header help! pleasee

[gbodyfever]

Ok i bought a pair of flowtech full lenght headers for my cutlass, i started to try and install today and you need to take off the oil filter and all this other crap and they say to "try to snake them up" , i tried numerous ways every angle and they wont budge past a certain point wher eit gets caugth up in the frame and where the oil filter goes, DOES ANYONE hve any secrets to get thee up there? and tricks? i dotn want to lift the motor up just to do this, this isent what i was expecting, so any advice please thanks

 

[megaladon6]

are you doing this on a lift? some times you need to get the header to a very steep angle.

 

[gbodyfever]

i dont have it on a lift no, but i have it as high as the 3 ton jack will go, and its a pretty steep angle but just gets caught up and i dont see any other angle getting through, theres gotta be a way to get them by without haveing to lift the motor abit or modify them

 

[jerrycad472]

Okay, safety first, you have it up on blocks or jack stands not just the jack, right?

Maybe try to get the back end of the car up on stands as well to give you a little more room to work. Have you tried to see if maybe one side can be dropped down from the top? You might need to take more stuff off to do that. Its been 20 years since I put headers on a g-body, but I thought one of mine went in from the top and the other from the bottom. Also, maybe if you disconnect the trans at the cross member and jack it up a little, it will rock the engine forward and give you a little more room between the engine and frame to slip the headers in. Or if you have to lift the motor a few inches for the clearance you need.

If the Headers are made for your application, you should not have to modify them to fit. Worst case would be a small dimple to clear the steering. Just keep taking parts off until you get them in there. Good Luck.

 

[gbodyfever]

yes i have it on the jack with stands, but like you said ill try tomorow gettting the *ss end up and then the front alittle more higher. maybe if the headers are almost basically vertical they will slide in? it sonly the problem of the last primary tube which was why i couldent get it before but maybe more starighter will get past this

 

[Silent viewer]

i used shortys on my regal and they dropped in from above.... i would think full lengths would work the same??

 

[gbodyfever]

my dad used shortys on his regal and they went in like a breeze, these full lenghts you gotta go from underneath and its a b*tch fit it seems to go in, you have to takeoff the oil filter on the drivers, and the starter on the passenger plus some other stuff in the intructions, i tried the top on the drivers nad it just gets caught in ever little thing

 

[78mali350]

we had the malibu almost on it's back bumper it was so high in the air. The headers went in almost vertical from the bottom. I can say however we didn't put the oil filter on till after since it was a new motor so you may have to take it off to make it work. Other than that it just took some time is all

 

[85 Cutlass Brougham]

I'll say that I HATE installing full length headers and have shorties on my Olds for that reason. Notwithstanding, I'll add my 2 cents as to some tricks. If you really need the space on the driver's side, you could pull the steering column intermediate shaft or the whole column to get some much needed space. The starter will likely need to be removed to get everything into position and then the starter will need to be positioned and pushed up into position simultaneously with the passenger's side header. My AMC Spirit with an AMC 360 V8 once took me 3 days to get one header and the starter in place until I figured out the trick in that chassis (it has Hooker long tubes now that fit better than the Heddman's it used to have). I'll share it here for your benefit, maybe it will help. The trick was to put the header in loosely first and then install the starter by going in between the oil pan and the header, not going at it from the frame side. I have also disconnected the trans mount on some occasions and kicked the tailshaft over a few inches in one direction in order to gain some space ( hold the rocker/frame with your hands and push the tailshaft with your feet). You could also unbolt the engine mount and use the jack to lift the engine by the pan ( put a piece of wood under it first to avoid denting the pan!). This can be done on one or both sides, depending on how you want to lift it. Another thing you can do is take out the trans crossmember and manipulate the engine angle with the jack on the transmission to gain an inch or three where needed ( don't let the yoke fall our without draining the trans first or you will have a mess. You don't have to drain it if you do not let the yoke over extend). The most drastic solution is to use an engine hoist to partially pull the engine and then put the headers in to place before dropping it back down and tightening the bolts. My truck in fact requires me to drop the engine an inch or two to install the transmission or it will not clear the pan, so sometimes these techniques come in handy for more than just installing headers.

Don't be afraid to disconnect the engine mounts. It is not a lot of work compared to NOT disconnecting them if it is needed. The clamshell mounts only take one bolt to disconnect them and then the engine lifts right up with no problem, then falls back into place when you are done.