i installed a header and dp, and now its making a ticking sound. is the exhaust manifold leaking?

 

From what I have heard. It is common. Esp. if you have the pacesetter hearder.

 

its common, what kind of header did you get?

 

what kind of ticking? is it like a normal heating up kinda tick? or is it louder? does it change when you hit the gas?

It could be the gasket between the header and the head.

 

its like super loud tho that deffinatly cant be normal. its fine at idle once its warmed up but once i get going it gets loud

 

you have to break in the new cat on the dp and until its broken in there will be some noises, consider it normal for a few hundred miles after install

 

its catless

 

Sounds like an issue with the gasket between the header and head that was the issue I had.

 

You can feel free to actually feel around the gasket areas to check for air puttering out!!!!

 

what kind of coating do you have? also make sure all your wires are as far away from the header and dp as possible, after your engine is cool start the engine briefly while a friend looks at the connections, rev the engine and check the seals. thats the easiest way to eliminate that as a possible reason

 

welp u dont have to break in the cat then lol i have a clear image header and theres no ticking.. u may wanna reinstall it bud.. sounds a little like a gasket may be torn or off center..

 

when i installed my vibrant header there was no leaks but like 1-2weeks later i heard ticking and it was from the studs on the header becoming loose not like to the point of falling off haha but not air tight, i got in there with the ratchet and tighten them down without lifting the car WHAT A BITCH haha ticking is gone car responses better and the Check engine light is gone too. im in a 06 ss sc
just double check stuff and it maybe a gasket as well, u use any spray on the gasket?

 

yeah im pretty sure its the header gasket ill pull it apart in the morning. it sounds like hell ppl look at me like is this guy serious! thank god i still have my silencer

would my stock gasket work? i have sai btw

 

yea the stock gasket should be fine as long as its not damaged
buy some cooper gasket spray to help seal it, a buddy told me about it and it helps

 

well.... ive been struggling with this for about a year and a 1/2.. ive made my own gaskets and everything you can imagin... the stupid thing is that its listed and shows a 3'' donut gasket.. BUT it does not come with one..... but go figure... pacesetter is retarded.. i ordered headers for my grand prix.. the put the o2 bung right in front of where the bolts go and you couldnt even get a bolt or nut inbetween it.
you get what ya pay for..
but basically. the flang is warped hence it wont seal competely when you tighten the bolts..

 

yea some designs are inconvenience and some areas on cars are just a bitch to get to. like the spot were the header and downpipe bolt up, that breaded part at the top makes it hard to tighten the top bolt on the downpipe. if u have more crazy ratchets maybe better haha

 

see how it has a donut tye gasket on the end of the header.. thats how ours is suppost to look... but for some reason no one gets them.. the guys at autozone and orileys both said it should of come with the kit according to the books..

 

yea shouldnt it be a collector gasket? cuz the donut one is like for the downpipe to the cat-back

i have the vibrant goodies haha

 

overall i would put donut gaskets on both.. just for the fact this car doesnt have anything holding the downpipe up.. it really needs a few hangers closer to the header.

 

yea true story keep it more stable

 

Mine also ticks, no leaks around head. Hears it could be lifters going from thick cast, to thin metal. Letting a lot of noise out could be wrong.

 

yeah i think the header is bent, like the part that meets the block. wtf this took me all day yesterday and all morning im really getting sick of this