Header Install - Camaro5 Chevy Camaro Forum / Camaro ZL1, SS and V6 Forums

vandervortadam · 05-24-2013, 07:18 AM

I bought a set of SP 1 7/8" headers from jre and are die to arrive today. Cant wait to put them on. Any tips or tricks to know before i jump into the install tonight? Cant wait to hear her run.

Posted from Camaro5.com App for Android

vroomapunk · 05-24-2013, 08:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by vandervortadam

I bought a set of SP 1 7/8" headers from jre and are die to arrive today. Cant wait to put them on. Any tips or tricks to know before i jump into the install tonight? Cant wait to hear her run.

Posted from Camaro5.com App for Android

I also just got the exact same headers from SP, and am starting the install tonight lol.

When I put headers on my old car it was very straight forward.

It all just bolts up. One tip is to reuse the factory gasket, its always the best.

Its up to you how much stuff you want to get out of your way to make it easier on you, Im only gonna move what I have to, like the plug wires.

Some people take the plugs, and the steering column out, etc.

Since you have a 2010, and more mileage than me probably, some of the bolts will be harder to get out, but just be careful not to strip or break anything and it should be easy.

I made big wood blocks for the back wheels to sit on, like i did when I took the engine and trans out of my old 98 camaro.

Lycanine · 05-24-2013, 09:37 AM

Wear safety glasses when torquing underneath your car

http://www.camaro5.com/forums/showpo...7&postcount=87

lol but besides that it is pretty straightforward. Just take your time and DEFINITELY make sure you have all the proper bolts and such beforehand. Chris just jacked up the front of my car and blocked the back wheels. You definitely need a buddy to help you lift the headers and keep them from knocking the plugs though. Best of luck and let us know how it sounds with a video!

vroomapunk · 05-24-2013, 10:16 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lycanine

Wear safety glasses when torquing underneath your car

http://www.camaro5.com/forums/showpo...7&postcount=87

lol but besides that it is pretty straightforward. Just take your time and DEFINITELY make sure you have all the proper bolts and such beforehand. Chris just jacked up the front of my car and blocked the back wheels. You definitely need a buddy to help you lift the headers and keep them from knocking the plugs though. Best of luck and let us know how it sounds with a video!

God haha. I dont think my install can go as badly as yours, sorry to hear it, and glad your eye is okay

RJT-SS · 05-24-2013, 10:18 AM

I just installed 1-7/8" LTs. Here is what I recommend:

- Get a fender cover or, an old quit/comforter to protect the paint.

- Remove the spark plugs. I have read lots of posts where plugs got cracked and not noticed until the car was started and not running right. It's easy and one less thing to worry about. Side note on this: my plugs were a bit darker than I liked (evidence of running a little rich from the factory) so, I just put a new set in. I figured that if I was spending good money on headers, cats, and a tune; another $70 was worth it to me.

- Remove the stock cats and exhaust manifold as one unit. You will need jack stands high enough for this but you will need the same height to install the LTs.

- Not so much a recommendation but a heads-up, the O2 sensor connectors are a bee-otch to get apart. The front ones are clipped to the back of the cylinder heads and the rear connectors are tucked up between the tranny pan and the body. For me, those connectors were harder to get to than the fronts. I just broke the clips that held the connectors to the heads and then used zip-ties to hold them securely after the re-install. Worked like a champ. Also, there are green pins (think hand grenade) that lock the two ends of the connectors together. They are somewhat tough to get out and bit of overkill if you ask me. You might need some needle-nose pliers to squeeze the pin so you can remove it. I did not put them back on the rears mostly cause I knew my rear sensors were getting tuned out.

- Get some PB Blaster Penetrating Catalyst (Auto Zone carries it) for the O2 sensor removal. It made a HUGE difference. I couldn't budge them at first, then I tried WD-40 overnight (no joy); then the PB. I sprayed them down, waited 15 min, and they came out smooth as silk with NO thread damage. By the way, get some tape and a marker to tag each sensor so you put them back in the right spot.

