are Ebay headers still crappy???
are Ebay headers still crappy???
I've been curious for a long time to see whats so bad about Ebay headers... most people say qualtiy just in defense of their $500+ headers, some say its pointless to get headers because they do nothing, well i was just browsing around the forum and reading about the different headers on here and NYCmaximas, a lot of good info also... I've owned two 4th gens 95 maxima's my last one i had had headers in it when i sold it to my bestfriends bro (not on the forums), now IDK whats the avg number for an automatic maxima is but the mods were
Ebay cold air
Ebay Headers
LSS test pipe
OBX exhaust
Motostorm Crank pulley......... the numbers was 187hp and 189tq
like i said i dont know what a similar 4th gen dyno's with cattman headers or Y-pipe but it seems to me that this is a decent run for a 4th gen auto... oh and the car's personal best was 14.9@ i dont remember (in my sig also) headers have been on the car for about 3yrs now and no problem... I didnt post this in the 1/4 mile or Dyno thread because my point moreso was to address to the forum that instead of jumping out there bashing something you dont know about and cant prove a difference then u may just wanna read before u post (bash)......... feel free to flame but the forum asked for a while what were the dynoed numbers and there they were...
Ebay cold air
Ebay Headers
LSS test pipe
OBX exhaust
Motostorm Crank pulley......... the numbers was 187hp and 189tq
like i said i dont know what a similar 4th gen dyno's with cattman headers or Y-pipe but it seems to me that this is a decent run for a 4th gen auto... oh and the car's personal best was 14.9@ i dont remember (in my sig also) headers have been on the car for about 3yrs now and no problem... I didnt post this in the 1/4 mile or Dyno thread because my point moreso was to address to the forum that instead of jumping out there bashing something you dont know about and cant prove a difference then u may just wanna read before u post (bash)......... feel free to flame but the forum asked for a while what were the dynoed numbers and there they were...
oh and i forgot to add.... Really what inspired me to write about these headers was one key point on nycmaximas.org where it was mentioned "because the headers were longer on hotshot, OBX, and cattman then it should have a better effect on the car at higher speeds and RPM" IIRC, which drew a concern......... the previous top speed on this 4th gen with just the Y was 137 and after the header installed the last highest i personally saw the needle at was a tad over 140, (of coarse idk the exact amount because the odometer only goes to 140... if i was to estimate it seemed like it was at 143-145mph) so the only thing i can think that contributes is....................
The "shorty" style ones found on ebay have the same runner length as the stock manifolds, the only change is the tubular design IIRC. They'll provide some gains but it's really not worth the time and install.
A pair of shorty ebay headers from what I seen runs like $200 for a set I think. And they're advertised to work on different cars. = red flag. This just means they won't fit without a lot of pain.
The OBX ones that have longer runners have been proven to make power and the fitment has proved to be pretty decent. The quality seems alright too, there haven't been any reports of the welds breaking or anything.
The only headers that are worth buying off of eBay would be the v2OBX ones, in the 5th gen thread, IMO.
A pair of shorty ebay headers from what I seen runs like $200 for a set I think. And they're advertised to work on different cars. = red flag. This just means they won't fit without a lot of pain.
The OBX ones that have longer runners have been proven to make power and the fitment has proved to be pretty decent. The quality seems alright too, there haven't been any reports of the welds breaking or anything.
The only headers that are worth buying off of eBay would be the v2OBX ones, in the 5th gen thread, IMO.
O.k so we are back to the whole quality thing 
if there hasnt been any reports of any breaking then how does another brand seem to have a better quality or what makes one brand a better quality??? money??? it seems as though if someone bends there pipes like cattman's and put a thousand dollar price tag beside it then thats now "quality" im actually glad that you spoke of longer runners so ones with longer runners should see more gains, when the comparison with who has longer runners came up... OBX and Hotshot had longer runners than cattman's but people still say cattmans "seems like better quality" and "has the most gains"... as far as fitment goes i thought it was mostly the rear that was a PITA... same with all headers, including stock... what makes on headers so easy to bolt up than the others??? they have self twisting screws???
if there hasnt been any reports of any breaking then how does another brand seem to have a better quality or what makes one brand a better quality??? money??? it seems as though if someone bends there pipes like cattman's and put a thousand dollar price tag beside it then thats now "quality" im actually glad that you spoke of longer runners so ones with longer runners should see more gains, when the comparison with who has longer runners came up... OBX and Hotshot had longer runners than cattman's but people still say cattmans "seems like better quality" and "has the most gains"... as far as fitment goes i thought it was mostly the rear that was a PITA... same with all headers, including stock... what makes on headers so easy to bolt up than the others??? they have self twisting screws???
