I have had a re-welded passenger header for the last 4+ months and everything is still running perfectly.

I even have a half dozen quarter-mile passes on the same day, 3 of them back to back,...park it for 20min, and another 3 back to back. (My original header crack was first noticed during a few back to back drag runs)

I believe I was the first to have one crack, and so far this new weld is looking as good as day one.

 

good news bro.....I'm hoping I won't have any more issues. I really enjoyed driving the car today.

 

UPDATE; I just recieved the headers back from S&S yesterday. I sent both out to him for re-welding and he took care of that free of charge and had them re-coated. Excellent customer service and communication. I am very happy that he is so willing to fix these problems even though part of the problem may be due to our vehicles not having the flex section. Thanks Loren!

 

O.K. I've actually had the drivers side header back for about a month now. The passenger side even longer. Thanks to Loren for taking care of us. He sent me new ones on both sides with a fresh coat of Jet Hot. I know this is so, because I had to redrill the holes on the header flange that mates to the exhaust ports on the heads. Also had to shave metal off the opening on the flange to clear the lip on the cats where the gasket sits.
Anyway, I finally had the opportunity to reinstall them on the car this past Sunday, Feb. 25th. Much easier without the heat shields. Did not even have to drop the subframe/crossmember. Like I said, I love this mod. Well worth the money spent. Much better throttle response. The car now has more rumble to it than before. Coupled to the custom X pipe, it sounds even better with a more exotic rumble to it. Sorry guys, I don't have any sound clips or video. I should get on it soon though.
Her are some pics prior to installation and I also included some of the X pipe.
Enjoy!
Before repairs. Drivers side.

After repairs. Driver side. You could see where they added more welds.


Driver side and passenger side. (New and improved)

Pics of the X pipe.

 

looks real good. congrats.

 

Well, S&S is a relatively small company and I know it has to hurt doing this warranty work... nice to see someone back up their product even though it is costly. Like I have said before, Lexus doesn't use flex pipe in the exhaust and that loads everything more than otherwise making it hard to predict or expect this failure.

Interesting that you mention throttle response. That is one of the important considerations for a performance mod. Gaining a few horsepower but loosing reponse would not be good. Too many focus only on peak power and are unaware of this critical consideration. Your 400 has better stock manifolds than the 430s so those cars have even better results.

I see you went with a "sport" system... no center or 2nd resonators. Should be "throaty" probably too throaty for some but others probably are envious. What size pipes are those?

I am a little surprised you needed to modify the bolt holes. The header flanges should be an exact fit. That said, things like this happen and this is actually one of the reasons I requested Loren to use 1.625" holes in the flanges with the 1.50" pipes stretched to fit at the flange. This creates a slight bulge and eliminates any possible overhange in the case like yours of a slight mismatch. The ID of the 1.5" pipe is almost an exact match for the port diameter so any mismatch would not be good. I requested the 1.5" pipe diameter to keep response and torque nice and high. Bigger pipes would have been a mistake.

 

Thanks guys. I can't say enough good things about Loren and S&S headers. He really stepped up and took care of this thing for me. The pipes I used for the X pipe is 2.25 with no resonators. I was expecting this set up to be very loud. But to my supprise, it was not loud at all. I recently got pulled over for no front plate and was asked if I had any mods to the engine. I ended up popping the hood open for this po po. And he tagged me for my non-C.A.R.B legal SRT intake. He then wanted me to rev the car up to 5k rpm. To my supprise, he said it was not loud at all. Appearantly, he did not see the headers and it was not noted on the ticket. In fact, he even noted on the ticket "Modified exhaust Not loud" This set up is perfect. Not too loud with an exotic rumble to it. I did not have to take much off the flanges to the heads, just for the two ports for the #1 and #2 cylinders.
GS430s have even more response and torque gains with this header. I know from an install I did on a friend and fellow CL members GS430. He was not able to bust the tires loose prior to install. He test drove the car and upon his return to the shop, he complained to me that his VSC and Trac light come on during accelleration. He said it did not do that prior to install. I had to laugh and explain to him the substancial response and torque he gained from the headers.
-Will

 

Is it better to get these from Carson or directly from S&S?

 

Just checked both sites Hameed. They both are priced at $599. I wonder if shipping to Canada is cheaper from Arizona than California.
Anyway, here is the contact info for S&S Headers.
S&S Headers Inc.
6042 N. 53rd Dr.
Glendale, AZ. 85301-7775
623-847-9000
loren@ssheaders.com
ssheaders.com

 

has anybody tried putting these aftermarket heads on a bone stock exhaust?

what kind of power increase would I be looking at?

but most importantly, I want the car to be quiet, and I mean quiet. How much of a noise increase would I see with aftermarket headers?

 

Thanks TAMR_GUS98 ! I tried to buy it online, but the order did not go through as their website is not setup to ship to Canada.

Anyway, I sent an email to Loren directly. Thanks!

 

If that is the case then I suspect headers may not be the mod for you.

They are not obnoxious but they do make the car a bit louder, throatier and deeper.

 

I don't know who has them installed with an otherwise stock exhaust but I would suggest that 95%+ of the time you would never even know they are on. Under full throttle you "may" be able to discern over stock. Otherwise next to no difference. Hopefully others will add their experiences.

 

the last 2 posts between morris and jbrady don't jive

 

the car is not any lounder in my experience....

I suppose if you add the X-pipe it will be louder.