- Get some anti-seize compound and put it on the header bolts, spark plug threads, cat bolts, and especially the O2 sensors. It is not "needed" but is a big benefit should/when you have to remove any of these items. DO NOT use any kind of thread locker on any of these items. You are just asking for trouble down the road.

- Re-use the stock gasket and bolts. The stock bolts have tapered tip without threads that helps you get the bolts started. I used three zip-ties (front, middle, and rear) to hold the gasket in place on the header as I got the bolts started. That worked really well.

- Oil dipstick tube - remove this FIRST. I over-looked this and was fighting to remove the stock manifold and cats when I had a duh moment. Anyway, remove the dipstick before you remove the tube. The tube has a little o-ring at the bottom where it seals. A firm but slight tug is all it takes to remove it. I highly recommend looking where the tube enters the motor. I didn't and could not see where it went after the headers were installed. I took off the heat shield that is bolted to the starter to give me a little more room to look around which worked well until I dropped a screw right down the LT pipes as they meet the collector.

That took a while to fish out. When you re-install the tube, put the dipstick all the way in it and the tip of the dipstick will help guide the tube in. Once the tube is in the motor, pull the dipstick out then just put a little pressure on the tube and you will feel the o-ring seat.

- Assuming you are running cats, firmly bolt-up the headers before you bolt-on the cats. When you connect the cats, just start the threads on the bolts and get both sides connected before you tighten them down. This allows you to move the exhaust side-to-side and up-down to get everything positioned. I had another brain-fart here and tightened down one side first, couldn't get the other cat in place, broke out the recip saw and then realized the other side was tightened down after I started cutting. I didn't have any issues other than a little extra work that wasn't needed if I thought about it for a min.

Use a torque wrench on the header bolts. The specs are 18 - 20 ft lbs. I went to 20 but I have also read others going as high as 30-35. You can easily reach all the driver's side bolts with a torque wrench so I torqued all of them then put a combo wrench on them to "feel" how tight they were. When I tightened the other side, I had a good idea of how much to tighten on the bolts I couldn't reach with the torque wrench.

If you like to DIY, this is a good project. There are a couple of PITAs but its pretty easy to do with basic tools. Good luck!

Bell040 · 05-24-2013, 10:37 AM

DIY section

05-24-2013, 07:18 AM	#1
vandervortadam Drives: 2010 Camaro 2ss black 21's Join Date: May 2012 Location: Wisconsin Posts: 148	Header Install I bought a set of SP 1 7/8" headers from jre and are die to arrive today. Cant wait to put them on. Any tips or tricks to know before i jump into the install tonight? Cant wait to hear her run. Posted from Camaro5.com App for Android

05-24-2013, 09:37 AM	#3
Lycanine Drives: 2011 IBM Camaro 2SS/RS Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Jacksonville, FL Posts: 485 View My Garage	Wear safety glasses when torquing underneath your car http://www.camaro5.com/forums/showpo...7&postcount=87 lol but besides that it is pretty straightforward. Just take your time and DEFINITELY make sure you have all the proper bolts and such beforehand. Chris just jacked up the front of my car and blocked the back wheels. You definitely need a buddy to help you lift the headers and keep them from knocking the plugs though. Best of luck and let us know how it sounds with a video! __________________ Build Journal: My Dearest Mina

