Hi guys, the saga continues! The end of this month I'm dropping the car off at a performance/restoration place in St Catherines and they are yanking the 283 (I sold it as is) and replacing with a freshly rebuilt 327 with flat top pistons, mild cam and camel hump rebuilt heads. The dyno claims 350hp so it should push the beast a bit better than the 190hp 283. Now Im trying to figure out the best exhaust to couple to it. I want to go a true dual and everyone recommends stainless, is that just an up sell? I'm looking for some advice on what type of headers would fit/match my set up (and if anyone has some kicking around please let me know how much you want for them) and also muffler thoughts. From my research online I am considering the Flowmaster Super 50's as they have a nice rumble but are supposed to be fairly quiet in the interior of the car which is what I want, I dont want a heavy throb or drone on the highway.
Whatever you choose try for pipes that are 2 1/2" in and out. Walker bought out Thrush a while back and have a real good pair of free flow mufflers @ 2 1/2 " in & out that are a reasonable price. I used these on my Chevelle,they have a nice sound also try having someone make you a set of pipes using some 90 mandrels (YOU NEED 6) and lengths of 2 1/2 straight pipe (YOU NEED (2) 10' LENGTHS) add an H pipe as Carl suggests. Skip the stainless just use galvanized and when eveything is cut and fitted spray the pipes with BBQ High Heat paint. It will smell for a couple of times out then cures, only needs a touch up once a year and the pipes won't rust. I have had this setup on my Acadian now for 11 years and 3 years on the Chevelle no rust and a can of BBQ paint is less than $5.
Whatever you choose try for pipes that are 2 1/2" in and out. Walker bought out Thrush a while back and have a real good pair of free flow mufflers @ 2 1/2 " in & out that are a reasonable price. I used these on my Chevelle,they have a nice sound also try having someone make you a set of pipes using some 90 mandrels (YOU NEED 6) and lengths of 2 1/2 straight pipe (YOU NEED (2) 10' LENGTHS) add an H pipe as Carl suggests. Skip the stainless just use galvanized and when eveything is cut and fitted spray the pipes with BBQ High Heat paint. It will smell for a couple of times out then cures, only needs a touch up once a year and the pipes won't rust. I have had this setup on my Acadian now for 11 years and 3 years on the Chevelle no rust and a can of BBQ paint is less than $5.
Agree a 100%.
2 1/2" is right for your HP.
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Prince Edward Island
'64 Parisienne CS "barn find" - last on the road in '86 ... Owner Protection Plan booklet, original paint, original near-mint aqua interior, original aqua GM floor mats, original 283, factory posi, and original rust.
Headers can be painful to own, keeping them tight. 2 1/2 inch rams horns flow almost as good, unless you are a regular racer. If this is a 64, the reproductions are really cheap and pretty well made. They are made for Dorman, ebay, maybe Rock Auto, sell them for US$50-75 each. You can cut the alternator mount off if you are not using it.
-- Edited by DonSSDD on Friday 8th of April 2016 07:24:07 PM
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63 Parisienne sport coupe (The Big GTO), black, maroon interior, 409 4 speed; former owner of a 59 El Camino, 63 Corvette SWC, 62 Chev Bel Air SC. 1963- Pontiac top selling car in Canada
Mahone Bay, NS Still not old enough to need an automatic
A nice low maintenance street setup is best with manifolds, for sure. As DonSSDD said, keeping headers sealed and tight can be a big headache. And then there's the extra under hood head, melted plug wires, crappy alternator brackets that crack and break, and depending on the application, other issues can arise as well.
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1966 Strato Chief 2 door, 427 4 speed, 45,000 original miles
1966 Grande Parisienne, 396 1 of 23 factory air cars
I'd go with Summit brand Ceramic coated SBC headers. Earls pressure master gaskets. ARP 12 point bolts. Take care on the install and they won't leak. Have a shop bend you an economy 2.5" Aluminized system all the way back with a simple "H" pipe. Don't worry about mandrel bent, you won't notice from regular bend. Little turn downs just under the bumper. Nothing gaudy.
True. the flowmaster style mufflers are known to have the drone, but that depends an many factors. I have Thrush aluminized welded mufflers based on the FM40, and they have little to no drone, but are just too loud on the pipe.
I'd consider looking at the Dynomax SS Ultra flow welded in 24". Fiberglass packed with a straight through perforated tube. Kind of pricey, but stealthy quiet when round town, nice firm tone when on it, and never any rust. Yes, 24" if just for the extra damping quality. I plan on running these in 3" inlet/Outlet with the BB. I have had many Dynomax mufflers through the years, and I was always impressed by them.
Exhaust talk is like Oil talk, every one has a different grade.
Cheers,
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65 Laurentian post, 67 Grande Parisienne 4 door HT.
