That's the estimated time I was given from a local shop to install a set of Cattman headers/y-pipe. NINE HOURS! Really? I've read that it can be a pain and that one side is really narrow making it difficult, but nine hours? You can also guess the amount it would cost me for nine hours.....let's just say it would cost more than the actual header/y-pipe combo.

It's hard for me to see a competant mechanic/tuner/shop standing under a Maxima for nine hours trying to bolt in some headers. Hell, my dealer could probably do it in under nine hours (at least I hope). Brian (Cattman) told me it shouldn't take longer than six. His guy in Tucson can do it in three (has done MANY installs).
</rant>

So what's a typical timeframe to expect? Three to six sound reasonable?

 

6 is more like it...but their probably giving themselve a lil more timne if anything happens...suppose your ypipe bolts are rusted to **** and it takes them a long to to cut them off? honestly if your going to complain(dont mean this in a mean way) then do it yourself lol... its not a rele quick and easy thing to do for some people...when i did mine i did it in about 7 hours

 

See if they will do the work based on how long it actually takes them if it isn't as long as their original estimate.

 

I would try doing it myself for that kind of labor, it is a very easy and straight forward job.

 

9 hours whats their hourly rate most shop are like 60 an hour.
Maybe you should have took a crack at your self. or maybe if you have an org member in town that knows how to do it maybe they would give you a good price

 

have you done this job, better yet have you seen actually where/how the headers are located? this isnt an easy job hence why i'm hesitant/pretty much wrote off getting headers because i dont want to install em or pay the price to have them installed.

 

6-8 hrs is about right

 

Actually, header install really is pretty straightforward. Easy...?

With Cattman headers, easier. With OBX, not so much.

But brand comparisons aside, anyone with some mechanical experience could do headers. They're not really a hard job...just tedious.

 

Meh i understand the easy/tedious debate, but the time it takes to do this job...seeing as though i'm not real big on speed/tuning i can do without them. unless i get a stupid good deal on a set of headers then ill have them installed.

 

Headers will save your Maxima from Nissan's wonderful failcats. To be honest, I think they're the reason my automatic didn't burn any oil. The precats were pretty ragged when I took them off.

Fun fact: The service manager at the local stealer told me that the 4.5/5th gen precats are actually more prone to failure than the 5.5 gen's.

I've never heard that before, but he said he deals with a lot more 97, 98, 99, 00's coming in with clogged cats than he does 02, 03's.

 

If I was you I would try to do it myself save a whole lot of cash in your case just start in the morning as soon as you got daylight to give you like 12-14 hours just in case and if got a garage and drop light your all good...Good Luck on whatever you do...

 

^this
unless im misinformed...my 5th gen headers do not have precats like the 5.5s, and my ypipe has been replaced. so i'm sure im safe from that.

 

I got the same estimate from 3 shops.

The computer estimates like 6 for one bank and 2+ for the other. I think pretty much all shops use the same system to figure out an estimated time.

I had 2 exhaust shops say that they wouldn't do the work because it removes the cats- even when I said it's "not for street use."

As you can tell most org members will say 6-7 hrs on average but I'd anticipate a shop charging the whole 9 because they're usually unethical like that.

 

Has anybody had issues with the bolts mounting the header to the block getting rusted? I'm trying to plan out my header install and I would think that's the worst case scenario. Anything else to look out for?

 

Thanks for the replies. While I have considered doing it myself, I was assuming (probably my first mistake) that it would be a much faster job for a shop with a lift, proper tools, and more than one person working on it. So while I might be able to do it in half a day, it would be worth it to ME to take it to a shop and have them knock it out in 3-4 hours and pay them $300+.

95VQ30 - That is pretty much what the shop told me, 6 or so hours for one bank because it is narrow. haha.

I don't know, 9 hours just seemed like a LOOONNNNNNNG time to swap out some headers. I guess the guys on Horspower TV make it look too easy.

 

It took me closer to 10 hours due to some troubles with rusted and rounded off heat shield bolts and seized O2 sensors. I could see it taking 3-4 hours without a hitch if you've done it before and know what to do to get at the rear header most easily. I made a thread about it a couple of years ago when I did the install.

http://forums.maxima.org/5th-generat...xtra-tips.html

You can definitely do it in your driveway with hand tools and jack stands. I will admit that it was pretty crappy for me with the troubles I had with the O2 sensors and heat shields, though.

 

Also, you may find local maxima types who will do the install for you in the 250-300 range. Especially in the VA/MD areas.

 

These guys don't bother working on fwd sedans often (I do remember them working on a civic a long time ago).

I had bought a set of used hotshot headers a while back for my 02 because I got a good deal on them, when I pondered actually installing them without a lift or garage compared to the gains I'd achieve I quickly re-listed them for sale in the classifieds...you really have to be a diehard Maxima performance enthusiast in my eyes to consider this job, for me the car is a fun and reliable daily driver that doesn't need to be any quicker.

 

^thats how i see it right now

 

Headers/Y-pipe is a keystone mod to get good N/A power out of these cars. A single investment of 3-8 hours and anywhere from 500-800 dollars in exchange for 20+whp all through the powerband (could probably be 30+ depending on supporting mods and in certain areas under the curve) which is well over 10% performance increase. You're talking a bigger single performance increase than every other bolt on and tune combined would give you on this vehicle. Throw in peace of mind regarding precat failures on top of that and it's a great combo. Any kind of performance enthusiast who wants their Maxima to be faster, whether you are die hard or not, would have a hard time saying no to that.

