ceramic coated manifolds/risers?

good question. i know that my last boat had a 350 mag horizon, which featured ceramic coated risers. you are probably fresh water cooled, so not sure that ceramic coated manifolds are necessary. that being said, there are many purists on these boards that are dead set against installing aftermarket parts like this on mercruiser engines. personally i'd probably would stick with genuine stuff, but maybe others can comment with more authority than me.

this is an excellent site for what i have found to be the BEST prices on OEM merc stuff (in case you want to compare prices).

http://www.marineengine.com/mfr/mercruiser_inboard.html
 
Merc sells all their high end marine engines with ceramic coated manifolds and risers...
 
I am in salt water so ceramic might be the way to go. I saw the OEM's on sale but I don't care for the 2 plugs on the inside.(they leak after awhile). The aftermkt ones don't have those plugs I think(see photos on website)
 
Well I bought them today. $900.00 shipped for the whole package. I hope they last.
 
I got them in and they do have 2 freeze plugs on the inside(casting reasons) They look good. We'll see if they last.
 
SAshton,

You went with the aftermarket, right? And, they do have the same plugs? If so, would you consider sending them back for OEM? I'm not an expert, but from reading this forum, I would go with OEM.
 
When I ordered they SAID they were out of the OEM. I went with there brand. The plugs are freeze plugs and not the threaded plugs like merc uses and theres has a 3 year warranty as merc only has 1. This company used to be the R&D company for Merc for 25 years. They all are made about the same these days but only merc & perf pro tech have ceramic coated products. They look like the OEM and w/ a 3 year warranty I'll keep em. FYI, They sent me 3 manifolds and I paid for only 2 so I won't complain.
 
Regarding the warranty, as I understand it, if the product is faulty and destroys your engine, they will send you a new manifold. If an OEM is faulty and destroys your engine, they give you a new manifold and fix or replace your engine.
 
If it is faulty they will fix/replace engine. I asked but I'm not worried about them failing. I could pressure test them 1st before installing. They are a great company to deal with. (Very knowledgeable and helpful)
 
Just curious: Does anyone heard of someone actually owning up to that kind of warrenty?
 
chazaroo said:
If an OEM is faulty and destroys your engine, they give you a new manifold and fix or replace your engine.
Click to expand...

HA! Now that I'd like to see. Far too many variables involved in the installation and upkeep that the parts manufacturer has nothing to do with to ever believe that above statement would be true.
 
jg300da said:
HA! Now that I'd like to see. Far too many variables involved in the installation and upkeep that the parts manufacturer has nothing to do with to ever believe that above statement would be true.
Click to expand...

I made point of bringing the warranty question up to the GM at Sundance Marine in Jensen Beach. If the part is defective and hydrolocks or otherwise harms the motor during the warranty period, they replace the defective parts and fix the damage it causes. When I mentioned that the aftemarket products had longer warranties but only replce the part and would not be responsible for damage, he said "That's like getting a new propeller for your plane and it causes the plane to crash so they send you a new propeller." I liked the analogy. Caveats on the warranty: They were purchased through a Mercuiser approved facility and installed by a mercuroiser master mechanic.
 
if in salt water, how often should you change the risers & manifolds? every 5 years?
Has anyone tried the stainless replacements yet?
jay
 
pull and inspect risers (and look down into the mannys) ev. 5 years. if fwc, no need to replace manifolds that often, but after 5 years, risers could be shot. if not fwc, start thinking of installing a flushing system. will add years to both.

didnt think they still made stainless components. i thought it was a problem with different expansion with the heat that caused leakey gaskets or something. maybe others can comment more (?)
 
rondds said:
pull and inspect risers (and look down into the mannys) ev. 5 years. if fwc, no need to replace manifolds that often, but after 5 years, risers could be shot. if not fwc, start thinking of installing a flushing system. will add years to both.

didnt think they still made stainless components. i thought it was a problem with different expansion with the heat that caused leakey gaskets or something. maybe others can comment more (?)
Click to expand...

Pull and inspect every year after the manifolds, risers, and elbows are five years old.

Best regards,
Frank C
 
I know the agument for OEm and I agree. 5 year inspection seems about right from all accounts. My question has to do with stainless steel header type. I seen several on the net and they are reported to give more hp and extended life. Any one have any experiences?
 
One more question to add to the mix..... my 1996 454's have 5 year old risers and I am going to replace them this year. I noticed that one of my engines has aluminum riser {or at least non-magnetic} and one has iron, Are they still using aluinum and how does it fare compared to the iron types?
If I could justify it, it would be cool to go witht the one piece stainless manifold/riser units but I don't feel like re-engineering my whole exhaust to fit. Any opinions?
 
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