which headers Mild steel coated or Stainless?
which headers Mild steel coated or Stainless? I'm looking at 3 differnet headers right now..
First thunders race headers for 714$ Mild steel coated. look great, and supposley equal lenght headers and make great power.
next are the QTP headers, same headers as thunder just in stainless.
3rd are the Kooks headers. Stainless, 1 3/4 header. He suggested 1 /3/4 stepped to a 1/ 7/8. I think that is to much for my stock size LS1.. 834$
Need help. can't make up my mind..
First thunders race headers for 714$ Mild steel coated. look great, and supposley equal lenght headers and make great power.
next are the QTP headers, same headers as thunder just in stainless.
3rd are the Kooks headers. Stainless, 1 3/4 header. He suggested 1 /3/4 stepped to a 1/ 7/8. I think that is to much for my stock size LS1.. 834$
Need help. can't make up my mind..
I had the stainless 1 3/4 from Kooks. I had them for about 5 months and just recently sold them to upgrade to the stepped Kooks. When I pulled them out, they were in perfect shape - no splits, cracks, etc.
I would go stainless all the way. Even with the coating you can have problems. A lot of coatings are having problems with surface rust forming on the coating, which makes them look like crap.
I say go for the Kooks and screw the QTPs. It might take you 10 weeks to get them, while Kooks will have them to your door in 2 weeks.
Moose - def go with the stepped headers. On a heads/cam car you will see a little bit of a gain over the straight 1 3/4. Plus if you decide to spray, you will def want the stepped.
I would go stainless all the way. Even with the coating you can have problems. A lot of coatings are having problems with surface rust forming on the coating, which makes them look like crap.
I say go for the Kooks and screw the QTPs. It might take you 10 weeks to get them, while Kooks will have them to your door in 2 weeks.
Moose - def go with the stepped headers. On a heads/cam car you will see a little bit of a gain over the straight 1 3/4. Plus if you decide to spray, you will def want the stepped.
Joined: Nov 2001
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From: Schiller Park, ILL Member: #317
How long the coating holds up is mostly due to weather conditions, how hot your exhaust gets (obviously N2O cars will have a hotter exhaust temp during spraying), and the quality of the coating. Thinkness and quality of the metal also matter. The factory polished ceramic coating on my Bassani's is still perfect 1.5 years later, but I never drive it in bad weather....
Originally Posted by felton316
Stainlessis much better than mild steel for headers. If you do get mild steel, make sure that they are coated.
The main differences in performance is going to be based on the primary size, shape, and how they merge as in, if they have a merge collector. Other gains could be due to the constrution of the y-pipe with some of the header systems.
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From: Freehold, NJ
Originally Posted by FAST LS1
There is no performance difference between mild and stainless.
http://www.burnsstainless.com/TechAr...s_article.html
I have Kooks Stainless for the reasons mentioned in the article above.
The main differences in performance is going to be based on the primary size, shape, and how they merge as in, if they have a merge collector. Other gains could be due to the constrution of the y-pipe with some of the header systems.
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Originally Posted by 2002WS6_MN6
I disagree...
http://www.burnsstainless.com/TechAr...s_article.html
I have Kooks Stainless for the reasons mentioned in the article above.
http://www.burnsstainless.com/TechAr...s_article.html
I have Kooks Stainless for the reasons mentioned in the article above.
Same goes for the coated headers. They do help keep underhood temps down, but they aren't going to add any rwhp.
There are two kinds of header buyers...
1) I want a deal. These folks buy mild steel.
2) I want the nicest headers out there. I am one of these folks, I am all about stainless. Now stainless might be overkill but I have always like how they look after even being on the road for a few years. I had a set of TTS headers that were used and looked awesome even after being on two cars. I now have a set of Kooks 1.875>2.000 step headers on my blown Formula. Nick from Kooks has a mid 9 second all motor Olds, so he is also a racer.
1) I want a deal. These folks buy mild steel.
2) I want the nicest headers out there. I am one of these folks, I am all about stainless. Now stainless might be overkill but I have always like how they look after even being on the road for a few years. I had a set of TTS headers that were used and looked awesome even after being on two cars. I now have a set of Kooks 1.875>2.000 step headers on my blown Formula. Nick from Kooks has a mid 9 second all motor Olds, so he is also a racer.
Joined: Nov 2001
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From: Schiller Park, ILL Member: #317
PSJ, that is not totally true. I am all about the best quality, best looking, best performing part for whatever I am in the market for. Price is basically never my top concern.
BUT, stainless was not an option for me as there are no stainless steel mid-lenght headers for LS1s that I know of. I wanted a mid-lenght, I was never in the market for an LT. I bought the best that was avalibile in that catigory. My point is, not all of us without stainless were just "looking for a deal".
I do agree that stainless is prefered, hence the reason why I bought the stainless Y-pipe, and a fully stainless catback. But I could not get stainless headers in the size (lenght) I wanted.
BUT, stainless was not an option for me as there are no stainless steel mid-lenght headers for LS1s that I know of. I wanted a mid-lenght, I was never in the market for an LT. I bought the best that was avalibile in that catigory. My point is, not all of us without stainless were just "looking for a deal".
I do agree that stainless is prefered, hence the reason why I bought the stainless Y-pipe, and a fully stainless catback. But I could not get stainless headers in the size (lenght) I wanted.
John
I'm looking for the best performance I can get for the $$$$
If I'm only gonig to see 3 rwhp more for the kooks, is it worth it?
For my combo, what does wveryone recommend. Heads and cam, and wil be spraying the car next year.
I'm looking for the best performance I can get for the $$$$
If I'm only gonig to see 3 rwhp more for the kooks, is it worth it?
For my combo, what does wveryone recommend. Heads and cam, and wil be spraying the car next year.
