Good header/good price combo??

[1996blackss]

Looking to stay stock exhst for now. What is a good header that will bolt right on the my fact exhaust on my 96 SS. My fact mani's are leaking, may as well replace with headers instead of fixing. I looked at clear image stuff, anyone else out there with a good fair price with decent quality?

[55belairgasser]

The factory ones like to leak. Just get better hardware and torque them back down. Check them now and then and retorque the back ones.(they like to loosen up or break off) If you are going to keep the factory ex. and stock mufflers there is no reason to get headers. You need to open it up after the headers if you want to see any real gains. Just my $.02. - Lance

[1996blackss]

wouldn't some better mufflers help open it up some?? My plan was to put on the headers since the fact mani's are leaking and add the more "open" stuff down the road. It appers that one bolt head on the back drivers side it broken off. I do not see a head on it that I can get on to tighten. The hole damn thing, both sides is rusty as heck and I was thinking what the hell, lets just start out with some headers and down the line add a more open pipe/muffler system. But for now I guess I can look at them and see it they can be tightened. They are not real loud at all, once warm warms up they just have a little tick from them, but in city traffic they are letting off that exhaust stank that the heat system is pulling in the car. Just thinking how to approach this one.

[SEO9C1]

From memory, there's a brace at the bottom of the stock folds which can be cut to keep them from loosening up so frequently. New, upgraded gaskets w/ new grade 8 fasteners and periodic retightening will go a long way to keeping the stockers working just fine. You'll need to remove the drivers side completely in order to get the sheered off rearmost bolt out. Whether stock folds or headers, there is no wiggle room. ALL bolts must be tightened or else they WILL leak.

If you want headers for scalability purposes, it's usually the last link in the chain instead of the 1st, but I see no reason why not to. Be aware any gains you'll get from them will be wasted on the restrictive factory catback.

Clearimage is my 1st and only recommendation. Dan (owner) has built his business on servicing OUR needs specifically. I feel it's the least I can do to accomodate his services. Save up and dive in. You won't be disappointed.

For savings, you could ask him whether he still has any old tubular manifolds around. I still have them and they've been berry, berry good to me. Otherwise, Tri-Y's are the way to go.

[ProTools4]

my old setup is for sale

details here
http://www.impalassforum.com/vBulletin/showthread. php?t=232460

http://c1.ac-images.myspacecdn.com/images02/102/l_21154fc64b814 832ab455dae6c404470.jpg

[MrBuick (Magnum)]

Double up on the gasket to the head, and then replace the bolts with grade 8. Should fix the leak. The stock bolts love to snap off as mentioned. I put my Caprice back togehter mising that rear most bolt with 2 gaskets, and it sealed just fine. Same with my Jesus Roadmaster. It had the front most broke off. 2 gaskets, and no front most bolt(I think rear most too, but I forget), and it sealed fine. I should have tried to get the bolt out, but I knew headers were going on soon, so I didn't worry about it. Ont he Red Roadmaster, the 2nd to last bolt was missing, and it sealed fine with the stock gasket. i didn't even notice, until I put the headers on, and that bolt refused to thread.


On my Red Roadmaster, I ran the Tri-y's with the stock exhaust pipes. It had a muffler delete on it. I ran it at the track before and after the headers, and saw a decent gain. Well, the ET was slower, the MPH was a tad higher, but it was much hotter out. This suggests the car was running better, but the weather was just crap. BUT, I only did it like this, as an experiment, and while I figured out what catback/mufflers I was going to use.

I originally had bought the CIA headers to use on my Fleetwood, with the dynomax pipes/summit turbo mufflers. But I totaled the car the week before I was going to put the headers on. Part of the catback was damaged, so I didn't reuse it. If I did it over again, I would have done the catback first, Like I did on my Fleetwood.

[KW Baraka]

Looking to stay stock exhst for now. What is a good header that will bolt right on the my fact exhaust on my 96 SS......

Only shorty headers will do that.....SLP, AS&M, Hookers and Edelbrocks. No other header type other than shorty headers will bolt to stock exhaust with stock cats.



http://c1.ac-images.myspacecdn.com/images02/102/l_21154fc64b814 832ab455dae6c404470.jpg


Edelbrocks.......

KW

[SEO9C1]

Only shorty headers will do that.....SLP, AS&M, Hookers and Edelbrocks. No other header type other than shorty headers will bolt to stock exhaust with stock cats.



Edelbrocks.......

KW

FWIW and although not headers per se, CIA tubular manifolds are another straight bolt on option. They were discontinued long ago along w/ some KW listed, so they aren't all that easy to get your hands on. Main point being if you don't get a straight bolt on option, you'll need new specialty cats or exports w/ mid or long tube headers.

[Clear Image Auto (Dan)]

Our TRI-Y headers are still on sale through the end of the year. Give me a call for a quote.

As stated above, the tubular manifolds were discontinued. Our Budget headers have also been discontinued.

[1996blackss]

why were the budgets retired? Not selling?

[1996blackss]

I am ganna go thru the damn things first and see if they can tighten down any before removing and putting new gaskets/bolts. I jsut need to try to get then buttoned up. The heat is sucking in the fumes.