 

Amen!

Besides, you can never have enough power.

 

lol only I easily said no to it long ago...I'd rather spend that $500-800 on my mustang and not mod the maxima when it's already plenty fast enough for it's purpose. The gains are nice don't get me wrong but not worth it to me personally.

 

"Any kind of performance enthusiast who wants their Maxima to be faster, whether you are die hard or not, would have a hard time saying no to that."

Then obviously, my post does not apply to you.

 

DIY... a good weekend job. You don't need a lift, and it is a good learning experience. Make sure you spray lots of PB blaster though. I am local and willing to help if needed.

 

If you're in the DC area, post up a thread in the regional section saying you could use a couple people to help do the install on a weekend. A good majority of the members on this site are from there and I'm sure you'll be able to find some people who will be happy to help.

Not only will you be dealing with guys who know a lot about their cars, you'll also save a lot of money by not paying the ridiculous labor rates a shop will charge.

 

thats about how long it took me, lol... but I also installed some mmi's....

 

Sounds about right. From a business standpoint I'd likely put a higher rather than lower estimate on that job.

My mechanic took 8 hours all in. Now, he did rewire and extend my 02 wiring and was very meticulous but, in my mind that is all part and parcel of doing the job in a complete sense.

For those stating that its an easy job, I wasn't the one under the car so I can't fully relate, but I did get the distinct impression that the rear bank are a pain in the ***.

 

Did you look into the shop in sterling, VA? its a DIY shop they have the lifts and you can rent the tools from them and they have the mechanics there in case you run into a jam when doing the work. Just a thought if you want to turn some wrenches yourself if the numbers dont seem to be reasonable that your getting from some shops. I dont know their lift rental rates you might want to give them a ring if you wan to head down that route.

 

I've never heard of this. This is an interesting practice.

 

I know Puppetmaster, Cutler and Irish44j but have bothered them enough with other installs.

I did not know such a place existed in Sterling. Do you know the name of the shop? I might have to check that place out. Thanks!

 

ya know that does make alot of sense. Why did I not think about that? The sentra's were very bad at burning oil because of the precats. the motor would ignite gasses in the header/precat area and break apart the precat, and suck up the pieces into the motor, causing it to burn oil. DUH ME! though im not informed about this for any of the Maxima precats.

 

you sir haven't been to a shop in awhile? Close to 80 an hour in wa when I was. Having mine done.

@ op is go with the 3he dude and tip him heavily. Mine were rusted under there. Bout 9 hours on jackstands....3 inch was 30 minutes though lol.

 

Here you go.

http://forums.maxima.org/washington-...erling-va.html

 

^thats pretty awesome

 

That's pretty cool. One of the only things I miss about being in the military was the hobby shops on base. Lifts, air tools, tire toys (installing, balancing, etc) and mechanics to give advice for $1 an hour. The one at the norfolk base even had paint bays and a fully stocked machine shop.

 

everytime ive ever installed headers the first time on a maxima its taken 10+ hours. stupid heat shield on the rear... now, the second time around having to mess with headers on a car where theyve already been removed, like mine, its like maybe a 2 hour job lol. because theres no more heat shield, things are less bulky, i never put the bolts back in on the backside of the intake manifold so it comes off in a few minutes, etc.

bring it down here to greensboro, we'll tackle it for a small fee!

 

Ahhhh. The header install... Maxhopper and I did my headers. Took roughly 6 hours. The front header is easy as pie, but that rear one, I still hear Maxhopper cursing the headshield. Its a very tight fit. If you have impact that would be nice. Also get some nice flexible angles for the sockets and spray all the bolts with PB blaster the night before. Heck 2 days before and the night before. It truely not that hard. Just more time consuming on that rear header.

Wiring the O2 sensors (if that is still done) needs to be done correctly as well. Make sure you heat the wire and not the solder to get it to flow onto the wire. I used another nissan gasket as well instead of cattman's. Nothing wrong with cattman's just decided to use oem since its designed for the block.

WHATEVER YOU DO, DONT ROUND these bolts unless your ready to take the engine out or not do the header install.

 

I did not know such a place existed in Sterling. Do you know the name of the shop? I might have to check that place out. Thanks![/quote]

Your welcome, I love giving the small businesses a shout out. Might even be able to round up a meet of a few folks. Did it last year with another car club I belong too, worked out great. Lots of expertise from the members and also technical expertise from the staff. All around was a very positive experience. Good luck!

 

Well don't complain about the shop quoting you that much....it's straight forward enough to install yourself, but it's not some 2.5 hour job....cause most of your time will be removing those old rusty bolts off the rear heatshield, ypipe, properly extending the O2 sensor harnesses.....I did mine in about 7-8 hrs,......but I did alot of other things as well such as trail fitting the headers and installing some special pieces here and there!!!!

 

It is a tough job. It's hard to get access to all of the bolts on the rear manifold because of the big *** precat that is in the way.

Most of the bolts are going to be rusted.

It is also a PITA to get the rear heat shield off.

I would say, the majority of the time spent will be taking off the stock manifolds.