Cali-Runner

Hello all. This is my first post in the 4 Runner Forum. I've read so much and gained a great deal of information so far from everyone. Thanks for the great site!

As a result, I've purchased some Downey headers (ceramic) and am planning to get them installed tomorrow. Can't wait.

But, I'm a little concerned. I ordered the 17410-30C Ceramic. It says this on my invoice and is hand written on the box too. But...these sure look like Chrome.

For those 91 4 Runner owners (or similar) that have installed the ceramic headers from Downey, can you please confirm that they are supposed to be a dull finished color...white or grey? I wonder if Downey made a mistake.

Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks!

lunatic14r

that is what the ceramic looks like it should not be super bright it should have some dull to them

joeal

i just got mine and they look the same, i too thought my were chrome when i ordered ceramic, but since we got the same problem, im sure they're ceramic, maybe just a different style of coating them or something

Cali-Runner

Okay, just so we're clear. These are not dull. They are silver, bright and shiny. Could these really be chome?

Plan to call the distributor tomorrow...but until then, was planning on dropping off the truck tonight. Won't do it if these are the wrong thing.

Take a look at the pic and tell me what you think.

Joeal, did yours look like this?

Thanks again.

lunatic14r

yep they are ceramic headers dont think of ceramic as what is sitting on you grandmothers hutch. ceramic coating is total different

joeal

thats exactly what mine looked like

joeal

btw, set out plenty of time to do the header install, it takes a while, or atleast for me it has

Cebby

Those are ceramic. Chrome is shinier

Cali-Runner

Whew...big sigh of relief. Thanks everybody!

Joeal...good luck with your installation! There's a great set of installation tips in the 4x4wire website:

http://www.4x4wire.com/toyota/tech/downeyheaders/

Let me know how you like your headers when you get em in...I'll let you know how I like mine.

goldtaco9

What does this Downey header do for you? Does it have a history of leaks and/or cracks like the TRD headers?
Sorry for the highjack.
Mike

midiwall

Enjoy the headers! I LOVE my Downeys (and I had the exact same worries you did when I opened mine!)


goldtaco9;

There are many things that you can do to an engine to better it's performance. One of the key things is to get the engine to breath better - get more air into it, and get the exhaust gasses out of it quicker.

Headers help the latter. The stock manfolds on these engines are fairly restrictive, they tend to hold onto the exhaust gasses and make the engine work harder to get the spent fuel out of the combustion chamber(s).

A header system is designed to provide less resistance to the gasses trying to escape from the engine, and actually create a vacuum to draw the gasses out. This promotes more complete burning of the fuel mixture, and that translates into more power.

Coupled with a free-flow muffler this can create a VERY noticable difference in the power curve of your truck. The real numbers depend on a number of things, but adding headers will tend to net you 15-25 horsepower.

The downside is the install... It's NOT fun and unless you have access to a full truck lift, the general suggestion is to pay someone else to do it. I paid $300 to get mine installed.


Leak wise... All of the header mfg's fight the leaking issue. It's not so much a problem with the header design as it is with the gaskets that they're including. The infamous problem with the TRD headers can be fixed by simply using the stock manifold gaskets; not the ones that come with the headers.

Running headers also sets up your exhaust system to have to run at higher temperatures. This can cause leaks at the exhaust ports due to the greater range of expansion and contraction of the metals. Again, running the right gaskets will cure these issues.

fwiw, I haven't had any issues with mine leaking in the 2+ months I've had them on.

midiwall

Hey joeal/Call-runner;

I thought I'd babble a bit more about some things I've learned about the headers.

• Think hard about what to do with the crossover. The stock exhaust system (and the TRD headers) route the crossover pipe over the transfer case. This causes a lot of issues in getting the headers out, but it makes life easier when trying to deal with things like dropping the tranny pan. My crossover pipe is running under the tranny and I can't get the pan down. I'm having "conversations" with the shop that did the work for making this choice and what we'll do about it.
  
  The ideas on 4x4wire are good ones - don't do the crossover until later down the way. But remember you have to get it in there before the front O2 sensor.
  
• You should REALLY replace the studs that are in the block. Unless your engine is fairly new, the manifold studs have been subjected to a lot of heating/cooling cycles and mounting headers on these could create issues down the road.
  
• If you're an auto, pay REAL close attention to what you do routing the kickdown cable after the install. The shop that did mine routed the kickdown cable around the outside of the header, and that subjected the cable to a LOT of heat. Within a week, the cable had siezed due to the sheath getting so hot it collapsed around the cable.
  
  The end result is that the throttle is VERY stiff, and generally my shifts at low speed (like from neutral to drive) are very hard. This is because the kickdown cable will get pulled out when I push on the gas, but it won't go back into the sheath, so it's always increasing the pressure on the plates in the tranny, thus making for hard shifts.
  
  (btw, this is why I need to drop the tranny pan - to replace the kickdown cable)
  
• Don't use the supplied clamps - weld, weld, weld. The clamps will be very susceptible to leaking. The downside of this is that you're making work for yourself if you have to pull the headers in the future.
  
• Like the 4x4wire article, don't be tempted to run a large bore exhaust. I ran 2.5" pipe to the muffler and a 3" pipe out the tail and lost a LOT of low-end torque. I re-plumbed the system with 2.5" from front to back and I'm much happier.

Hope that helps! Good luck!

lunatic14r

and one last thing to what midiwall said on a auto you have to relocate the transfer case cooler downey has a kit or you can just get longer lines made up and move the cooler back further just watch were the lines go dont route them to close to the headers

rollandfayssoux

i bought an 85 pickup with downeys headers already on. at least that is what he told me. i was wondering what coating they have on them. the color is brownish. i dont know how long they have been on. any help is appreciated.

joeal

did you get your headers installed? I finished mine last week or so, and got a custom crossover made. A noticeable improvement in power, but not totally what i expected. But i guess the computer needs time to adjust also. It was a pain though gettin those in!

Cebby

Obviously, being from California, you've never seen rust before...

Waterboy

How did the install go for you? I'm interested to hear if you guys had the same problems that I did. I reused the old studs and that added alot of time to the install. All and all it took my dad and I 16 hours not counting lunch or a parts run. How did you like running around with open headers for a day. I got a headache everytime I would drive my truck.

joeal

bump