tarpon4me

Yep, once again, busted nuckles and low moral, and i'll be another 400 bucks or so in the hole after the mechanic gets done getting the three broken header bolts out of my motor. Oh the joys of mods. I could have paid 200 to have them installed, instead, i'll be 400 in the hole getting the broken bolts out. Just my luck..........

I actually had the headers on my truck, as the bolts snapped during the torquing process. 18 ft/lbs my ***. I had a bad feeling about that much torque from the get go. I had the bulk of the screws in, so I figured **** it. I finished getting them on, so I could drive it to the mechanic and get it fixed. That saved me about 250 bucks for a weekend tow bill. I'm not equiped to get the bolts out of an aluminum block, and I wasn't interested in screwing anything else up. Atleast if he screws up the block, he's liable and not me. Had I not broken the header bolts, and needed a replacement upstream O2 sensor(thread were cashed during the removal), It would have been a total time of 7 hours or so for the install. that includes all the little bullshit I dealt with along the way, that no one ever tells you about. Once I get my truck back, and figure out how to buy groceries the rest of the week, I'll try to put all my thoughts together on what I found challenging and such for the install.

A few quick ones.....

1. on a 2001 with a 5.3 liter V8, BOTH headers go in from the bottom. there's no other way they can go, it's impossible. Maybe if your truck doesn't have A/C, you MIGHT!!!! get it through the top on the passenger side. But, with all the hoses and such in the way, I still doubt it.

2. in order to get the header up from the bottom on the passenger side, it is IMPOSSIBLE unless you remove the firewall heat shield from the truck. It's like three bolts, but I suspect that tiny detail is over looked regularly. Once that was removed, we could finally get it in, but it was still a bitch.

3. DON'T!!! reuse the factory header bolts. it's just silly when the headers come with bolts. I made that stupid mistake, and it is going to cost me a LOT of money. I had it in my head that reusing the factory bolts would be better than the aftermarket ones Pacesetter provided. WRONG

4. reusing the factory manifold gasket was a very GOOD idea. Even missing three bolts, I didn't have a leak. I guess there was a good in regards to the install. It's a shame that the hours of labor were for nothing, since they have to come off to get the bolts out.

5. Installing the Y pipe was the easiest part. The drivers side can be tightened down, it doesn't matter. however, before you put the FIRST bolt in the passenger side, go ahead and slide the Y under the transmission support beam. Other wise, you'll never get the damn thing over the header.

6. The U bolts that came with the Y pipe worked fine. I don't see a need to buy anything fancy, unless you just want to look cool. I'm a far stretch from a pro, and they sealed up fine for me.

7. The MSD wires were actually really nice, and cleared the headers very nicely. They flex, so you can bend them how you want them. The stock wires never would have worked. MSD wires catch a lot of flack, but they are really nice wires for this particular application. Not a single wire touched the header after I bent them where I wanted them.

8. Asside from the obvious concern of the ******* broken bolts, I only had one other thing that was bothering me. The transmission cooling lines were very close, like a half inch or so, from the header. I put the heat wrap on the lines, and the wrap was actually touching the header after the install. I still don't like it, however, it may not be a big deal. I'm really not sure. Anyone?????

9. the steering seemed to clear fine. Again, about a half inch or so, on the longest side of the steering bolt. So, I suspect there is no issue there. Oh, and you abosolutely have to undo the steering to get Pacesetter headers in place.

10. Wear mechanics gloves. My hands are torn to pieces. They are sore and worn. I don't even think I can jerk off tonight.

11. Here's the best tip of the day..... If you can afford it, have a professional install the headers. You may do two or three and have great success. But, it only takes one to really screw you up.

12. If you do tackle this project, make sure you have help. I did the bulk of this alone, which is why it took me so long. If I would have had help, it would have went much smoother.

andrew383

iTrader: (14)

Sooooo why didnt you just take the header loose and back the bolts outs with pliers??? Or did they break off in the head?

Ive installed my headers twice with the stock bolts

javzh

iTrader: (4)

i re used my stock bolts too, i didnt torque them i just use the gutentight scale. no leaks so far.

as far as the u bolts just keep an eye on the joints, you might get a leak. i know i did on one, so i used lap band clamps.

i did mine by myself as well, was my first lt header install. the y pipe was a PITA for me. seemed like it took forever, none the less i got it done without any problems. other than some cuts and busted knuckles
you live and you learn.

Coban

iTrader: (14)

Pro-tip:

13. Create a "rainy day fund" that you won't spend unless it is absolutely necessary. A savings account is a good thing to have. This is a corollary to the "you gotta pay to play" rule.

2007chevy5.3l

iTrader: (21)

Damn man sorry to hear the hell you are going thru.
I reused the stock gaskets and stock header bolts. I didnt "torque" them I just snugged them up. No leaks. For me the Y is the hardest part. I actually jacked with it today for 20min trying to get it off for my converter swap. I also got band clamps. I figured those ubolt clamps were garbage. My cooler lines almost touch the header tube and I havent had any unusual heat spikes...

tarpon4me

All broke off flush, no dice.

tarpon4me

My wife maintains the rainy day fund.

tarpon4me

None the less, when I get it back from the garage, the headers will be in place. All that will be left is to install the new plugs and O2 sensor, upload the tune, and get the muffler put on.

One thing that happened yesterday, that was funny as hell. My buddy was following me on the way to shop, and there was this guy on a bicycle going down the median. Looked like a typical drunk for my area. So, I decided to romp on the gas, and holy ****, the guy almost wrecked his bike. Funniest **** I saw in a week. I didn't realize how loud it was. It's not bad at cruize, with no muffler, it just Drones REALLY bad.

06Sierra2

the u bolts that come with the package worked ok for me. actually, there still on there. however, last time i tried to drop my y pipe it was stuck. the u bolt tend to crimp the pipes togethor and you are screwed. next time i go to flush my tranny im gonna have everything welded up with v bands to make it easy in the future

aQuickLS1

iTrader: (6)

Yep, had the same problem. I was able to get the y-pipe off the passenger header, but had to cut the one on the drivers side. Some band clamps would be a nice investment.