OK, I've seen this post too many times to count, even using powers of ten. Everyone seems to be worried about a glowing manifold and/or turbo. I used to be, too. I knew what my reason was, then. Now I know a little more.

A glowing manifold is NORMAL. To a point, of course! Having JUST gotten my Monster Motor (see Turbobricks' Message Board) finished, running, AND moving WITH EXHAUST installed, I can say that it is definitely a normal thing to see your manifold glowing after some hard boosting or heavy pulling/accelerating/freeway top-speed driving/etc. Now everything has its moderation, of course. If you have a manifold that is glowing, say, WHITE, then you've got a problem and need to take care of it immediately. If it's a dull red (or with some serious mods like mine and some hard driving, a medium to slightly-bright red), then you have nothing to worry about except shutting it off right then. When you see or suspect glowing conditions, let it idle down for at least five minutes, or you'll shorten the life of several things, starting with your turbo. When you see orange, yellow, or (heaven forbid!) white conditions, let it idle down for at least 10 minutes, then get it looked at/fixed as soon as possible!

I know many of you will post responses saying things like I'm wrong, or if I'm experiencing this then something is wrong, or something to some such effect like that. That's fine--you're titled to your opinion. But this has been discussed (see beaten to death) on Turbobricks by just about everyone (including some people with vastly more experience than most people you or I will ever know combined), and we have all come to the same conclusion--IT IS NORMAL, to a point.

For example: I suspected something was wrong BEFORE my project got under way when I popped my hood and my turbo was bright orange, sometimes even white. I soon discovered that letting this go unchecked will lead to, among other things, a melted turbine oil seal--to the point where I was pouring liquid oil directly into my exhaust. My turbo now, with a BRAND-NEW 3-inch mandrel exhaust and a perfectly-tuned engine operating at more than peak efficiency (yes, it's possible when you have an engine designed by and a head built by Mike Aaro), glows a dullish-medium red after hard driving.

Bright red/orange/yellow/white symptoms indicate a rich mixture, sometimes a lean mixture (rich= the fuel is burning in the manifold. lean= the exhaust gases are much hotter than normal. either way, it's hotter than the manifold/turbo like), or frequently a plugged cat/exhaust system. An O2 sensor gone south WILL NOT cause this. Not even if you haven't replaced it in 2000 years. It will, however, aggrevate an already aggregious problem.

So if you're truely concerned with slight glowing, do two things: 1) wait five minutes (more won't hurt!!) before shutting it off, and 2) make sure all systems/components are in tip-top shape and well-maintained. If #2 is met, you should only see slight glowing after hard driving, and at any rate stick to #1 at all times, just in case. If you're concerned with substantial glowing, get it looked at SOON. Your turbo's life is dependent upon it.