If your gonna buy the shorty headers off ebay, then I suggest just doing the y-pipe. Its not worth the time and energy to install them, unless for maybe a turbo setup 
personally I don't call the cattman, obx, or hotshots long tube, they are in the middle really.
personally I don't call the cattman, obx, or hotshots long tube, they are in the middle really.
I personally think stories of "a friend" having the ebay headers is how it all started. It always about what another friend has.
The early problem we all had with obx headers was the serious fitment issues...but that seems to be resolved
The early problem we all had with obx headers was the serious fitment issues...but that seems to be resolved
well if you really read my first post... this is really not just a friends car... this is my car that i sold to my bestfriend brother, so this is not just some "oh my friend has this or that" I bought those headers from off Ebay the car was dynoed when he bought it from me because i didnt know of a dyno spot until last month actually... so yes i dont own the car right now but like i said see my sig, it is the car i was racing... im pretty sure i have one picture in my profile............. and if you dont beleive that, feel free to ask the entire DC forum... im known personally by probebly by 30 members... no need to make something up...
no not necessarily... ppl just do the Y-pipe because the money to gains ratio wasnt worth it not to mention the time, but there is gains from headers over Y-pipe... is it worth probebly an extra $100+ to you.... you decide..................... so really for maxima's who has a long tube header??? seems like u have another make in mind??????????????
well if you really read my first post... this is really not just a friends car... this is my car that i sold to my bestfriend brother, so this is not just some "oh my friend has this or that" I bought those headers from off Ebay the car was dynoed when he bought it from me because i didnt know of a dyno spot until last month actually... so yes i dont own the car right now but like i said see my sig, it is the car i was racing... im pretty sure i have one picture in my profile............. and if you dont beleive that, feel free to ask the entire DC forum... im known personally by probebly by 30 members... no need to make something up...
"my friend had those headers, they were garbage cause they cracked"
and then someone else joins
"oh yeah my friend had them too"
Its always what a friend had or has (I was poking fun not at you), but just trying to say that I think the ebay garbage headers are essentially a thing of the past.
I just got mine off eBay for $400 shipped priority from CA to PA. They're OBX headers for the 5.5gen. I called the guy and I asked if he would do $400 shipped priority and he said yes. Got to me in 1 and 1/2 days. I'd go that route, it comes with the y-pipe too.
Which IMO is busted really
I chose to go with the OBX headers because they're a trusted brand, so to speak. People have them and they're happy with them. I figured pay a little more for a good brand. I personally wouldn;t buy eBay headers unless someone has had them for a while and they say they are hold up and have been dyno proven.
Oh, I thought that was leading to him looking to buy some. I'm at work and didn't have time to read the whole thing.
I chose to go with the OBX headers because they're a trusted brand, so to speak. People have them and they're happy with them. I figured pay a little more for a good brand. I personally wouldn;t buy eBay headers unless someone has had them for a while and they say they are hold up and have been dyno proven.
I chose to go with the OBX headers because they're a trusted brand, so to speak. People have them and they're happy with them. I figured pay a little more for a good brand. I personally wouldn;t buy eBay headers unless someone has had them for a while and they say they are hold up and have been dyno proven.
