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LS Swap Header Options

DirtyMJ

NAXJA Forum User
I've been poking around looking at header options for an LS swap, and I've hit enough of a wall that I had to dust off my username here to ask.

I have three known solutions.

The Novak ones. Pricey, especially for the ceramic coated ones at $520 USD.

Hooker LS Manifolds http://www.jegs.com/p/Hooker-Headers/Hooker-LS-Cast-Iron-Exhaust-Manifolds/1918563/10002/-1 They're actually not a bad option, they cost a few bucks but should be reliable and do fit well. $400 USD for ceramic coated, however the adapter pipes (from Hooker) that you would have to butcher anyways are another $120 (you could buy something generic for less, which would make sense anyways).

Butcher a set of F-body car stockers. Not really interested because I'd probably have to pay a bunch of money for them to start with.

And that's all I know.

So, onward to cheaper options that I'm curious if anyone has tried.

Ebay set for a C10 swap: http://www.ebay.ca/itm/C-10-LS-Chev...ash=item3f4a9f459c:g:TQ8AAOSwW9dZ1sMT&vxp=mtr

These I really want to believe would fit, assuming I'm going to hack off the UCA mounts from the frame anyways. They're much cheaper ($170 US with adapters) and made out of stainless that allegedly a magnet won't stick to.

Or we have the S10 swap version: http://www.ebay.ca/itm/LS-Swap-S10-...ash=item543eb8b6ea:g:wjQAAOSw2TdZ4TJ5&vxp=mtr

Which looks suspiciously similar to the Novak ones...

So, anyone tried anything beyond my first three options? I just want something that won't rust (hate rust) and doesn't cost a fortune.
 
I just want something that won't rust (hate rust) and doesn't cost a fortune.

I wish you luck.

Just so you know, ceramic will eventually rust. It is a galvanically active sacrificial coating. Its lifespan will vary depending on environment. It does great with heat, but not so great with moisture. A garage queen that rarely gets fired up provides one of the worst combinations of conditions. A daily driver in Arizona would probably see the coating last much longer than a daily driver on the east coast.
 
I wish you luck.

Just so you know, ceramic will eventually rust. It is a galvanically active sacrificial coating. Its lifespan will vary depending on environment. It does great with heat, but not so great with moisture. A garage queen that rarely gets fired up provides one of the worst combinations of conditions. A daily driver in Arizona would probably see the coating last much longer than a daily driver on the east coast.

I hate ceramic coating as I think it's an expensive solution that doesn't really solve a problem, however given how much I hate rusted plain steel, and the poor performance of any DIY header coatings I have tried, it is an option I will consider.

I'd rather just go with 3xx stainless and be done, which I do not understand why more headers are not available in. The material cost is not that much higher for a mass producer vs a regular low carbon steel.

The last stainless eBay header I bought (a 4.0L one) didn't stick to a magnet, and was dirt cheap. That said it didn't actually fit my application, and I would up modifying the crap out of it, but I was happy with the end results as nothing off the shelf would have worked right anyways, and it was a fraction of the cost of the other options.
 
I'd rather just go with 3xx stainless and be done, which I do not understand why more headers are not available in. The material cost is not that much higher for a mass producer vs a regular low carbon steel.

IT is a PITA to bend.

It requires higher pressures on the bend dies which then leads to greater wear and tear on the tooling, and even then there is still a substantially higher percentage of bad bends; generally lots of ripples on the insides of the bends.
 
IT is a PITA to bend.

It requires higher pressures on the bend dies which then leads to greater wear and tear on the tooling, and even then there is still a substantially higher percentage of bad bends; generally lots of ripples on the insides of the bends.

Yet the Chinese have perfected it at a fraction of the cost!
 
I bought some Chinese shorty's in Stainless for my LS miata, hard to beat for under $200. Not sure if they'd give the right clearance for a XJ.
 
Honestly. I would go with the Novak ones.

I had o modify some shorty's cause' I am in California (Novak ones are not smog legal here) and it was a PITA and cost way more than the Novak ones. I wouldn't modify S-10 ones or factory ones. Think HP, Headers will be better in the long run.
 
Honestly. I would go with the Novak ones.

I had o modify some shorty's cause' I am in California (Novak ones are not smog legal here) and it was a PITA and cost way more than the Novak ones. I wouldn't modify S-10 ones or factory ones. Think HP, Headers will be better in the long run.

What shorties did you start with?
 
FrankZ used a sanderson header on his swap. PM him for the part number

The Novaks are Sandersons. Sure it wasn't just the Novak ones?

Edit, 99% certain he used Novak ones. Either way, Sanderson headers are the same price as Novak, and they're the same product with the same limitation, I don't want crap mild steel headers.
 
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Don't know his build thread just said sanderson. Its over on ls1tech.com there are a few others over there also

It's on NAXJA too, they're Novak ones, he says something to effect that the Novak mounts bent him over a barrel and require their headers. There's discussion of them VS the S10 conversion headers too, and they are different, at least in the Sanderson brand.
 
All the research I did on my swap coming up is the Novak headers are the only ones that will fit with out modification.

If yopu find another that works please repost.
 
If your looking for a no mod needed header Novak is it.
I have seen Denali exhaust manifolds used with no mods but you have to notch and box in the pass side motor mount.
 
I hope you realize that you can run the manifolds "reversed"! My '66 Jeep Gladiator with a factory AMC 327 had the drivers side exhaust wrapping under the harmonic balancer to get to the passenger side.
 
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