Install Help

[noolah123]

Does anyone know of a good place with good prices to install headers and a y pipe in the morris/essex county area?

[Anti_Rice_Guy]

TMR performance? And welcome from a Morris county-er

[LTb1ow]

JS performance yo

[S.J.SLEEPER]

js perfromance +1

[LTb1ow]

Do it yourself?

[noolah123]

i would love to do it myself, but i dont have the expertise nor a garage. i was quoted by a local meineke who did my exhaust and he told me $500. Is that about what it is going to cost? if so i may have to do it myself.

[MonmouthCtyAntz]

i would love to do it myself, but i dont have the expertise nor a garage. i was quoted by a local meineke who did my exhaust and he told me $500. Is that about what it is going to cost? if so i may have to do it myself.

LT1? yea thats about the going rate....LS it would probably be cheaper.

[deadtrend1]

"TMR Performance" is the closest sponsor to you. JSPerformance is 2nd closest

[Jersey Mike]

I got quoted 500 for my LTs on my LS1.



...hence why I just did it myself. Hardest part was getting the car high enough in my driveway.

[iroc86NJ]

Do it yourself?

+1....

[Czop418]

Yea man try and do it yourself. Take the money that you would spend on the install for headers and buy jack , ramps , and socket set. That'll be like 170. and get a can of pb blaster. for the old exauast manifold bolts. and btw go out and get yourself new spark plugs before you install your new headers you wont want to try and change them after you put headers on.

[noolah123]

ok so i have decided to attempt the install myself. so if anyone hears of, car owner blows his car up in a rage on the nj news, thats me. Also, the hooker headers have one of the tubes on the driver side I believe that detaches. Does that need to be welded or do you just leave it? That is the one thing i am confused about.

[LTb1ow]

You put a clamp over the slip fit.

What engine is this for?

[noolah123]

its for 96 lt1.

[LTb1ow]

Ah..

Well be patient. Lots of PB blaster, and a lot of patience.

[noolah123]

yeah thats what i hear. i am starting it monday and am off all week so i have some time to do it. I am sure I will be posting some "help me please" posts during the install.

[LTb1ow]

Are you doing this on jack stands?

And you really should order new poly motor mounts and 02 extensions.

[sweetbmxrider]

and plugs and wires. make sure you route the wires well away from the primaries. otherwise, you will burn them! have fun too, i would have paid someone 8-) post up when you run into trouble.

[Jersey Mike]

If you have the entire week off, and already are going to have the stock exhaust manifolds off, then I recommend you do the motor mounts & the spark plugs now too. Make sure you have 2 band clamps, o2 sensor extensions, new gaskets & a lot of FluidFilm or PB Blaster... if you have a torch, even better!

I couldn't get my car high enough to get the cats & manifolds off together, so I ended up cutting the pipe with a Sawzall.


*edit*
^^this was on a LS1, not LT1

[LTb1ow]

http://www.shbox.com/1/exhaust_system_dual_cat.jpg

If you can't get the car high enough to take that jig saw puzzle off, I would give a lot of second thought to installing LTs.

[KirkEvil]

Just take your time, get a friend to help, and make sure the car is properly supported. I also recommend that you do motor mounts at the same time.

[noolah123]

yeah i am going out to get a set of jack stands on sunday. Is that high enough with jack stands?

[NastyEllEssWon]

get some decent jackstands from sears, dont get the crappy 20 dollar stands from walmart. the bigger ones from sears can go higher. much higher.

[LTb1ow]

Doable yes, it is not going to be fun though..

You also may need a little bottle jack to lift the engine off the mounts.

[noolah123]

did you say bottle of jack? thats what i was planning on getting me through the installation.

[JL8Jeff]

No, a bottle jack won't be high enough or safe enough. You need a solid floor jack and may even need a block of wood for the extra height. Are the headers emission's headers? They can be a bit tougher to install and may require even more height. It is highly recommended to replace the motor mounts while you have the exhaust out of the way. And you may want to get some heat wrap to put around the fuel lines for added protection, the y-pipe can be a little close.

[LTb1ow]

Bottle jack to move the engine up and down once the car is on stands.