Well first off thanks for all the replies and excellent info. Certainly made me reconsider some of what I had planned. Judging by the consensus here headers are out and I'm actively looking for a set of ram horns. I found a set on line from a 69 327 I have to figure out if they would fit my 68. I still haven't decided stainless it's aluminum but a guy out my way is only 250$ difference so may be worth it for longevity? I think I made a decision on mufflers. I really like the dynomax VT series. Mellow at idle loud if you kick it and no hey drone ! Anyone here with any experience with these?
Thanks again guys, what an awesome community!
Not to confuse you because I posted against headers but remember all this is just opinions. Some guys have posted their success with headers and I don't doubt their credibility for a moment. I posted what I did because my experience with them has been lousy.
I am pretty sure that those manifolds you found here on CP are correct for your car but I can check a bit later today on my 66 (same manifolds on it as 68) to confirm if you like.
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1966 Strato Chief 2 door, 427 4 speed, 45,000 original miles
1966 Grande Parisienne, 396 1 of 23 factory air cars
Manifolds will certainly guarantee easy success, but if this is a true 350 HP 327, you will be leaving some performance and sound on the table with them. In the same vein, headers can be tricky sometimes, and the sealing must be done carefully and with top notch products. I can vouch for the Summit brand small block big car headers, as I have them in my 67, and they've been good with zero issues in 4 years.
The secret to getting a good seal with headers is the following: Don't use the cheap junk gaskets and bolts that come with the headers!
1.Install the headers using a set of Stage 8 header bolts (don't put the washer seals on until you have warmed up the motor a couple of times) and use a good quality gasket set, I recommend Percy's Carbon Fiber.
2. Tighten the header bolts as tight as you can get them on the cold engine.
3. Fire the engine after the header bolt install and warm it for 15-20 minutes.
4. Re-tighten the header bolts, you will get some more tightening on them after warm up.
5.Re-fire and wam up and re-tighten the bolts and add the washer clips to the bolts.
You should have a good leakproof seal now. After driving a couple times check the bolts for tight.
I have had good sucess using the above parts on many of my cars with no leak issues.
The secret to getting a good seal with headers is the following: Don't use the cheap junk gaskets and bolts that come with the headers! 1.Install the headers using a set of Stage 8 header bolts (don't put the washer seals on until you have warmed up the motor a couple of times) and use a good quality gasket set, I recommend Percy's Carbon Fiber. 2. Tighten the header bolts as tight as you can get them on the cold engine. 3. Fire the engine after the header bolt install and warm it for 15-20 minutes. 4. Re-tighten the header bolts, you will get some more tightening on them after warm up. 5.Re-fire and wam up and re-tighten the bolts and add the washer clips to the bolts. You should have a good leakproof seal now. After driving a couple times check the bolts for tight. I have had good sucess using the above parts on many of my cars with no leak issues.
Excellent guide to header install mtce., thanks, just about to add headers and fire up latest engine addition to my Beaumont.
I installed my headers with these gaskets. About two weeks later I figured the bolts would need tightening (as per the old practice). I found that the bolts were just as tight as the day I installed them.
No leaks in 4 years. And no locking bolts required.
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65 Laurentian post, 67 Grande Parisienne 4 door HT.
You can see headers are much more complicated than manifolds, just by the list of install instructions.
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63 Parisienne sport coupe (The Big GTO), black, maroon interior, 409 4 speed; former owner of a 59 El Camino, 63 Corvette SWC, 62 Chev Bel Air SC. 1963- Pontiac top selling car in Canada
Mahone Bay, NS Still not old enough to need an automatic
Hi guys, the saga continues! The end of this month I'm dropping the car off at a performance/restoration place in St Catherines and they are yanking the 283 (I sold it as is) and replacing with a freshly rebuilt 327 with flat top pistons, mild cam and camel hump rebuilt heads. The dyno claims 350hp so it should push the beast a bit better than the 190hp 283. Now Im trying to figure out the best exhaust to couple to it. I want to go a true dual and everyone recommends stainless, is that just an up sell? I'm looking for some advice on what type of headers would fit/match my set up (and if anyone has some kicking around please let me know how much you want for them) and also muffler thoughts. From my research online I am considering the Flowmaster Super 50's as they have a nice rumble but are supposed to be fairly quiet in the interior of the car which is what I want, I dont want a heavy throb or drone on the highway.
Thanks and looking forward to your input.
Thanks to everyone who contributed. Picked her up from the shop yesterday with newly installed stock 2.25 ram horns into 2.5 stainless with magnaflows. Sounds amazing!!!!!! its got a real nice growl at idle, whisper quiet on the highway and crazy mean when revved up.
I'm done, just some interior tinkering but mostly driving!!!!!