Install a 1969 Camaro Header

Not just for 1969 Camaro owners, headers are for anyone wanting to improve their vehicle's performance! As with most things in life, there are varying degrees of commitment.

Steps

  1. Remove the existing manifold(s) by unbolting from the exhaust pipe and cylinder head. It's extremely common to break one or more fasteners during the removal process as a result of corrosion. Manifolds experience some of the most radical temperature extremes of any part on your engine. This leads to impossibly seized fasteners that simply refuse to budge and ultimately break.
  2. Scrape the gasket surface of the engine's cylinder head completely clean once the old manifold is off. Don't scrimp here. Scrape the surface(s) clean, as in not a single fleck of old carbon or gasket material anywhere on the gasket surface. Scrape it completely clean.
  3. Try cleaning out the threaded holes for the mounting studs with a tap and cutting fluid. WD-40 works good if you're just cleaning out existing threads. Consider spending the money to replace the header bolts/studs with either brass or stainless steel components as that eliminates the corrosion issues.
  4. Slip the replacement exhaust header into place to check it's fit. It's not uncommon to unbolt one of the motor mounts to lift the engine an inch or two for clearance while the header is slid into place. This is possibly standard procedure on any of the big-block Camaros and numerous other vehicles with more engine than they were originally designed for.
  5. Carefully slip a new gasket into place between the header and cylinder head while taking care to protect the gasket. No nicks, cuts scrapes, etc!
  6. Get the header in place. Install the mounting hardware and sequentially (moving in opposing order from one fastener to the other) tighten the fasteners to about half the recommended tightness (You do have a torque wrench, right?).
  7. Sequentially tighten to three-fourths of the recommended torque, and then tighten to full torque.
  8. Start your engine with nothing but the open headers in place. This will endear you to your neighbors. Everyone loves the sound of an uncapped race car!
  9. If the police rock up they leave, you can purchase header mufflers that bolt directly to the flanges on the header collector(s) and these will allow you to drive down to your local muffler shop without getting ticketed. They will weld flanges onto your existing exhaust system that will bolt right onto your new headers!
  10. Installing some type of free-breathing air filtration system on the other side of your engine at the same time is advisable. Afterward, try to locate a shop with a dyno (dynamometer, to measure your engines power output) and get the engine dialed in to work with its new free-breathing state. Don't skip this step if at all possible. The difference is astounding!

Tips

  • If you don't have good tools, borrow or rent them. Headers are one of the best places on a vehicle to lose a knuckle and shoddy tools only compound the problem.

Warnings

  • Be safe! Avoid working on the engine until it cools down and never work underneath a vehicle unless it's properly supported on jack stands, ramps, or a lift.

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