Group Buy: Manley VH45DE/VH41DE Connecting Rods

[SuperHatch]

I will be honest and frank with you all... My significant other works at Manley Performance and can have a special run of VH45DE conrods made. The minimum order is 5 sets, and the price is $1150 a set.

I will be purchasing a set for myself, and potentially a second set for another motor I am building. So I need to find at least 3 other people to buy some rods and get this going.

Lets please not turn this into a "The stock rods are plenty strong for 700WHP" debate.

I intend to make no less than 1000WHP out of the box, and I want headroom for more, which is why I need upgraded rods. I prefer to overbuild the engine rather than find out the limits of the stock stuff the hard way.

Some specs on the Rods...

Forged from 4340 aircraft quality materialFully machined to produce the lightest and strongest rod possibleShot Peened and 100% magnafluxedARP Fasteners

They will be stock length, etc. Any dimensional changes from stock require a new run to be made.

- Steve

[John Dixon]

Great Price! Wish this had been last year!! Would have saved me £1200

[SuperHatch]

Just talked to Jess...

the 4340 Rods would be rated at 1000HP, although they believe in a turbocharged application they could take more.

The price is 1100, not 1150.

The rods could also be made from 300M Steel, increasing the HP capacity to 1400HP+ and the price to $1450 a set.

Let me know people... this could literally be a once in a lifetime chance...

[mtcookson]

That's a very awesome deal. I'm going to try getting as money together as I can for these. Any sort of dead line?

[SuperHatch]

No deadline, when we get the people, we'll make the order. I would prefer the 300M rods myself, but I'll take either, so whatever the majority of people want is what we'll order.

[SuperHatch]

That's a very awesome deal. I'm going to try getting as money together as I can for these. Any sort of dead line?

Please email me if you are seriously interested and when you think you'll have the funds together for this. There is a long lead time ~12 weeks, and I'd like to get the order in early next month so I can start putting my motor together this summer.

[email protected]

[mtcookson]

Sounds good. I'll let you know asap.

[XRATED]

I'll take a set of rods. Put them away for a rainy day..

What other products do manley produce? Valves? Springs? Cams?

I'm on the hunt for a BIG set of N/A cams (for the missus ride) and a set of cams to use with turbos... for another project down the line.

Email me your account details and address to [email protected]

Justin Hallock

[XRATED]

Oh also. Are they i beam or H beam?

If need be, I'll take a set of 300M rods. I'm looking at around 1200 to 1400hp at the crank.... for one motor.

Are you in the US?

[Mettler]

If you want huge NA cams, there's a man here in NZ that has done extensive R&D and developed some serious grinds & accompanying valvetrain modifications.

[SuperHatch]

I'll take a set of rods. Put them away for a rainy day..

What other products do manley produce? Valves? Springs? Cams?

I'm on the hunt for a BIG set of N/A cams (for the missus ride) and a set of cams to use with turbos... for another project down the line.

Email me your account details and address to [email protected]

Justin Hallock

Manley produces Valves, Springs, Retainers, Rods, Pistons, Pushrods, as well as some other odds and ends. They do not produce cams.

[SuperHatch]

Oh also. Are they i beam or H beam?

If need be, I'll take a set of 300M rods. I'm looking at around 1200 to 1400hp at the crank.... for one motor.

Are you in the US?

The rods will follow the design of Manley's Pro Series I-Beam rods. They are the strongest rods that Manley makes and the 4340 rods will be conservatively rated at 1000HP. Manley makes the OEM rods in the 2003-2004 Mustang Cobra as well as the Ford GT. Those rods Manley rates at 700HP and have repeatedly been taken to 1000+ HP. Just to give you an idea on how conservatively they are rated.

The 300M rods will be rated at 1400HP, which I can easily see taking 1800+HP.

In all honesty, we will most likely be getting 4340 rods.

[XRATED]

The rods will follow the design of Manley's Pro Series I-Beam rods. They are the strongest rods that Manley makes and the 4340 rods will be conservatively rated at 1000HP. Manley makes the OEM rods in the 2003-2004 Mustang Cobra as well as the Ford GT. Those rods Manley rates at 700HP and have repeatedly been taken to 1000+ HP. Just to give you an idea on how conservatively they are rated.

The 300M rods will be rated at 1400HP, which I can easily see taking 1800+HP.

In all honesty, we will most likely be getting 4340 rods.

The 4340 rods sound the go then. Flip me an email for the payment details...

[SuperHatch]

I will shoot you an email this evening. However, we still need one more participant to get this going. If you feel like making a payment now, that is fine, but I am unsure how long it will take to find another buyer. Unless of course you want to buy two sets, which I doubt.

[SuperHatch]

Figured I'd post thsi here too, I emaild this to the guys interested so far yesterday...

Guys,

Just wanted to let you know the details on the connecting rods.

The Good:

I spoke with Trip Manley (Manley's VP) regarding these rods. After a short talk we decided it would be better to use Manley's "Turbo Tuff" design rather than their "Pro Series" design. Some specifics on the Turbo Tuff rods:

- Forged from 4340 aircraft quality vacumm degassed material- Shot peened after machining and 100% magnafluxed- Cap fasteners are 3/8" ARP 2000 Cap Screws- Specifically designed to handle high horsepower applications when using turbochargers or nitrous.

