Be sure you know whether the the exhaust includes a cat (if so, which one), a resonator or straight pipe. That could make a substantial difference.

 

Matt,
I'm just gathering the last of my parts and want to have a couple of studs on hand just in case I have a problem with getting a couple of the bolts started. Would you please post the size.

 

get studs that are about the same total length as the bolts on the car. I don't know what this was, as the guys with the shop just found some in a misc studs drawer (they've been in the same location for a while, and have lots of stuff like that left over from other jobs). If you go too long, then you can have a problem getting the nut on. Of course, we found out the hard way.....

Matt

 

Thanks Doc, just don't want to get stuck with the MINI all apart and the Hardware store with the BEST metric bolt/stud selection in the County six miles away.

Heres my quess, 10X1.5 mm for size, probably 1 1/4" long < just a guess.

If anyone else knows the length, size and thread count for header studs don't hold back.

 

=o).hate when that happens!!

 

I had problems getting 1 bolt in and we simply shaved off a bit of the flange on the bolt head. It was that minor!

So this might be an option or solution for some of you. Also if you did have a single problem, it might be worth starting over, starting over with that bolt first. My mechanic thought that perhaps then it would have gone in but also recognized that perhaps the problem would have moved to another bolt.

I've had it on for a couple of months now and mated it up to the OBX exhaust and am delighted with the results. Car revs freer, clearly more low end and pulls longer.

While much can be done to these cars, like the pulley, the header produces useable HP/torque.

 

Bahamabart, thanks for your suggestions.
I've wrestled with a few headers so I want to be prepared.
I guess I'll just have to sneak one bolt out and go to the hardware store.
Can't wait much longer to install mine.

 

Interesting that you "have wrestled with a few headers" - some have poo poo'ed this header from an install perspective and being cheap / clone. Since its appearance in the market, I have noted others dropping their price and at NAM there seems to have been a surge in header purchases which just tells me that perceived value/price have merged. All good and factor in the positive effect it has on the car = 2 .

To me the only negative on OBX/Ebay is the fact that people received incomplete header kits which is unforgiveable in my book. Part of the problem are the ebay vendors that are really just distribution channels which partly explains their ability to prce cheap but on the other hand have no infrastructure or actual store per say to deal with these types of problems. They know how to receive, bill and instruct for a box to be sent out.

I think whats important for readers of this thread is not the brand of header but that a header adds nice daily driveability to the MCS.

Good luck on your install.

bahambart

ps - the fact that you are doing such preparation proabably means it will bolt write up.

 

I am quite happy with my header. Theprecat in my opinion is the main chocking point as well as the poor design if the stock piece. I noticed quite a bit of improvemnt after the install.
As for missing parts. I think that packing and handling is part of the problem. There were big holes ripped in the box and some of the parts fell out as the UPS Guy was carrying it. If those parts were lost I imagine getting replacements would have been a nightmare.

 

Yes, a nightmare. The donut gasket that came with my OBX Header melted in place and now there's a leak. I've tried emailing and contacting Danny Wong to get a replacement and I have never been able to get one from him. And, there's apparently nowhere else to get the damn things.

 

I still haven't received the missing parts but the more I look at it, the more I think the only part I really want is the head to header gasket, the donut and flange, I think I might scrap that idea, I will instead buy a 2.5" flexible piece and weld 2 pipes and have one mounting flange on each ends, then I will cut the piece that sticks out of the header flange and have a gasket and bolt the flexible piece right on the 2 bolt flange, I won't be using a cat and will use Randy's exhaust behind the header, that way I can make the flex pipe the correct lenght to mate the header and exhaust with that flex section.

 

I actually saw the guys from OBX at the SEMA show and asked them how they felt about everyone talking about them making knock-offs of other peoples products and there parts not fitting right......They had no comment and kinda walked away from me.

 

I have just ordered OBX headers, how many individual parts has to be in the box?

 

just check out some of the pics in this thread and you will see the parts.

I counted 14 pieces

you are going to enjoy this addition

 

Were all the header bolts the same size?
Didn't get a chance to pull out a header bolt to measure so.
I went after work and picked up a 10x25mm 1.5 pitch allen head cap screw.
When I test fit it in the flange it fit in the lower 4 flange holes perfectly but is to large for the upper 4 holes. This indicates to me that the OEM header bolts must be 8mm. That is if no one had to drill out the upper holes to fit the OEM bolts in the flange. The allen head cap screws are nice because they are have a smaller head for clearence to the tubes. They also have stainless steel ones but only up to 8mm.
Can someone try to help me out here?
I found the above information. I believe in sharing information so if you have the need, OEM bolt size is M8X30.

