header gaskets and locking bolts?
obsesive retightening is THE most important thing. forget the locking bolts, buy a quality gasket and retighten frequently till they stay tight.
Header bolts do not loosen, gaskets compress with makes the bolt lose torque at which point it can begin to back out. That is a symtom not the problem the problem is gasket compression. I actually try to leave it sit overnight and retighten before ever firing the car then carry the wrenches in the car so I can even give them a check before leaving work.
Header bolts do not loosen, gaskets compress with makes the bolt lose torque at which point it can begin to back out. That is a symtom not the problem the problem is gasket compression. I actually try to leave it sit overnight and retighten before ever firing the car then carry the wrenches in the car so I can even give them a check before leaving work.
Originally Posted by 96capricemgr
obsesive retightening is THE most important thing. forget the locking bolts, buy a quality gasket and retighten frequently till they stay tight.
Header bolts do not loosen, gaskets compress with makes the bolt lose torque at which point it can begin to back out. That is a symtom not the problem the problem is gasket compression. I actually try to leave it sit overnight and retighten before ever firing the car then carry the wrenches in the car so I can even give them a check before leaving work.
Header bolts do not loosen, gaskets compress with makes the bolt lose torque at which point it can begin to back out. That is a symtom not the problem the problem is gasket compression. I actually try to leave it sit overnight and retighten before ever firing the car then carry the wrenches in the car so I can even give them a check before leaving work.
I cannot stress how much of what he is saying is the truth X1000.
Retighten every chance you can for several heat cycles. Then when you change oil check again. Mine are stiffer than Ron Jeremy on Viagra now!
1' ARP header bolts all the way.
Last edited by 97LT1; Jun 28, 2007 at 07:14 AM.
I did it maybe 4 or five times before the gaskets stopped compressing. I think it is dependent on your gasket type. I fought gasket leaks for a long time because I did not know you had to retighten that much.
I've had two different header setups and never had to retighten either of them. I've also never had leaks. I used the header bolts that came with my headers and stock manifold gaskets. That's right, stock manifold gaskets. I had to snip a little triangle out of each end to get them to fit (with the long tubes), but I've never had leaking issues with them. Retightening is still a good idea, though.
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Originally Posted by Sweetred95ta
I've had two different header setups and never had to retighten either of them. I've also never had leaks. I used the header bolts that came with my headers and stock manifold gaskets. That's right, stock manifold gaskets. I had to snip a little triangle out of each end to get them to fit (with the long tubes), but I've never had leaking issues with them. Retightening is still a good idea, though.
+1 . Thats what I did and I havent retightened them yet and its been a few weeks . No leaks either . I have always wondered why people want to use anything other than the MLS gaskets .
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I HIGHLY reccomend a brand called REMFLEX. They are very thick carbon graphite gaskets. They will "fill in" almost any poor sealing flange. They supposodly require "no" re-torqueing. ( So far no re-torqueing for me). They helped solve a couple of problems with my cheapo headers (loose fitting or bent flanges)
They are reasonably priced as well
They are reasonably priced as well