98MustangGT2745

My bbk shorty headers just came in today. Has anybody installed them theirselves? I want to but havent got a chance to check to see how it would be. Any input would be apriecated thankss

mes1017

hey, i just got my bbk shorty headers in the mail today, and was wondering if anyone could help me with the instal (any tips??). anyways does anyone know the bolt sizes for for the headers, and what specific tools i'll need to use? anything like that would be a great help thanks -mike-

97targa

Well I do know that your gonna need a whole can of Penetrating and poosibly a torch to heat the rusted bolts off.
It's better to heat them BEFORE you strip them.
It's a tough job...Shorty's aren't really worth it to be honest with you. They only provide better sound,
not really performance. The full length have a deep sound and noticable gains through the rpm's. Also $600 more
because you need to buy a matching h or x-pipe to go with them. And they are ***** to install.

I'd spray Penetrating oil like a day before to give it a head start, and then again before you heat them.
You can use a solder gun. it's small enough to get up into there, or you can buy tiny solder guns with refillable
sleeves at Home Depot for around $20...HEAT THEM.

meebix

Well I can tell you one thing... The header gaskets and bolts that BBK sends your are CRAP! Do yourself a favor and get some Stage 8 Lokcing Header Bolts and some Percy Gaskets so that after you spend all your time doing the install, one of BBKs piece of crap don't cause a leak. Because if you have a leak after all the time you spend installing, you are going to want to die.

Drivers side is pretty easy from what my mechanic told me, therse much more room over there... He said he spent most of the time getting the passenger side in.

Ive header from people who DIY that removing the K-member makes it A LOT easier, although its not necessary, but I would take any shortcut you can get with these things because they are a PITA like none other.

Its going to probably a take you 2-3 days if you haven't done something like this before, but I wish I would have done it myself because I spent $600 in labor which I could have put toward something else if I did it myself. Problem was, I don't really have the tools to do it.

You are going to need to like the car so you can get under it and lift the engine too. You will need some socket wrenches with a long head, and I hope your good with your hands - real tight spaces.

Good Luck!

282GT308LX

After giving my buddy a hand doing his BBK equal lengths......I decided to the smartest thing and pay someone to do it.....I only paid 120 for them to do the work and it took them almost 10 hours.....its a PITA, and they had it on a lift....so I wouldnt suggest going the driveway do it yourself route.....BUT if you do make sure you have Tylenol, ibuprofen, or whatever is your headache med. of choice

Dragon02GT

Shorties are much easier to put in than longtubes. Just loosen the motor mounts, use a jack to tilt the engine to one side or another, then take off the old ones and put on the new ones.

I just put my bbk long tubes on this week. CHeck out the new avatar, awesome to see those collectors underneath your car. And no they are not $600 more than shorties. I got my LT's ceramic coated and o/r h-pipe for $640 shipped from Texashotrods.com. They are not that bad to install. I never put headers in before and it took me about 13-15 hours total time. Better than spending $600 IMO.

Anyway, with shorties like I said loosen the motor mount. You can access them through a hole in the k-member right behing the front springs. Just take off the wheels, use a socket to loosen the motor mounts, tilt the motor slightly using a jack and a 2x6 piecs of wood to avoid denting the oil pan (which is what you will lift the motor by) and loosen the old bolts, and use the same bolts to put them back on. I used the stock bolts to tighten the headers bcak down. I did not have to heat up or torch any of them to get them off. They all came off fairly easily and my car had 50,000 ohio miles on it. (in ohio the winter time is bad with he salt rusting everythin underneath your car). The mechainc at Texashotrods.com told me to use the stock bolts and save myself $45 by not buying the stage 8 locking header bolts. The stock ones never back out or loosen, so why would they loosen with new headers? ANyway, the passenger side will be much worse than the drivers side. More finesse to get them in. I would think it would take you about 10 hours if you have never done it before. Good luck, any questions feel free to PM me, I can explain more through a PM if you wish.