 

Several members mentioned they had to use studs in place of the OEM bolts in a couple of the flange holes on their OBX header install due clearance issues.
About Header fitment in general;
This is not a new issue when installing headers, some manufacturers include the following with their headers or offer a kit to replace the bolts. Many headers are configured with either larger pipes or the pipes are attached to the flange at different angles from stock. Sometimes it’s hard or impossible to use the OEM bolts or in some cases get the nuts on studs of engine heads equipped with them. <END
The solution;
Socket screws, also known as Allen head are fastened with a 6mm hex Allen wrench for 8mm screws.
Socket screws 8mm x 30mm pitch 1.25
Listed here;
http://www.boltdepot.com/product.as...1&cm=19&cd=1318
Part #,
6436 30mm $0.79
Lock washers 8mm listed here;
http://www.boltdepot.com/product.aspx?cc=16&cs=64&cm=19
Part #
4518 8mm $0.08
I think I’m going to need two so I bought four and as someone said I probably won’t need any, well maybe.
These are very good prices on stainless steel hardware, I think I paid 3x more locally.
Hope this helps

 

so far i only had to replace one of the studs... the others worked alright...

 

well ok... all but one had a clearance issue (i forgot which one but i was cursing a lot before i found out there was a clearance issue). but you can still use the ones that came with the car and it should have no problem. just check them after 500 miles after the header is installed if they need to be tighten or not. the only problem would be the two screws at the flange which can loosen up so just tacking them would be a good idea. and for me.. for some reason my exhaust tips started to hit the heat shield above them after the install, but thats an easy fix by just bending the heat shield a lil higher for clearance.

 

Well after reading this thread and others like it, I took the plunge. Although not the OBX. I went with the "other" 4 into 1 ebay header. Turned out to be a Megan header. $199 and $15 shipping. I liked the factory style flex joint on the Megan much better than the funky OBX gasket set up.

The install went quite well. It took two of us a little over 2 hours from jacking up the car to turning the key for a test. All the head bolts went in although one was a tight fit.

Although my plan was to use the factory cat, I installed the resonator at first. Boy! That was 'race car' loud! Went for a spin but was afraid to really get on it for fear of waking up the neighbors.

As I had a spare factory header / cat assembly, I kept my original in tact as a back up. I cut the spare cat off the header and took it to my favorite muffler shop and said "please install this in place of the resonator". They dropped out the resonator, welded a flange on one end at the proper angle to the cat, and installed the cat. $55.00 and 30 minutes later I was out the door.

So now I have the Megan header and factory cat set up. Am I happy...you bet! The car pulls better in the mid to high rpms and the sound is awesome. (btw, I have a Milltek cat back system)

A note about the "service engine soon" light. It took almost 2 days of driving with the resonator for the car to throw a code and the light to come on. Once the cat was installed, I took it to the dealer to reset the codes (just cycling the ignition key wouldn't do it). They were really cool about it and did it under warranty.

Bottom line. Aprox $270 spent. More grunt from the car. Killer sound. Come on in...the waters fine :smile:
ripley

 

Ok, so after wading in through 17 pages of technical header installation chatter, part availability, and other goodies, I'm going to see if we can discuss the issue the title of this thread is about. :smile: Forgive me if I missed something along the way in the thread, I try my best to avoid asking questions already asked and answered.


I'm not one for major technical discussion, but am very pleased that others are in the mini community... but occasionally if someone would be so kind as to dumb down the discussion for the layman, it would be appreciated. For example... The OBX Header in question and it's dyno results... How much WHP and WTQ did it add? The newton meters/metric just doesn't convert in my brain, and I'll screw it up if I try and sort it out myself.

Any simple help on this would be appreciated. I'm trying to determine when it comes to header shopping time that I have some simple numbers to compare... Cost/HP increase/TQ increase/longevity of the unit/installation difficulty on one unit vs. other options/brand.

Regards to anyone able to answer.

 

But couldn't spend the time to Google the conversion factors? Shame on you! And just for that, I'll let you go out and find them!

Also, there is no "fixed" answer. It really depends on what else is bolted to the car....

Matt

ps, if your still lost on the conversion factors in a day, maybe I'll help out then. Just earning my name!

 

can someone post a pic of the header fitted? im curious to see the amount of welding etc required to fit this thing.

 

I bought both and liked the Megan better for the flex joint too but after looking at both, I think I'll use the OBX, the Megan's ports are very small and the outlet is only 2.25" while the OBX ports are the size of the pipes and the outlet is 2.5", the Megan was actually listed for the MC not MCS and I thought it was the same thing but I bet the ports size are smaller than the head ports of the MCS, as for the flex joint, I will install one one the OBX and will enjoy the 2.5" to be used with Randy's new exhaust.

 

Good points. You may very well be slightly better off. But I'm in the camp that believes either of these options will breath better than the factory system. Bottom line...we all win. :smile:

ripley

 

u rekon it will breath better even tho its still with a OEM Cat? i still view that as a bottle neck..