05-24-2013, 10:18 AM	#5
RJT-SS Drives: '11 2SS/RS A6 Join Date: Apr 2011 Location: New Orleans Posts: 504	I just installed 1-7/8" LTs. Here is what I recommend: - Get a fender cover or, an old quit/comforter to protect the paint. - Remove the spark plugs. I have read lots of posts where plugs got cracked and not noticed until the car was started and not running right. It's easy and one less thing to worry about. Side note on this: my plugs were a bit darker than I liked (evidence of running a little rich from the factory) so, I just put a new set in. I figured that if I was spending good money on headers, cats, and a tune; another $70 was worth it to me. - Remove the stock cats and exhaust manifold as one unit. You will need jack stands high enough for this but you will need the same height to install the LTs. - Not so much a recommendation but a heads-up, the O2 sensor connectors are a bee-otch to get apart. The front ones are clipped to the back of the cylinder heads and the rear connectors are tucked up between the tranny pan and the body. For me, those connectors were harder to get to than the fronts. I just broke the clips that held the connectors to the heads and then used zip-ties to hold them securely after the re-install. Worked like a champ. Also, there are green pins (think hand grenade) that lock the two ends of the connectors together. They are somewhat tough to get out and bit of overkill if you ask me. You might need some needle-nose pliers to squeeze the pin so you can remove it. I did not put them back on the rears mostly cause I knew my rear sensors were getting tuned out. - Get some PB Blaster Penetrating Catalyst (Auto Zone carries it) for the O2 sensor removal. It made a HUGE difference. I couldn't budge them at first, then I tried WD-40 overnight (no joy); then the PB. I sprayed them down, waited 15 min, and they came out smooth as silk with NO thread damage. By the way, get some tape and a marker to tag each sensor so you put them back in the right spot. - Get some anti-seize compound and put it on the header bolts, spark plug threads, cat bolts, and especially the O2 sensors. It is not "needed" but is a big benefit should/when you have to remove any of these items. DO NOT use any kind of thread locker on any of these items. You are just asking for trouble down the road. - Re-use the stock gasket and bolts. The stock bolts have tapered tip without threads that helps you get the bolts started. I used three zip-ties (front, middle, and rear) to hold the gasket in place on the header as I got the bolts started. That worked really well. - Oil dipstick tube - remove this FIRST. I over-looked this and was fighting to remove the stock manifold and cats when I had a duh moment. Anyway, remove the dipstick before you remove the tube. The tube has a little o-ring at the bottom where it seals. A firm but slight tug is all it takes to remove it. I highly recommend looking where the tube enters the motor. I didn't and could not see where it went after the headers were installed. I took off the heat shield that is bolted to the starter to give me a little more room to look around which worked well until I dropped a screw right down the LT pipes as they meet the collector. That took a while to fish out. When you re-install the tube, put the dipstick all the way in it and the tip of the dipstick will help guide the tube in. Once the tube is in the motor, pull the dipstick out then just put a little pressure on the tube and you will feel the o-ring seat. - Assuming you are running cats, firmly bolt-up the headers before you bolt-on the cats. When you connect the cats, just start the threads on the bolts and get both sides connected before you tighten them down. This allows you to move the exhaust side-to-side and up-down to get everything positioned. I had another brain-fart here and tightened down one side first, couldn't get the other cat in place, broke out the recip saw and then realized the other side was tightened down after I started cutting. I didn't have any issues other than a little extra work that wasn't needed if I thought about it for a min. Use a torque wrench on the header bolts. The specs are 18 - 20 ft lbs. I went to 20 but I have also read others going as high as 30-35. You can easily reach all the driver's side bolts with a torque wrench so I torqued all of them then put a combo wrench on them to "feel" how tight they were. When I tightened the other side, I had a good idea of how much to tighten on the bolts I couldn't reach with the torque wrench. If you like to DIY, this is a good project. There are a couple of PITAs but its pretty easy to do with basic tools. Good luck! __________________ Performance Mods: Kooks 1-7/8 LTs; Calico coated w/HFCs, Solo Mach XL catback w/J-pipes, VMax TB, C.A.I. Intake, JRE Tune, RX Catch-Can

05-24-2013, 10:37 AM	#6
Bell040 Drives: 2SS/RS - Black - GFX Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: B'ham, Alabama Posts: 2,458 View My Garage	DIY section __________________ Ordered: 10-13-08 Built: 3-30-09 (#1691) Recieved: 6-12-09 Blacked out, Cammed (Lunati Voodoo 233/245, .578/.598 @114°, +4°), ARH LTs, VR OTR CAI, Cutouts, and lots of other fun mods.