i've asked this before and was pretty serious about tring this out, but what i was told and why i chose to not try this is b/c the kooks Y is "flattened" in a certain part of the Y. the peice of the Y that runs under the driver side is clearenced to tuck up against the floorboard of the car. if you look under your car, youll see what im talking about, your Y pipe runs right under it. anyhow, one of the other (qtp or kooks, i cant remember) collectors is shorter then the other design by like a 1 inch or 2. and would throw that part of the y off. i was also told you' have to bend part of it if you tried. so that is why i didnt buy the kooks Y for my QTP's. hope that helps

Jon

 

I think it's no contest now that QTP's come polished with high velocity merge collectors for about $100 less than the Kooks.

I ordered QTP's earlier this week.

 

TTP contacted me and made me a kick *** offer that still blows away even QTP's reduced price. I'm going to call him up. I really like the Flowmaster merge and polished look QTP has got, but my car is low and I don't want to worry about ripping my exhaust off. Hell, I already scrape the stock y on speed bumps and have gotten stuck on several lifts. Thanks for the responses guys.

 

There should be no dilema. QTP all the way. They use better collectors(HVMC). And it seems kooks has been dropping the ball on the production. Fitment issues, flanges not lining up and headers rusting. And now the price of the HVMC there should not even be a doubt of what headers to get anymore.

 

Exactly, I wish I had to make the decision again, it would be alot easier.

 

Well, I have to respectfully disagree - the flange issue was solved and taken care of quickly. I haven't heard the outcome of the rusty headers - one case in the years I've been on the board?

I do like the HVMC, but what good is it if I leave it on the ground behind a speedbump?

 

From the pictures I've seen there's no measurable difference in how well the Kooks or QTP headers tuck up.
I think there may be more clearance issues with QTP's y-pipe, but it also looks like if you install it correctly it's not any worse than my current Hooker y-pipe.

 

i'm sorry I should have not said that statement, because yes, both headers actually do have ample clearance. I should have said that they could be damaged by banging and/or catching the y-pipe.

 

i just installed qtp hvmc and their ory and am dissapointed with the ory. i had a muffler shop do some major modifications and it still hangs down lower than i would like.i also had to modify my steering arm so it wouldn't rub my 1st tube.other than that i'm very happy with looks and performance.

 

I installed a set of QTP headers any catted y pipe and hade no clearance problems. Worth every bit!!!!

 

Like I said, I've never heard anything bad about QTP...everyone I talk to about them says they make a quality product.

My major point is talking about what I know about due to 1st-hand experience. I've installed 2 sets of Kooks on '02 WS6's with no problems whatsoever. They fit great, there was zero ground clearance loss, flanges were thick and straight, welds were excellent, and they tucked up nice 'n tight to the engine/tranny. As far as rusting goes, I don't see how 304 stainless could rust. The 1st set I installed is going on two years old, and the 2nd set was installed back in April or May. Besides a straw-colored discoloration due to heat (niether set was coated), there is absolutely no sign of rust on either set of headers.

As far as one brand bitch-slapping another, well, until I have 1st-hand experience installing and real-world usage of two different brands, I'd be dishonest were I to try to compare one product against another. I can form opinions and pass judgement only on those products/parts I've actually installed myself.

Pretty soon, I'll have opinions about AFR heads, FAST intake manifolds, Spec Stage IV clutches, LS2 timing sets, Comp custom ground billet cams, and Melling HD ported oil pumps. Until then, I don't have a shred of 1st-hand evidence about any of them.

 

I think for the money qtp wants for their y-pipe, I'm going to just buy the collector and have the rest fabbed. It will probably still be cheaper and tuck up better.

 

I have the QTP headers on my car, had their ORY and hated it. A bitch to get on or off and clearance wasnt that great, I always dragged the drivers side of the pipe.

I put on a Kooks ORY this summer and it fit right onto the QTPs. Had it installed in about 15 min. Wish I could say that about the QTP ORY.

The QTP ORY does have the flowmaster merge tho which is very nice, but I did not notice a power difference between the two. Since the QTP collectors are longer, the kooks ory does bang on the driver side floorboard because it doesnt quite tuck up right, although if you cut 1" off each collector, it is a PERFECT fit and tucks up awesome. The other option is to cut 1" off each side on the y-pipe and take it to an exhaust shop and have them expand the inlet another 1" or 2" deeper.

 

You're confusing the Header Collector (High Velocity Merge Collector) at the Long Tube Header, with the large (cumbersome) Y-merge Flowmaster Scavenger Collector at the Y-pipe. 2 different things.

The HVMC on the LT tucks up high and is in fact smaller in diameter than the regular 3" collector found on other LT brands, hence, MORE clearance.

 

Very good info!

 

^which qtp headers do you have? hvmc or not?

 

HVMC. They're on sale at QTP for $725. I paid nearly $1100 for them over a year ago. They're dyno proven and a bragain now.

To answer your question, technically neither, as the car is sold.

 

sorry, that question was directed to time2kill.

 

I have the non HVMC headers, but as far as I know, they use the same ORY.

 

Thats the info I wanted to hear!!!!!