Last edited by Grand_hustle17; Mar 30, 2009 at 12:48 PM.
o.k....... first off what ppl dont understand is, Ebay doesnt make anything, companies with less budget and that are not as established as others uses ebay as a great opportunity to advertise, so for most to say Ebay is crap is kinda stupid........ Viperboy i had the ebay headers for going on to 4yrs now (well i sold the car with em) and they are doing just well no breaks cracks or anything... OBX do make some decent headers but if you dont realise, thise were the same OBX that made headers a yr and a half back that looked like any other "ebay headers" ppl use to say the samething about the welds and quality until they start making them similar to cattman's no its quality.......... Funny
But I haven't seen where generic headers have been dyno proven like the OBX or Cattman headers.
i have the numbers in the very first post.................. BTW i was just watching the Video on 24Kondaway's dyno and he has these same Ebay generic headers and he's doing 189hp and 186tq........... i just gave u two numbers of two different applications... can you pull up somebody with automatic 4th gen that has similar mods with cattman that dynoed an extra $600 more
Junior Member
Joined: Nov 2008
Posts: 25
From: Lansing, MI
I purchased headers and a y-pipe combo off of e-bay for under $200, and while I haven't had it dynoed, they seem to be pretty good. I took them to a friend that has been welding for quite a few years to have him check them out before install and he seemed to think that they were welded quite well. I purchased these for $ reasons due to a broken y-pipe but don't know if I would ever spend $400+ on the other brands. In my opinion, for what its worth, the quality is good and the fitment is good as well.
JUST TO PREVENT EVERRBODY FROM BEING A QUESTIONAIRE THE THREAD ISNT FOR WHICH HEADER FIT... EVERY HEADER FOR A 95 FITS 95-03, ONLYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW IS WHETHER YOU HAVE A FED SPEC, CALI SPEC OR WHETER YOU HAVE TO MODIFY FOR EGR... THE REAR HEADER IS ALWAYS GONNA BE A PAIN IN THE **** WHICHEVER ONE YOU GET
Last edited by Grand_hustle17; Mar 29, 2009 at 05:27 PM.
Newbie - Just Registered
Joined: Mar 2009
Posts: 8
From: Seattle, WA
eBay headers are always iffy. it's not because of the power gains (or lack of), but it's because of the fit/finish of those products. half the time they don't fit well, welds don't hold together either.
I was using the friend as point for saying I think thats where the cracking headers and weak welds came from.
"my friend had those headers, they were garbage cause they cracked"
and then someone else joins
"oh yeah my friend had them too"
Its always what a friend had or has (I was poking fun not at you), but just trying to say that I think the ebay garbage headers are essentially a thing of the past.
"my friend had those headers, they were garbage cause they cracked"
and then someone else joins
"oh yeah my friend had them too"
Its always what a friend had or has (I was poking fun not at you), but just trying to say that I think the ebay garbage headers are essentially a thing of the past.
I purchased headers and a y-pipe combo off of e-bay for under $200, and while I haven't had it dynoed, they seem to be pretty good. I took them to a friend that has been welding for quite a few years to have him check them out before install and he seemed to think that they were welded quite well. I purchased these for $ reasons due to a broken y-pipe but don't know if I would ever spend $400+ on the other brands. In my opinion, for what its worth, the quality is good and the fitment is good as well.
When I bought my headers I did alot of reading and listening to sound clips and then more reading. I chose Cattman as my setup from header to muffler tip. It was definitly costly but, I took in to consideration the proven gains and the overall happiness from previous customers. I talked to Brian Catts a few times before I made my purchase. I will never say that Cattman makes the best parts or that because it is costly its the best; What I will say is once I opended the box and held it in my hand, I was impressed! The craftsmanship was top notch and nothing about the welds or bends looked cheap to me at all. Another reason that I chose the Cattman setup is resale value, if I should ever decide to sell I felt I would stand a better chance moving Cattmans than the tipical Ebay bought manifolds or other exhaust parts. At the time of my purchase of my Cattman exhaust I had plans of installing everything myself on jackstands and car ramps. With that being said, I did not have time to modify things to fit or cut and paste (so to say) anything; so spending the extra money for the easy of mind that my parts were going to fit without problems were worth it to me. This just my experience and I am not saying that YOU(buyer) would not be happy with another company.
