The stooges install new Fabspeed 348 headers!

Another advantage of the 348. Wheels off. Go from underneath with most nuts. Long extension with a 13mm flex socket. (not a 13 on a flex, but a flex 13!) Also make sure you have an offset box 13 for a couple of upper nuts.
wd40 on all nuts. Leave cats on car. Poof! Done.

 

Thanks for posting the extra pics. Very nice install.

 

Great but when is the next "Official" Stoogefest? Sometime in July? I'm scheduled for one in October but hoping we have something before then.

I'm suggesting the dates of either July 11 or 25th (no 18th please). Anyone want to host?

Vince? Tim? Someone else?

 

I'm out of town for a week so I will figure a day in July for Stoogefest the week after next. My July is getting busy too, but we'll make this happen.

Hey Joe, we were drinking too! Installation is actually faster due to the better access from not having the shielding as on the stock headers.

FBB, I challenge you to find a smog station that is going to flunk Jeff's car on a visual. We're OBD I. Plus its a 348. Unless you are a bona fide expert you are not going to tell that Jeff's headers are not stock. From the top they look normal and you'd have to be an expert to notice they aren't shielded. Plus if they haven't busted him on cats yet, they're not gonna notice the headers.

I'll bet Jeff's engine bay cools off faster than before now. Upon inspection his stock headers looked perfect, by the way.

Lastly, the heat shields are mounted using hex bolts and I assume that Fabspeed figures they're necessary. They probably protect the inner fender lining from cooking. Or maybe that's where you hang your steak for road grilling...

 

Nice job on the install.

Now get your butt over to Church's and see what they put down. At the dyno day a few years back you put down 286hp/249t to the hubs. Will darkkaangle join the ranks of the 300/hp to the hubs club?

Place your bets boys.

 

Just read the law and understand what a "STAR" station in and the direction of smog reporting. It is getting harder to "know someone" and get passed. The new crop of techs are trained to spot the obvious no heat shield header and non-oem cats and the laws get tougher every year. OBD1 does not protect you. You only get a pass if you are prior to 1974. This is not my opinion you can read the law for yourself. I'm not trying to be debbie downer I put my body on the line to go faster than most nearly every month. I think keeping the old manifolds is just being prudent. If you find a smog idiot great. If not 4 hrs in and out and you are back in business.

 

Nice job guys. Where there any special tools you needed for this job?

 

Good to know that I have friends that have mastered the art of lightning quick header installation. But to truly be classified as phenomenal, you have to do it on a F355 as well. I may be in need of your services soon (See "Header Coating Peeling" thread).

Let me know when you guys figure out a date and location for the next Stoogefest. I'd volunteer to host, but we know that no one wants to come out this way, especially in July.

Cheers, Henry

 

Even though the fat one is a bit of a Debbie downer, he is correct.

Keep your old headers, cats, and muffler. Back when I had to deal with Cali smog laws I would remove my custom setup, put the old junk back on, smog it and pass the visual, then put the custom set up back on. No big deal. It's only a weekend wrenching for a couple of years worth of enjoyment. Rinse and repeat in two years.

Now if you don't want to go through all the headache, of wrenching on the headers every couple of years, there are two other options.

1: setup an appointment with a CARB referee to have the car looked over and tested. If you can show them that all the emissions stuff has not been fooled with and still passes the smog test, they could give you a CARB sticker allowing you to keep everything as is. Some in the Honda tuning crowd would do this to get their B18C swaps legal.

2: Move to a different state that doesn't have the strict smog laws.

 

Yep lots of the shops are getting strict for sure.

I stockpiled OEM headers for my cars

 

Henry, the Stooges have been there done that already. 355 header swaps are a little harder - bumper off, cooling fans out, oil reservoir disconnect. Maybe an hour more or so. Think it took us 4 hours on Goth's car.

 

Let me add Item 3: Lets create metal clam shells that imitate the stock header covers. Install for the inspection then remove.

 

Damn, so much for my thinly-veiled attempt at mooching some free labor...

Henry

 

Dude any time you want to try it, bring over your Fabspeeds and we'll install them.