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For Your Street Motors: Who Here Chose Manifolds And Who Here Chose Headers?

Headers or HP Manifolds On Your Car

  • Total voters
    85
It's funny the answers posted " headers aren't worth the hassel, trouble, worries". Take you pic. But the first answer everyone gives on hop ups is "stroke it". Yet installing headers is to hard? Really? Aftrer doing just about anything in the car hobby (or general repair for that matter) headers are FAR from the top of the list of difficult jobs. Price? OE style performance manifolds and headers can be about the same. Headers don't leak if the flanges are flat. Yes it's extra work to flat file them. So the bottom line is? Lots of money spent on machine work to get perfect valve jobs, cylinder finish, valve train geometry. Then there's expensive engine parts. And let's not forget stuff that really doesn't help much. Dollars spent on fancy race distributors, under drive pulley's, gasket matching, fancy plug wires. And headers are now to much of a hassel? It all boils down to what you want. A cruiser? Or a street car that runs better than average. Nobody said this hobby didn't require effort.
Doug
 
here here I tolly agree with dvw little effort goes a long way :thumbsup:

IMG_0001.jpg
 
flyingfeathers' recent post caused me to pull this thread back up and reread everyone's posts. First thing I want to do is thank everyone for their responses!! I really value other people's knowledge and experiences and there's no better place for that than right here. That said, I'm still wrestling what I want to do with this car. It will be my last project for sure and want to be happy with it when I'm done. Whichever way I go, now is the time to get the thing running and I'll make decisions when I have to I guess.
 
TorRed said:
flyingfeathers' recent post caused me to pull this thread back up and reread everyone's posts. First thing I want to do is thank everyone for their responses!! I really value other people's knowledge and experiences and there's no better place for that than right here. That said, I'm still wrestling what I want to do with this car. It will be my last project for sure and want to be happy with it when I'm done. Whichever way I go, now is the time to get the thing running and I'll make decisions when I have to I guess.
Click to expand...
Unless your plans have changed, look at post 36&37 again.
And if you want it to run on pump premium, I wouldn't build it with any more than 9.5 to 1, with a mild cam. Just my opinion.
 
made some upgrades to the hornet. had to put headers on it. giant pain but without doing it. i would have just wasted the money. ya think building a mopar is costly.
 
I have headers on four of my eight classic musclecars on the street. I have never really been able to feel the power advantage of headers of exhaust manifolds by the butt dyno except for maybe this one.... However, headers do make the exhaust louder and sound better. They also make access to spark plugs more difficult in most cases as well as making starter r&r more difficult.

IMG_8666.jpg


IMG_8664.jpg
 
PurpleBeeper said:
I haven’t run stock manifolds since the 80’s
Click to expand...
Me, since the 70's.
dvw said:
It's funny the answers posted " headers aren't worth the hassel, trouble, worries". Take you pic. But the first answer everyone gives on hop ups is "stroke it". Yet installing headers is to hard? Really? Aftrer doing just about anything in the car hobby (or general repair for that matter) headers are FAR from the top of the list of difficult jobs. Price? OE style performance manifolds and headers can be about the same. Headers don't leak if the flanges are flat. Yes it's extra work to flat file them. So the bottom line is? Lots of money spent on machine work to get perfect valve jobs, cylinder finish, valve train geometry. Then there's expensive engine parts. And let's not forget stuff that really doesn't help much. Dollars spent on fancy race distributors, under drive pulley's, gasket matching, fancy plug wires. And headers are now to much of a hassel? It all boils down to what you want. A cruiser? Or a street car that runs better than average. Nobody said this hobby didn't require effort.
Doug
Click to expand...
Could not have said it better. If you think headers are a hassle you shouldn't be working on cars. Same goes for changing plugs with headers.
 
WileE said:
Me, since the 70's.

Could not have said it better. If you think headers are a hassle you shouldn't be working on cars. Same goes for changing plugs with headers.
Click to expand...
I've had a few cars since the 70's that never got headers....usually ones that were bought and didn't need anything but to just jump in and drive but the majority of them weren't that way and got headers including more than a few pickups. At the bare minimum, headers and an aluminum intake with a decent carb.
 
I personally like the HP manifolds and am looking for a set for the Charger that is not priced so high it is cheaper to buy headers.
 
WileE said:
… If you think headers are a hassle you shouldn't be working on cars. Same goes for changing plugs with headers.
Click to expand...

You’re painting with kind of a wide brush.
 
33 IMP said:
Unless your plans have changed, look at post 36&37 again.
And if you want it to run on pump premium, I wouldn't build it with any more than 9.5 to 1, with a mild cam. Just my opinion.
Click to expand...
Thanks again, those posts kind of wrap it up don't they!
 
If my car weren’t all stock I’d have another set of hooker 1 7/8 coated headers again. Those were great. Run a mini starter and get some wire holders that hang off the valve cover. Worked awesome. I’d really love to coat the manifolds I have now. I’ll never do a teardown and put back on uncoated headers or manifolds. It’s that much better.

I’ve looked at Doug thorley headers for years with intrigue. I think those might be pretty good at 1.75 size.

The headers felt much lighter than manifolds too. They are actually mostly for ore torque, not hp.

People couldn’t believe the power gain I got on a 79 d300 with a 360 by ditching manifolds for dynomax 1 5/8 coated headers. It was CRAZY how much it picked up. I’d jam people in the seat taking off with the 4.10s and the comments were basically “WTF!!!???”
 
Dang Hooker headers in a burnt up Little Express truck frame.....was going to check the starter out before I tried to start the 360 motor as it looked fresh....starter isn't coming off without those headers moving......was a nice truck......
 
Reading the Q&A for the B engine Doug's Headers D451, Summit says they won't work with column shifted automatic cars. Does anyone have these installed on a similar car? I went out to the Doug's website and there's zero info on fitment like there is on the TTI website.
 
I’m on the fence about this now for an upcoming winter project. I’m going to pull all of the accessories off my block and give it a touch up, repaint. Radiator coming out to be recored, etc. I think I’m going to replace my Jet Hot coated Hooker Super Comps with my oem exhaust manifolds (been saving them forever, I’ve got to score a set of mounting studs as well. I searched a while back for a manifold dressing that would keep them looking good. I think the consensus was iirc, Slip Plate Dry Graphite Lube?
 
Plyrr471 said:
I’m on the fence about this now for an upcoming winter project. I’m going to pull all of the accessories off my block and give it a touch up, repaint. Radiator coming out to be recored, etc. I think I’m going to replace my Jet Hot coated Hooker Super Comps with my oem exhaust manifolds (been saving them forever, I’ve got to score a set of mounting studs as well. I searched a while back for a manifold dressing that would keep them looking good. I think the consensus was iirc, Slip Plate Dry Graphite Lube?
Click to expand...
Sounds exactly like mine, coated Hookers, want to recore radiator to 3 row max cooling core, and a perfect set of manifolds to go on if that's the way I go. Be interested in hearing back here if you do go that way how obvious the loss of power is, what the sound quality, etc. is afterwards.
 
Loosing power isn’t as important to me now, plus it won’t be that much anyway. I enjoy this car as a cruiser nowadays since adding my M6 Hellcat to the garage. Plus headers are looking a bit shabby up by the head. I’m just going to need to find a shop to connect the manifolds to my existing exhaust system.
 
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