Help 08 300c header install...

What's up everyone! I just bought Hedman headers the shorties and looking for somebody to install them I am on a tight budget and I am getting crazy estimates that equal or exceed the price of the freakin headers...Is it true that the engine needs to be raised 6 inches or can it be done without doing that? I hope somebody can help because I am totally bummed out   got the headers this morning and the merlins near me said $200 to do it so I go there and they tell me they are not equip to do it...ugh. Any help would be really appreciated Thanks Guys!!

They say the headers are direct replacement bolt on....

You can do it without raising the engine. Makes it easier but not needed. Removing the valve covers makes getting at the top bolts easier.

I have done it and believe me when I say that unless you have little hands you are going to struggle. Shorty headers will be a little bit easier on the bottom side.

Thanks for the info guys! Now I just have to find a reasonable install price...

What do you consider reasonable? Its a very labor intensive job.

What do you think I think $850 is steep...

850 is steep to me. I'm in the $500 range for headers with heads still on the car.

I found a guy for $550 but was hoping for $450 I didn't want to spend the same as the freakin headers cost!

Do it yourself and you would pay someone a grand next time. Book is around 6hrs. labor @ $90 some odd dollars per hour.

Ok why so long after engine is lifted just unbolt clean then reverse what causes it to take so long? It seems pretty straight forward in the service manual...do they not want to come off or what?

It's a tight fit to get your hand up there to loosen the bolts unless you have the hands of a 12 year old. Not to mention having to break them loose with a wrench in most cases.

Oh so it is tight even with the engine lifted figures as big as the freakin car is you would think there would be room...I kinda miss the days when I had my 71 ss camaro and did the headers in no time flat lol

The job sucks bro! Elcobra and I tried on my Charger for a couple hours on our backs. I finally said fuck it let's pull the heads. Made life a hell of a lot easier. But then you have to buy gaskets and other shit. One thing nobody has mentioned, do not use aftermarket gaskets for headers. Go buy a set from dealer

I got Hedman Headers comes with gaskets and mounting hardware....

Shawn is right on the money - Get yourself OEM header gaskets and save yourself another headache down the line.

So the summit racing gaskets wont work? they are direct bolt on Hedman shorties supposed to top notch T-304 and the works. What is the difference between the mopar ones and the Hedman gaskets? I didn't think that mopar made headers for the c?

man Hedders
Manufacturer's Part Number:27490
Part Type:Exhaust Header and Manifold Gaskets
Product Line:Hedman Header Gaskets
Summit Racing Part Number:HED-27490

UPC:732611274906
Port Style:Stock
Gasket Material:High-temperature white
Quantity:Sold as a set.
In-Store Pickup:Choose In-store pick-up (OH, GA, NV) on our web site.
Hedman header gaskets are made of a special gasket material developed for Hedman. Accept no substitute. Hedman gaskets are available for all header applications. They were made to be exact matches to their headers, ensuring a proper fit and seal. Check with your header installation instructions to get the proper number for your headers.

^^ so no good or what?^^

I've seen too many aftermarket gaskets fail to recommend anything but the factory exhaust manifold gaskets.

I just put down the copper gasket sealer on the heads and used same used oem gasket and around the ports on the used Kooks headers. My old gasket was fine. The old headers were fine.

moros323 wrote:

I found a guy for $550 but was hoping for $450 I didn't want to spend the same as the freakin headers cost!

If you aren't willing to do the job your self then you have no idea of the pain and agony this job causes. 500-600 is a good price. Had I known before hand I probably would have paid. I was given access to a lift in a professional shop with mechanics all around me and nobody gave me any help. I wanted to just give up a hundred times. When I finished one of the mechanics looked over the job and said he was proud of me for finishing.

tom, that pain and agony isn't all bad. Almost every thing I've done to my car has been a motherfucker for me, but with that comes a warm kinda this is "my" car feeling. I've wanted to put myself through the header torture chamber for a long time, but I look up at those rusty ass header bolts and I just know half are going to break off in the heads. That might be just a little too much "my" car feeling!

bill

elcobra44 wrote:

I've seen too many aftermarket gaskets fail to recommend anything but the factory exhaust manifold gaskets.

This^^^^^^
Do some research bro, aftermarket gaskets are shit.