Contour Enthusiasts Group Archives Forums Modifications Duratec Performance Just Ordered MSDS Headers Today

I ordered them straight from MSDS. In case anyone else is thinking about getting them they said it will be around mid-Dec. before the ones for the Contour/Mystique will be ready to ship. Cool - just in time to lay on a freezing cold garage floor for 6 hours trying to install them.

Speaking of which, how hard is it to remove the nuts off the old manifolds? The rear looks like a bear to get to but I'm more concerned with them being rusted on and extremely hard to turn. Any special tips for the do-it-yourselfer from those of you who have sweated and cursed this project before? "Yeah, take it to a shop", he replies. Ahh...

Jeff

I am in the middle of the mystery mod, and the exhaust manifolds bolts take alot of time to remove. They are rusted in pretty good, lots of liquid wrench should help.

It is a two person endeavor. One to rachet while the other one guides the 13mm socket. I dented my oil filter doing it. And the rear one comes off only after removing the alternator, which require removing the accessory belt, which requires removing the tire, and the access panel.

Be ready for a lot of scraped knuckles, broken bolts, and a new y-pipe after cutting those bolts. But then again I live in the rust belt, Indiana.

Just so you know RoadiJeff, I ordered mine from the Oct shipment, and they've yet to ship. Supposed to be out this week. Simply, we may be doing a mystery mod this weekend, but could you explain what access panel you're talking about?

The one that devides the wheel well from the engine comparment

I ordered my MSDS in the beginning of september and just got them 2 weeks ago, so anyone ordering them, plan on waiting 2+ months. Joe at SP says he is going to stop selling them since it takes so long and people blame him for the wait. So good luck!

HA! Joe takes forever anyways ... he is one to speak! Nice guy, but needs to work on his business practices a little ... taking people's money without ordering the product isn't very ethical.

I have had nothing but great service from SP, everything I order is delivered within 2-3 weeks (except the headers). He is very personable on the phone and in emails, and when I ordered my whole purchase at once (Quaife, flywheel, clutch, headers)he gave me a discount and only charged me for what he had in stock. I will continue doing business with him as long as he has other parts to buy... :p

same here. don't be knocking on Joe.

Joe has done no wrong by me. When it came time to order the SVT upper I.M. I ordered it from Joe, even though I know I could have gotten it from the same place he was. I got it in a timely maner, but I was charged before they had the parts in stock. I'll shop with S.P. again if they have what I need.
As for removing the manifolds, don't be surprised if the studs pull out of the heads instead of the nuts loosening. About half the studs came unthreaded from the head. It's no big deal, but make sure you clean the rust off the studs and re-torque them to spec. The torque spec on the bolts is real low, 16-18 ft lb IIRC. It's not a terribly hard job, but it's a bit time consuming. Lots of extentions and swivels help. The easiest way to get to the rear is over the subframe. That means at least 2-3 feet of extention is required so be prepared. Liquid Wrench a few days before hand on the manifold bolts and a "fire wrench" on the y-pipe bolts will make your life easier. As someone else here mentioned, it helps to have someone guide the socket onto the upper bolts on the front manifold. Good luck with the job!

Alex in Boulder, CO
95SE MTX
157hp 151tq before latest mods...

We fitted some MSDS headers for Mr Brown in Tx when we did his Quaife.Have to say that the headers,not just MSDS,but any that have a 'one piece' port flange need to be modded if you want to avoid gasket leaks at the head.If you look at the stoc manifolds you will notice two things, 1)each port flange is a 'single',due to them being 'cut' 2)at each end is an oval stud hole.Both these were added because without them the flange cannot 'move' against the head (coeff of expansion of steel Vs ally),this causes the gasket to blow in time .I'd advise that the one piece flages are cut in the same place as the stoc manifolds and the hole in the 'oval' location opened out.Regards Terry Haines,HMS Inc