Stillen Headers + Berk HFCs self-install report

tru_Asiatik

^^thank you very much kind sir

is the rattle that bad?do you guys forsee damge in the long run if it keeps on hitting it??

semtex

Well, you can adjust it. I took the pics above to send to my mechanic to say 'hey, we have a problem, take a look at this!'. So after I sent them, he came back, got under my car, and was able to adjust it. The rattle is mostly gone now. But the tolerances are still very tight in that spot, and every now and then I'll hear a little rattle if my car is at a certain incline or something. But it's not enough to make me worried, and my mechanic said he saw no signs of actual wear on the spot that was making intermittent contact.

Now, one thing to keep in mind is that I don't have the headers yet. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that the headers don't change the geometry more and make things worse! I'm getting the headers put on some time next week, so we'll find out. wstar has the headers, so part of me is wondering if his problem is worse because of them.

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"There are no small accidents on this circuit." -- Ayrton Senna
316.8whp & 248 ft/lbs (Dyno Dynamics) | 319whp & 256 ft/lbs (DynoJet) (04/23/10)
Stillen G3 CAI, CBE, Pulley / F.I. LTH / GTSpec Ladder Brace / Setrab Oil Cooler / UpRev-tuned by Forged Perf.

wstar

Yes that's the same spot mine hits at. It won't destroy anything in the short term, you just don't want to hear it rattling. After I failed to get it clear myself, I went to a nearby random exhaust place earlier in the week, and they didn't do much good either.

Then I hit a well-known performance shop around here early this morning, who in turn referred me to a muffler shop down the road where they said the guy was an exhaust genius. Just got back from there. He got me clear of the crossmember and the rear swaybar and those diagonal links, but it took some pretty intense tweaking (he heated up the pipes at a couple of strategic points with a torch and bent them a little).

He also welded up the slip-fit seams for me. I'm definitely not rattling against anything anymore. I'm going to get under it tonight again myself and try to triple-check the bolts on the headers (and everything else) to make sure I'm not leaking (it's hard to tell rasp from leak under load, at least for me). I'm hoping I find a loose bolt or a failed gasket somewhere honestly, because the rasp is kinda intense. Regardless, I think a design with some kind of flex joints up in the Y-pipe section (like the stock ones had) would probably cut some of the rasp though.

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Journal thread / Car setup details