On a HP rating note... these rods are designed, in 4-cylinder applications, to withstand 1000+HP. That simply means that these rods will be good for potentially 2000HP in this application. I don't believe you will ever break them.

Since the size of the VH rods are very close to the VQ rods (2mm difference in length and 1mm difference in big end width) the weight should be very close to those rods, which weigh in a 605g each.

The Bad:

Understanding what time of year it is, this is Manley's busiest season. They simply do not have the time to schedule in custom machining before this summer, which means we will have to wait. The earliest time they can get to them is June, and there is no guarantee that they can even get to them then. I hope you are willing to wait that long, as I am.

Because these Rods will be made from "Turbo Tuff" forgings, the price will be slightly higher. $1150, but I feel that is still very reasonable considering the power potential.

Because of this delay, I do not want to take any money from either of you for these rods until a more firm delivery date can be established.

If you have any questions or simply are not interested anymore, just let me know.

- Steve

[David Steele]

Good golley miss molley.

Show me some pictures your friend must have.

[SuperHatch]

These are 4G63 Turbo Tuff I-Beams...



- Steve

[David Steele]

Minimum of 5 sets?

http://www.cunninghamrods.com/index.html

There's no minimum for Cunningham.

4340 and they make what you need (I've been quoted $1500)

[elwesso]

Steve do you think it would be possible to modify VQ rods to fit the VH? Couldnt you just bore out the large end a little (assuming its smaller)

[mtcookson]

Minimum of 5 sets?

http://www.cunninghamrods.com/index.html

There's no minimum for Cunningham.

4340 and they make what you need (I've been quoted $1500)

Those look pretty nice as well. That makes it even harder to decide now.

[David Steele]

Those look pretty nice as well. That makes it even harder to decide now.

Cunningham connecting rods hands down. They also use bigger rod bolts 1/2'' .

[SuperHatch]

Steve do you think it would be possible to modify VQ rods to fit the VH? Couldnt you just bore out the large end a little (assuming its smaller)

The VQ rods have the same big end and small end diameter of the VH rods. The center to center length is shorter on the VQ rods, which can't be machined out, and the big end width of the VQ rods is narrower (21 vrs 22) which also can't be corrected with machining. Believe me, I looked at that option. I was originally going to use the VQ rods with custom pistons that moved the wrist pin down 2mm, but there is not enough meat in the piston to do this without counterweight interference and it still doesn't solve the width issue.

[Guishnu]

Hey there,I will take a set of these if they are going to be ready before the summer. My email address is [email protected]. Email me if there are any developments as i don't check these forums every day CHeersChris

[SuperHatch]

Hey there,I will take a set of these if they are going to be ready before the summer. My email address is [email protected]. Email me if there are any developments as i don't check these forums every day CHeersChris

Honestly, it is very unlikely that these will be done before the summer, but I will add you to the mailing list anyway...

- Steve

[Florida240sx]

I might be joining you soon. Start my VH swap next month. Once it's in I'll order a set.

[marksport]

Any idea if these VH45DE rods are the same as the VK45DE? The FSM says the specs/tolerances are the same.

[SuperHatch]

Any idea if these VH45DE rods are the same as the VK45DE? The FSM says the specs/tolerances are the same.

I can't guarantee fitment, do you have a rod to spare?

[marksport]

Steve, did you do a group buy yet? Any updates? I'm quite sure that the VH and VK rods are the same, and I may be doing a side by side comparison of both motors soon.

[Mettler]

So if you're using rods with the stock dimensions, what have you decided on as a suitable decompression piston that just bolts in? My suggestion would be perhaps to have these rods made to be compatible with VQ30DET pistons, saving the additional cost of a custom aftermarket piston.

[marksport]

So if you're using rods with the stock dimensions, what have you decided on as a suitable decompression piston that just bolts in? My suggestion would be perhaps to have these rods made to be compatible with VQ30DET pistons, saving the additional cost of a custom aftermarket piston.

Well, I got quotes for custom pistons from Arias, JE and a few others and they aren't all that expensive. It's just the lead time. Several years ago I rebuilt the motor in my Porsche 944, and I got a set of factory oversized pistons. Being that the 944 use an Alusil block and no one really did sleeving back then, I didn't have much of a choice. The factory pistons are made by Mahle, and in comparison to the custom aftermarket, I believe the custom ones are higher quality. Many of us know that Mahle are very high quality pistons already and think the same can be said towards the factory VQ30DET pistons. In terms of cost, The set of 4 pistons that I bought for my Porsche from the dealer cost nearly twice as much as the quotes I got for the set of 8 custom pistons. It took about a month to get them as the parts guy told me in 20 years, this is the second set they have ever sold, and due to the cost and that the car is no longer made, Porsche NA would not stock these in their distribution warehouses. I later found out that it would have been cheaper to replace the motor with a used longblock. I don't necessarily need the rods as much as the pistons but if this group buy is $1150 for a set, that's nearly 1/2 the price of some of the quotes I have gotten with similar finished quality. I believe in overbuilding the motor for reliability.