[NastyEllEssWon]

Bottle jack to move the engine up and down once the car is on stands.




a flat hydraulic floor jack with a block of wood under the oil pan would work better

[Czop418]

.... i wouldnt recomend the motor mounts . because you need to have the riviting tool , or be a damn good welder to make sure it stays. from what me and my friends expierienced bolting the mounts in instead of the using the rivits wont allow you to fit properly not to mention the flex / steady vibration actuallys cause the bolts holding the mounts in to loosen. but yeah if you need anyhelp with anything just give a post. like i said just disconect the steering knuckle 2 bolts and a good whack with a hammer. and take out your starter and you should be fine. and dont forget change those plugs/wires.

[noolah123]

So i got started today at around 3:00 and only had a few hours to work. The bolt removal was going fine, until i needed to remove the driver side Cat. I soaked the hell out of those screws this weekend and they would not budge. So i went the barbarian route and started cutting them. One actually broke so that was easy, but the second one is a bitch. i haven't even ventured to the third , which is pretty much buried in the engine bay. You guys weren't kidding. I only just started and my patients are wearing thin. I think i do need that bottle of jack (daniels) you guys spoke of earlier. I'm getting up early tomorrow and will have a full day of cursing and yellling, so i will keep you informed. Thanks for all the help so far.

[LTb1ow]

.... i wouldnt recomend the motor mounts . because you need to have the riviting tool , or be a damn good welder to make sure it stays. from what me and my friends expierienced bolting the mounts in instead of the using the rivits wont allow you to fit properly not to mention the flex / steady vibration actuallys cause the bolts holding the mounts in to loosen. but yeah if you need anyhelp with anything just give a post. like i said just disconect the steering knuckle 2 bolts and a good whack with a hammer. and take out your starter and you should be fine. and dont forget change those plugs/wires.

I would chance them loosening than having to listen to my brand new headers smack the floor every time you nail it.

[noolah123]

So if i dont install motor mounts, the headers are going to smack the floor when hitting the gas? That doesn't sound like fun....

[LTb1ow]

Its quite a good possibility that they will. I did my mounts with the supplied bolts/nuts and they have yet to fall apart....

[JerzLT1]

where do you live? there might be someone local that can help you

[noolah123]

i live in east hanover. i ran into a pretty big problem in my eyes. the last bolt for the drivers manifold is stripped at the head. i am at a loss what to do with it. any suggestions?

[LTb1ow]

Well.

How far did it snap? Enough so when the manifold is off, you can grab it with vise grips and turn it out?

Or snapped flush with the head? In which case you need to drill it out, and worst case, helicoil it.

Depending on which one you snapped, those options are going to be tough.

[Czop418]

Yea just helicoil it if you cant get it out. Helicoil are stronger than regular threads. thats what they use on airplanes. so dont worry if you have too. just remeber buy the right helicoil you only have 1 shot with it.

[LTb1ow]

How would he helicoil it with the snapped bolt still in there?

[Czop418]

oh geez i prolly confused the hell outta the guy. What i mean to say is if you cant get the bolt out dont worry drill it out and re-thread and then heli-coil. Some times i forget that this is the internet and you have to explain every little thing on here. :p

[LTb1ow]

Don't want him to get confused. Already sucks as it is.

[Czop418]

Haha like i said i forget sometimes. But hey everyone is green at one point. At least hes still trying.

[sweetbmxrider]

he isn't ****ed yet. as long as the manifold comes off he should be ok. the outer bolts use the outermost bolt holes in the heads. almost all aftermarket headers use the bolt holes closer to the exhaust ports. so as long as he can get the manifold off he will be ok. might have to grind the bolt flush with the head though.

loctite the motor mount clamshell bolts or get stock rubber replacements and not worry about it. they are pricey oem style though.

[noolah123]

sorry for the confusion. the bolt snapped just above the driver side cat on the flanges holding the pipes together. the manifold bolt head got rounded thats all. it also just happens to be the last bolt in the driver side manifold. so i pb'ed it all day today and bought http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_12605_00952060000P a damaged bolt remover. i hope this works. if not i am at a loss. the passenger side went much smoother so far, famous last words. i only have to two rear bolts closer to the rear of the engine. so i am about 7 hours into the project and nothing removed. is that normal or am i a snail?