Nothing against cattman's at all, i love the look of his products and all, but it's like asking yourself, what makes JIC's oh so better than teins or any other coilovers??? what makes a $150 hid kit so much better than a $65 dollar one??? ease of mind? well like i said im not a vendor for any ebay products nor am i here to sway anybody's decisions but when something cost for 4 times the amont of something else that doesnt ease my mind moreso draws a major concern on why is this.... am i paying $600 bucks for the same horsepower product, one that looks better, one that performs better, and if it does, $600 better... ppl keep saying fitment issues, but you guys keep forgetting that its bent the same as OEM, have u ever bought a maxima but it had fitment issues from the factory??? i'm not understanding what makes these headers so terrible to fit????????... i dont want come off ignorant but im also here to learn but really what modifications are needed and what makes the ebay headers so difficult to fit??? why can someone put a car on Jackstands and install cattmans but they cant do that with anyother headers???
Last edited by Grand_hustle17; Mar 30, 2009 at 03:37 PM.
Hustle, I think you missed what I was sayin just a little bit. I brought up the jackstands point only because I PERSONALLY were to install the headers in the back of my house and I didnt want to deal with ANY issues besides stubborn bolts and tight space. I have never read a single post where there have been any issuse with Cattman fit so, that is one reason for my purchase. In reference to the "ease of mind" statement that had nothing to do with price and I was comparing that to other problem I read about with OBX and other headers for my car (4th gen). I know that spending more does not constitute better. For example OBX has had many different designs and seem to be getting better. Datdude car made good power with the NEW STYLE OBX headers. As for me, the Cattman purchase was worth it and at the time of my purchase the NEW STYLE OBX headers where not availble. Datdude car still needed to cut and reposition a couple things, which is totally justifiable because of price and gains, and will be even moreso if the "hold up". That was just something I did want to deal with. If I am purchasing a product that is supposed to be specified for my vechicle I dont want to have to pay for it to fit or do extra to make it fit. I once again am not saying that Cattman is the best thing since the VQ 
but the product was DONE RIGHT and for ME(IMO) is how it should be. I hope this makes sense it kind of got away from me so for me and what "I" was looking for they were my choice.
but the product was DONE RIGHT and for ME(IMO) is how it should be. I hope this makes sense it kind of got away from me so for me and what "I" was looking for they were my choice.
Last edited by maxboy325; Mar 31, 2009 at 01:36 PM.
that means u'll install my headers too lol
Hustle, I think you missed what I was sayin just a little bit. I brought up the jackstands point only because I PERSONALLY were to install the headers in the back of my house and I didnt want to deal with ANY issues besides stubborn bolts and tight space. I have never read a single post where there have been any issuse with Cattman fit so, that is one reason for my purchase. In reference to the "ease of mind" statement that had nothing to do with price and I was comparing that to other problem I read about with OBX and other headers for my car (4th gen). I know that spending more does not constitute better. For example OBX has had many different designs and seem to be getting better. Datdude car made good power with the NEW STYLE OBX headers. As for me, the Cattman purchase was worth it and at the time of my purchase the NEW STYLE OBX headers where not availble. Datdude car still needed to cut and reposition a couple things, which is totally justifiable because of price and gains, and will be even moreso if the "hold up". That was just something I did want to deal with. If I am purchasing a product that is supposed to be specified for my vechicle I dont want to have to pay for it to fit or do extra to make it fit. I once again am not saying that Cattman is the best thing since the VQ but the product was DONE RIGHT and for ME(IMO) is how it should be. I hope this makes sense it kind of got away from me so for me and what "I" was looking for they were my choice.
but the product was DONE RIGHT and for ME(IMO) is how it should be. I hope this makes sense it kind of got away from me so for me and what "I" was looking for they were my choice.i was gonna reply to everything else but its to many diffrent convos in here.....im out...lol
...
Oh yeah C ME!!!!!
when my car ready
Lame!
... yea, can we not DC forum my thread though.......................... bout to be a whole track meet thread
Back on topic...... the new style OBX seem very promising. The only thing to be proven now is longevity. If they hold up, there a steal at that price. I wouldnt sell my Cattmans for them but if I decide to add headers to my other car I will consider those.