header horror story

[aspenextreme]

ok guys what should i do? my 78 aspen has a sweet little 360 pushing 420 hp, or was. i had a set of super comp headers on it when we dynoed, and then they were in the car for about 3months before i finally couldnt handle the ground clearence problem.all i had was a set of cherry bombs bolted right to the end. took them off and put the stock log type manifolds and had a set of 2 and a half inch pipes run all the way out with flow masters. the drivers side pipe had to be routed over to the passenger side because of gas tank. this thing is an absolute dog now, i mean an old handycapped dog-SLOW!!!!! ive been driving the car for about a month and i really enjoy the sound and the ground clearence, but i feel as though this motor is a waste in the car. i want my power back. hell im scared to race this thing because i will lose.
i could go back to the way it was but the headers will get smashed.
anybody got any ideas??????

[72Challenger]

I presume you meant log type manifolds and not mufflers as you wrote. If so, that's your entire problem. The 2 1/2" pipes and flowmasters won't be a problem. Maybe on a dyno, but nothing you would notice on the street.

As for manifolds vs. headers, no way will stock manifolds support a 420HP engine. You've got to trash those things. A set of shorty headers will be a fair compromise, not a race piece, but ground clearance for driveways and speed bumps.

For a bucks-up solution that will give you the best of both worlds, check with TTI.

[dwc43]

Hooker and Hedman makes great headers for these cars. We have run them on both street and race car F bodies. The tail pipe can be roputed around both sides of the tank. I have one with it on both sides right now. A '77 Volare' with 8 1/4 rear. It simple goes around the springs. Give me an e mail addy and I'll try to send you a pick of mine showing how they are to be routed. Never had a header clearance issue in these cars. They have way too much room to worry about.

[aspenextreme]

ya your right log type manifolds and the only clearence probs i have is the ground hitting my headers. sorry for the misunderstanding. my email is liese@ptialaska.net
any and all help is appreciated.
thanks guys

[72Challenger]

It's hard to find full-length headers that don't hang lower than everything else on your car. I don't have any experience with the Aspen, but I'm sure you're facing the same problem. Unless you spend big bucks for TTIs or custom bent tubes, anything you do will be a compromise of some sort. Good luck.

[dwc43]

Originally posted by aspenextreme
ya your right log type manifolds and the only clearence probs i have is the ground hitting my headers. sorry for the misunderstanding. my email is liese@ptialaska.net
any and all help is appreciated.
thanks guys

If it's set at proper ride height with good shocks and proper size tires you wont have that prob either. Even the ones we built for race cars did not have a clearnce problem underneath it. IT was set a little lower than normal run on rough dirt with 15 inch wheels though. The one I run now has 245 60 14's on it and no clearence problems either, but I use sway bars and good shocks too.

[dwc43]

Just saying that we run these cars on both dirt tracks and street and dont have header clearence issuse with them if they are properly set up.

[dewme5]

I don't know if throwing in the spitfire headers would be a good thing or a bad thing? I was treated right by Harold, but many others I hear, were not. but, they are a cheap alt. to the TTI's, and definatley flow better then the stock manifolds.

[dwc43]

Spitfires were never worth messing with. TTi's are too exspensive and ride way to close to auto trannys and will induce heat into them. And heat is the numberone enemoy of an auto tranny with dirt following right behind that. Hooker and Hedman both make a good header forhte F body that has no clearence issues in a properly set up car. The ones we have run for years have never been hit from underneath. One eception was when one car I had was involved in a wreck where this guy almost went over the front fender and slammed it into the ground. That little wrenck even jammed the clutch linkage up pretty good too.

[mtrv8n]

I found a set of AAR/T/A manifolds on Ebay, and had them jet-hot coated. They are not quite headers, but much better than the stock logs.

[aspenextreme]

i can assure you that unless i jack the front of the car up a whole lot, i mean alot(ugly high) that any of the hedman or hooker headers will hit on the roads up here in alaska. hell back in my highschool days when i was driving my 340 duster i put a set of hookers on there and they got smashed. now that i have manifolds on there nothing hits. the front of my car is lowered alittle and i will try to level the car and see if that helps. thanks for the help