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Gonna pick up a set of kooks 1 7/8 headers and kooks catless connection pipes today. Found them brand new on craigslist for 950.
Should i use the kooks hardware and gaskets?
Or should i go with arp bolts and oem delco gaskets?
Im also gonna do the ngk tr55 plugs at the 034 gap
And some spark plug heat socks
And possibly wires after i inspect mine
Any other advise or opinions anyone?
1. Have two M18x1.5 bungs welded in. I recommend Kooks 9002S. You'll need one to support the wideband sensor your tuner needs to plug in. A second enables you to plug in a second device (e.g. Aeroforce or Ballenger AFR500) permanently.
2. Don't forget to get plugs for those bungs. I recommend Stainless Works O2P over the Kooks 9002SA plugs. The SW plugs seal better and it's easier to get a wrench on the smaller head.
3. Get your headers coated by Swain Tech. Don't wrap them or leave them bare. Bare headers will fry your motor mounts and make your IATs high, whereas header wrap will accelerate rusting and costs more than coating because you have to replace it every year.
4. The included gaskets are good. You can also try Fel-Pro MS92467 gaskets. Don't bother with GM gaskets. They're okay, but you can do better.
7. Be prepared to go to the tuner. Your car is going to throw codes with or without cats installed. I prefer cats because of the smell and the sound without them. If you're on a budget, try the Kooks 23103200. It's trivial to weld them or clamp them to a 2.5" catback.
Depending on your mileage and wear, I would check your motor mounts and starter. I replaced my mounts while i was there, the starter when out 6 months later. Save you some time while you are there. I used the sleeves on the wires, got new arp bolts, I reused the GM gaskets with no problems. Torqued everything to spec.
Ok thanks guys.
I was gonna grab the dei boots and arp bolts off ebay
Mileage is 105k, did the motor mounts last yr, what a bitch, so that hard parts done. Went with the cs stage 2 mounts with the medal heat sheilds, had to remove cat and starter on pass side to do that one.
I Got the whole cs kit while i was at it.
Also installed the tranny mount, and got the red race rear diff bushing and the shifter bushing kit, but those two arent installed yet.
What kind of starter wire insullation do u guys recommend?
This is the kit it came with, would these 4 harness work and these 4 exhaust bolts with washers work? The header bolts look like junk, so deff gonna go with arp
Fuzzy, these connection pipes look like that bung part u were tellin me to have weld on, or does it go somewhere else? Or would This be to far back to use instead of plugging it? Just asking since the rear sensors would be deleted anyway
So you've got all the extensions you could ever need, but all the bolts are zinc-plated junk. I'm surprised they gave you M8 hardware for the flanges... M10 bolts fit and they're better able to handle the torque you need to apply to get the flanges to seal.
You'll eventually understand where I'm coming from if you try to install those headers using those bolts. The flange bolts need to be fully threaded so that you can thread a nut down on the header flanges. Once you do that the bolts should stay on the header flanges forever, unless you damage the threads and need to replace them. Doing this makes it infinitely easier to remove/reattach your exhaust, since you will only need one wrench (as opposed to two) to tighten or loosen each nut on the cat / connection pipe side.
Everything in that area is exposed to very high heat and gets the living crap kicked out of it due to rocks, corrosive runoff, and saltwater spray. So you need to use a minimum of 316SS (not 18-8SS) and preferably Bumax 88 otherwise the next time you go to take off your exhaust you may be cutting the bolts off. Coated fasteners are worthless down there.
The threaded holes in the connection pipes are where you attach your rear O2 sensors. You're going to want an extra bung up near the collector, where the four primary tubes meet. It needs to be before the catalytic converter to get a good reading. I point them inward to maximize clearance and provide a clean looking installation, but when Jannetty Racing welded a bung in my driver's side OBX header at my first tune, they pointed it outward for their convenience.
Very pretty welds, but don't do this:
Last edited by FuzzyLog1c; 07-01-2017 at 07:26 PM.
Ok thanks. So the rear 02 bungs wont work since there to far back even though its catless?
So can i just drill a hole and have them welded in near the front 02 holes on the header merge collector part? But point them inwards towards the center of the car? What size drill bit would be good?
And ill buy all the other stuff u mentioned also before i do this job so i can do it all at once.
And why did it come with 4 header gaskets? 2 spares i guess?
And why do i need 8 flange nuts instead of 4 for the 4 bolts?
Ill be ordering everything monday, i got the cash but the bank isnt open right now lol, so gotta wait to get there to put more money in the account.
And thanks fuzzy for all the helpfull info
Without any Cats the distance from the collector shouldnt be an issue as long as the pipe is pretty much straight in that area. You don't want a wideband reading after a cat or too close to a significant bend.
I got the red deplhi plug wires. Should i order new ones anyways plus just incase one breaks on me during removal? And what ngk tr 55 plugs should i purchace?
So could i do away without the two added 02 bungs and plugs? And if i do get the bungs, should i get the 9002s or the 9002s-c?
I recommend you get the flat bungs. I tried the curved ones and they weren't good for where I wanted to put them. I think you're going to find out that you can't stand catless exhaust and will buy cats shortly thereafter. That's why I recommended getting the bungs done now, before you get them coated. If you wait until later, you'll crack the coating. Only a tiny minority of people actually run catless because it smells horrible and it's so obviously in violation of emissions standards you're unlikely to pass in some states regardless of how they test.
Originally Posted by Mike ctsV
I got the red deplhi plug wires. Should i order new ones anyways plus just incase one breaks on me during removal? And what ngk tr 55 plugs should i purchace?
I run one step colder spark plugs due to my mods... NGK TR6IX gapped to .042" (.039" default). TR55IX (.059" default) is correct for your application. I used to run TR55IX and liked them, but once I increased compression a little and added a lot of mods I felt I needed a slightly colder plug. When in doubt it's better to be slightly too cold than slightly too hot.
So i should go with the iridium plugs instead of the plain copper plug?
Should i purchase the msd plug wires as well? Im lookin at the msd part number 32819. 8.5mm. Would thise work? Found them for 68 shipped
Just need to order the o2 bungs and plugs. And i need to find some starter wire insullation. Any tips on that anyone?
Ive ordered everthing else. Orded the 4 bolts and 8 nuts from that link fuzzy sent me. And then i ordered the rest from ebay
Only difference i ordered was the plug boots, there still titanium and made from the lava stuff. 6 inches long and hold 1200 degrees and 2000 degrees http://m.ebay.com/itm/Vulcan-Dual-To...=1404779359009
I'm using Percy's Vibe-lock 12pt locking header bolts. No complaints here. Just make sure you take out the pins first before taking out the bolt otherwise you'll strip out the threaded head bore. I'm also running GM stock gaskets without issue. I didn't like the kooks gaskets that came with. They looked very shoddily put together.
07-01-2017, 12:24 PM
Need some exhaust advise 
