a pheonix brand ? 

used a 2" chassis tubes and did have the wheel barrow twin tail pipes  these sounded more like a noisy  hair dryer and the previuos 1600/herald single semi sports was added with a short bit of flex   now this sounds awesome on song  a real crisp crackle to die for without being a dull bark 

the worst part was sealing the 3 to1 collector  these are notorious for being a noisy leaker , there should  be room to allow the primaries to expand but it was Nick who put the idea of sealing by adding some slots and welded nuts to make a clamp ,,, if you want a peaceful down pipe these are a must or it will always leak and sound like a moggie minor with a hole in the exhaust

the width of the primery 3 can get close to the steering column may need ally rack mounts and a small shift in rack position to clear .

also i made the intake tubes up a size using  50mm  plastic waste pipe

after many trials we stuck with std  needles .no spring and the std   heavy diaphragm weight disc 

and she was flyer

 

Pete

 

carbs.JPG

vit6_631.jpg

air intake.jpg

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56 minutes ago, Nigel Clark said:

It's possible the shape of the lower part of the 2000 Mk1 tubular manifold could be different,

I don't think @Hiwex was talking about the big saloons, although I can see that his wording leaves itself open to that interpretation! Rimmers do, indeed, list manifolds for Vitesse Mk1 (2L) and Mk2 but not for the 1600, which I assumed was what he referred to.

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3 hours ago, NonMember said:

I don't think @Hiwex was talking about the big saloons, although I can see that his wording leaves itself open to that interpretation! Rimmers do, indeed, list manifolds for Vitesse Mk1 (2L) and Mk2 but not for the 1600, which I assumed was what he referred to.

Oh yes, obvious really. In future I should wait until after my second coffee before attempting to respond to any technical queries here!

Nigel

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Pete, forgot to say I'm taking yours and Nicks advise and doing the collector mod tomorrow. As you say it does burp gas and while twiddlin wiv me carbs the fumes were pretty bad. When I came home my wife told me to stand out on the balcony to de-fume, not sure if that was just an excuse......

Iain

PS

Did you use any exhaust gunk?

 

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depends on the 3 to 1  but design the slots and clamping so its accessible from  down under from all sides getting at two is easy geting on the 3rd is tight

i tried every type of sealant but the pipe shift just broke the seal , the clamp and sealer paste worked ok for some years , and we never had a tube fail due to expansion stresses 

vit6_631.jpg

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Colin, having taken the collector off yesterday it wasn't sooty, it looks like you need to split and clamp the collector pipes. I thought welding the brackets on would distort the tube and make it a pig to refit but a bit of jiggling and it went on ok. I still can't get to the top bolt to fully tighten as I need a short spanner. Space is at a premium with a a Phoenix 6-3-1! Just to be sure I did put a smear of joint paste on each connection.......I hope I don't have to take it all apart again!! 

Iain 

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I pre assembled before fitting and thought it's only a couple of turns to tighten but with a normal length spanner it's a no no. 

When welding the brackets on I put a couple of thin washers as spacers so that when tightened without them it pulled the pipe diameter in. I also welded the nut on to the top pipe bracket in the vain hope I could tighten the bolt! 

The bottom pipes are fine but trying to get your hand up between the chassis member, pipes etc to the top pipe is erm interesting.... 

I have the twin exhausts, I'm hoping someone at Duxford has a single sports so that I can hear the difference. 

Fingers crossed for Duxford🤞

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3 hours ago, Pete Lewis said:

colin,  looking at the soot its a bit leaky ??

 

2 hours ago, Iain T said:

Colin, having taken the collector off yesterday it wasn't sooty, it looks like you need to split and clamp the collector pipes. 

Iain 

That was the first fitting back in 2001, I tried with no exhaust putty as I didn't have any... after one week I saw what it looked like, tried again and this time did it properly, which has lasted until this day.

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