[LTb1ow]

Well if its just on the connection between the Y pipe and manifold, who cares? If the Y can come off, don't worry about it.

[NastyEllEssWon]

sawzall the exhaust off and toss the stock manifold and flanges in the garage

[noolah123]

yeah i did that. i love the saw zall.

[sweetbmxrider]

ohhhhhhhhhh

well sawzall's are amazing :)

[noolah123]

one question, since these are not the emmissions headers, do i still need the air pump?

[NastyEllEssWon]

nope toss that and the egr to the side if it doesnt have provisions for it. :nod:

[Czop418]

just make sure you weld a bolt into the egr plate , or buy a block off plate for the back of the manifold. Or your car will run like dookey.

[Jersey Mike]

Yeah a freeze plug should do temporarily if you don't have a block-off plate handy.

[noolah123]

Yeah i got the plates already. got a golf game tomorrow so i may not get to mess around until 3 ish, which sucks because now i just want to keep going until it is done.

[noolah123]

Ok so the bolt is stuck in the manifold pretty good and appears to be rounded off pretty good at the head. The kit from sears did not help much and now i am at a loss without a car and ready to start smashing things. Any suggestions?

[NastyEllEssWon]

the bolt from the exhaust flange or the bolt on the manifold to the head?

[noolah123]

the manifold to the head.

would a heat gun be hot enough to help?

[JL8Jeff]

Do you have all the other bolts out from that manifold now? Can you even move the manifold with that one bolt still holding it? Be careful with too much heat around aluminum, it might make it easier to strip the threads.

[noolah123]

yeah all the other bolts are out. I did not really try to move it too much. i'll give that a try.

[sweetbmxrider]

which bolt? heat gun, nah. rust penetrant like pb blaster or kanokroil, yes :nod:

[Jersey Mike]

someone go help this man

[LTb1ow]

Just focus on getting the manifold off. Then worry about extracting the broken bolt.

[noolah123]

im gonna try a heat gun and vice grips tomorrow. next i try the shotgun.

[LTb1ow]

Is the manifold off?

[noolah123]

no i did not really get much time today to work on it. I had the removal kit but i was unsuccessful with that. Tomorrow i am getting up bright and early and destroying this thing before i leave for work at 3. heat gun and vice grips. is that pb blaster flammable? I better double check before i use a torch huh.

[noolah123]

just tried to get the vice grips on the bolt and it is too flush with the end of the manifold. any ideas how to break it off? A chisel maybe?

[JL8Jeff]

Hacksaw blade will cut the head off, it will just take time. Try rotating the manifold to see if that will help the bolt break loose.

[NastyEllEssWon]

http://www.matcotools.com/ProductImages/se355.jpg











mini right angle die ftw

[sweetbmxrider]

so you have one bolt with a stripped head holding the manifold to the head? which bolt? can you take a pic?

[Tru2Chevy]

so you have one bolt with a stripped head holding the manifold to the head? which bolt? can you take a pic?

He has said multiple times that it's the last bolt on the driver's side.

OP: cut the head of that bolt off with whatever power tools you have at your disposal, then remove the manifold. Soak the threads with PB, then get some vice grips on the part of the bolt that is sticking out (make sure they are quite tight) and turn the sucker out.

Use a torch if necessary, but be careful. PB is flammable.

- Justin

[noolah123]

ok thanks guys. i have a dremel, that seems small enough to get in there. Ill let you know tomorrow. Btw, what a PIA this is. you guys weren't kidding.

[WildBillyT]

He has said multiple times that it's the last bolt on the driver's side.

OP: cut the head of that bolt off with whatever power tools you have at your disposal, then remove the manifold. Soak the threads with PB, then get some vice grips on the part of the bolt that is sticking out (make sure they are quite tight) and turn the sucker out.

Use a torch if necessary, but be careful. PB is flammable.

- Justin

This is good advice, follow it. PB or Kroil will work, skip WD40.

[Czop418]

Yea be very careful PB blaster is flammable , and even tho you might want to burn your car to the ground because of this , we don't want to see it happen. Also i don't now how good this product is becuase ive never used but i you could always try a universal socket.