I have seen a set of Pacesetter shorties on Ebay for a 2004-2005 2wd/4wd truck but wonder what the difference is with my 2007 to them? Can I use those headers?


I'm not going back to manifolds as they will crack again and I will not pay stupidly for long tubes to gain 15hp and tuning issues. I'd love the long tubes but I'd go with some of the Ebay OBX knockoffs if I knew they were 16ga at least. None of them say so.


I can weld up the mid pipes easily. I just wonder if those would fit my truck and if they are problem headers for anyone?


Thanks guys

Happy 4th!

Dave

 

I had almost ordered a set of pacesetter long tubes for my truck. Throughout the discussion I got turned away due to the construction of the headers themselves. Pacesetter only uses a mild steel, and even when "ceramic coated" will still be prone to rusting.

I went with the obx long tubes instead. They were more expensive, but a way better header in the long run.

I would say that the same applies to the shorty versions as well.

Now, if you are going to all the trouble to install headers why not long tubes? Shorties offer nothing in the performance end.

 

Especially on a 2007-2008 truck where the factory manifolds aren't that bad to begin with. The shorties would be of minimal benefit. However, I'm not sure why he thinks the factory manifolds will just crack again. They aren't known for being especially fragile. The manifold bolts sometimes crack or corrode, but the manifolds usually don't crack that often.

 

I've read all over about the manifolds and bolts cracking and the bolts seemed to be more of an issue when pulling out after finding a leaky gasket or cracked manifold. I didn't want to do just any long tube setup because I keep reading about tuning and cat issues. I can't have any of that now as I retired from the military and we have a lot of traveling to do with this truck soon. I saw the OBX setups had hit or miss reviews and can't tell by the stories if it was installer, construction or tuning issues. This truck is not my modding toy. It hauls the toys we do have. I have a few others that are priority and I don't have the money to put into everything. I read quite a bit more and it seems the manifolds are not cracking quickly. It seems they have quite a few miles on them before so I just ordered a new factory manifold for now and will research more. Maybe I'll get LT's later if I can find more info on them with this truck. I'm thinking about moving back into the 3/4-1 ton arena eventually so I'd end up selling this regardless.

I know every post about shorties is "why with no power increase, just go long tubes" Reliability is most important with this ride since it is the backbone of our trips, not the trailer towed fun ride.

Thanks guys. I'm out to tackle the removal now.

Dave

 

Oh, here's a pic on my borescope of the crack. Back cylinder on the passenger side. Just glad that's the cause of the tick and not an adjuster.

 

If you want reliability, stay with the stock manifolds. The ones from 08 will work just fine.

 

I got the manifold off. All the bolts save for one came out. Of course it had to be one not easily accessible with a drill or even an angle drill. It was already broke. It was just sitting in there with a half a thread or so and I was able to just spin it with my fingers. It wasn't really leaking much at all but I'm going to tap it anyways. I have everything disconnected to include the trans and converter. I'm lifting the engine out tomorrow and will replace bolts on both sides and drill the bad one. I'll replace the gaskets and get this done for good.

 

Manifold installed and truck running again. It is so darned quiet now..... I need a muffler. Something to give it a sound again.

I'm glad this was the issue.

Dave

 

Glad you got it sorted out for relatively low-expense. I'm all for upgrading "while you're in there", but the shorties weren't going to do much for you other than cause some more headaches on installation. The LT's would have definitely been a bear.