if there was as many hot-airs built as there was intercooled cars built. i don't think we'd have this problem, thats just my 2 cents.
lee thompson built 10 or 15 (can't remember exactly how many) 3" dps with rjc style wastegate a few years back for a very reasonable price, and if i remember reading correctly, there wasn't alot of people interested when it came down to sending payment. and that was a very nice pipe
mease, atr, couple others have made one. not trying to put a damper on things but it just seems like the hot air downpipe issue just keeps getting nowhere. and theres alot less activity in the hotair section than a few years ago judging by the searches i do. however, anything can change i suppose.
if somebody could build one in the $400-$600 price range, my guess is you could sell approx 6-10 a year if they fit nice and where a good quality build.
i think its pretty safe to say if they didn't eliminate the restrictive stock elbow then its pretty much not worth the effort, but i'm no expert.
i had a stainless steel 2.5" custom built 2 piece dp using the rjc wastegate built for me and for what it did to my stock turbo unopened engine, i am very very pleased. although 3" would be a tight fit, especially near the control arm, the 2.5 leaves plenty of room, and is still more than i'll ever need considering the largest bolt on turbo available is the t33, and the exhaust compressor side opening is only slightly more than 2 and a quarter. i'll attach pic to show what i mean.
i could be totally off, but my guess is that the unavailability of a good downpipe is part of the reason alot of people pass on buying and building a decent running hot air street car since the hot airs can be picked up considerably cheaper than a intercooled car most of the time. just my speculation, be interesting to see if anybody else feels the same way.
if there was a company or fabricator who was honestly serious about making a run of these pipes, i'd (possibly) be willing to pull mine (takes about 30 minutes or so) and ship it off as long as some reasonable conditions where met. conditions like: making sure it was insured, a time limit to keep it, etc... and uhh... i'd like an extra one built for me please. :biggrin: