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Aftermarket Performance headers?

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Old Nov 14, 2013 | 09:12 PM
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Aftermarket Performance headers?

How do I know if they are actually aftermarket as in they will boost hp and torque compared to generic and oem ones? For example those that are sold on eBay for a far less price than others when looking at the pics they look exactly the same with the same design!
Old Nov 14, 2013 | 09:55 PM
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This has been covered a million times, use search.

The ones on ebay are shorty headers and generally fit poorly, thats why they are cheap. Unless you have money to blow dont bother with headers, invest the money where youll get more bang for your buck - headers that are worthwhile begin around 500 and go up to around 800 if you want the creme de la creme. For that much you can do a handful of other mods and still free up more power than headers would provide.
Old Nov 15, 2013 | 06:13 AM
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Any info on obx headers that run around 300 or should the cattman headers be the primary target to purchase.
Old Nov 15, 2013 | 09:21 AM
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For the love of GOD .... Use the SEARCH function!!!

Last edited by ABIGBRAIN; Nov 15, 2013 at 09:23 AM.
Old Nov 15, 2013 | 03:05 PM
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Originally Posted by ABIGBRAIN
For the love of GOD .... Use the SEARCH function!!!
+1, again.....

With headers you get what you pay for. Unless you have done just about every other performance mod that is bolt on you shouldnt even be thinking about headers. The gains youll see are pitiful relative to the money spent - again, if you are patient and keep an eye out, you could get a y pipe, budget catback, and do an 00vi swap and maybe even a cone filter w/ MAF adapter for your intake; these mods would be giving you AT LEAST 3-4 times more power (combined) than headers would for a comparable price. Hell, i bet a set of high quality tires would benefit you more than headers for the money spent. Headers simply dont benefit our cars as much as some other cars; its not cake, or even the icing on the cake, its the god damn little sprinkles on the top.

In short, unless you are have all the above mods done already or just want to burn money, dont bother with headers. They simply are a poor financial choice for performance gains unless you are squeezing every last drop of power from your maxima.

.. And just a caveat to this post, i intend on getting cattman headers and installing alongside my 00vi
Old Nov 15, 2013 | 03:29 PM
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Originally Posted by Slamrod
+1, again.....

With headers you get what you pay for. Unless you have done just about every other performance mod that is bolt on you shouldnt even be thinking about headers. The gains youll see are pitiful relative to the money spent - again, if you are patient and keep an eye out, you could get a y pipe, budget catback, and do an 00vi swap and maybe even a cone filter w/ MAF adapter for your intake; these mods would be giving you AT LEAST 3-4 times more power (combined) than headers would for a comparable price. Hell, i bet a set of high quality tires would benefit you more than headers for the money spent. Headers simply dont benefit our cars as much as some other cars; its not cake, or even the icing on the cake, its the god damn little sprinkles on the top.

In short, unless you are have all the above mods done already or just want to burn money, dont bother with headers. They simply are a poor financial choice for performance gains unless you are squeezing every last drop of power from your maxima.

.. And just a caveat to this post, i intend on getting cattman headers and installing alongside my 00vi





This is how I modded my max.


engine/tranny swap.
flywheel/clutch
coilovers
brakes
bolt on nwp engine spacers
cai
Headers/custom exhaust
Greddy emanage ultimate.

just some advice for a youngin...
Old Nov 15, 2013 | 04:28 PM
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Thanks for all the replies!
Old Nov 15, 2013 | 05:11 PM
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Litch,

Of all the upgrades would you agree that 00vi is the best bang for the buck?
Old Nov 15, 2013 | 05:18 PM
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Originally Posted by Johnny9595
Litch,

Of all the upgrades would you agree that 00vi is the best bang for the buck?


for the vq30de?


Bang for buck?


no.




first thing is to regain all the lost horsepower from the car being 14 years old. Cleaning the engine, getting the maf cleaned, seafoaming your intake, doing a basic tune up will add more horsepower for cheaper than ANY other modification. The trick with tuning is getting a solid foundation platform to tune. Get it back to as close to oem condition under the hood as you can, then modify it. Otherwise you will add a bunch of parts and you will ONLY have as much whp as a well maintained engine.


after you regain all the lost whp. Then a decent y-pipe and 00vi is a good idea.



Maintenance> Mods.
Old Nov 15, 2013 | 07:03 PM
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+1 for maintenance. Putting more strain on a beaten horse doesnt make it go faster.

After that, if I was you I would go for a Y-pipe. They are (relatively) cheap and give a great performance boost.

The 00vi mod would will likely squeeze more than a y pipe would above 5k RPMs, and parts can be sourced for anywhere between 200-350 for the whole swap, however, it is a very involved project. A y pipe can be done by anyone; an 00vi swap can have a million and one things go wrong.

If you havnt already (I presume you havnt), try reading the stickies. Theres a very informative post detailing mods that is geared to someone who is just getting their feet wet (read: you).
Old Nov 15, 2013 | 09:37 PM
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Thanks for all the info it's really appreciated.
Old Nov 17, 2013 | 08:01 PM
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I'll buy some of the $185 Ebay headers just for the hell of it.....I'll cut them if necessary at the collectors to make fit perfectly.....But it's minor fitment issue to be honest nothing really major! Patience, good tool usage is all that's needed!
Old Nov 17, 2013 | 08:33 PM
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Originally Posted by CMax03
I'll buy some of the $185 Ebay headers just for the hell of it.....I'll cut them if necessary at the collectors to make fit perfectly.....But it's minor fitment issue to be honest nothing really major! Patience, good tool usage is all that's needed!

and it helps being a bad a$$ in the machine shop... If I had 50% of your metal manipulation skillz cmax I would have one HELLUVA maxima.


cutting headers at the collectors...lol... you talk about it like it is as easy as making a bowl of cheerio's.



and it turns me on just a little.
Old Nov 18, 2013 | 10:49 AM
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Originally Posted by litch



This is how I modded my max.


engine/tranny swap.
flywheel/clutch
coilovers
brakes
bolt on nwp engine spacers
cai
Headers/custom exhaust
Greddy emanage ultimate.

just some advice for a youngin...
me too, I searched and decided with the vi and 3.5 so cheap why not do that first lol
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