Header options for 2.5

Patrick Carlin

Patrick Carlin

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Joined
Oct 8, 2018
Messages
57
Location
Winter Haven
That whole thing about life not permitting time for Jeeps is so true! The last time I posted on this forum was October of last year, discussing options for engine/axle swaps. Its amazing how far away that ship has sailed! Anyways, in recent times, my header is behaving exactly how I figured an EBay header would: LEAKING! It lasted me around 2 years, and finally it was leaking out of the collector where it joins up with what I believe is called the "Down Pipe". As I will be keeping this dreaded 2.5L motor for a while, I need to fix this leak. Does anyone know of any good brands for a header? Or should I just order the factory cast manifold off Rock Auto? I had an exhaust guy look at it for me and he showed me that the header is completely ruined. Any help would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks
 
Patrick Carlin said:
That whole thing about life not permitting time for Jeeps is so true! The last time I posted on this forum was October of last year, discussing options for engine/axle swaps. Its amazing how far away that ship has sailed! Anyways, in recent times, my header is behaving exactly how I figured an EBay header would: LEAKING! It lasted me around 2 years, and finally it was leaking out of the collector where it joins up with what I believe is called the "Down Pipe". As I will be keeping this dreaded 2.5L motor for a while, I need to fix this leak. Does anyone know of any good brands for a header? Or should I just order the factory cast manifold off Rock Auto? I had an exhaust guy look at it for me and he showed me that the header is completely ruined. Any help would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks
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Not to many options for us out there, the aftermarket cast iron manifold are universal fit for YJ's and TJ's that include a plugged O2 port not used on the TJ and they blow out in short time then become a headache. Also the castings are to thick at the intake/exhaust shared bolts and needs to be modified. See if you can find a used Mopar manifold or swap in another ebay SS manifold as they are cheap enough. Second time was the charm for my 2.5.
 
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Just got mine delivered today from eBay. I couldn’t find a cheap SS one until another member on here pointed me in in the right direction. I paid $85 give or take after taxes for this one. Seems to be decent quality but I won’t get to put it on until tomorrow so I’ll have to let you know on that.

77F8A2A4-5CE5-4194-89EE-4F996047E717.jpeg
 
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kincaid.0678 said:
Just got mine delivered today from eBay. I couldn’t find a cheap SS one until another member on here pointed me in in the right direction. I paid $85 give or take after taxes for this one. Seems to be decent quality but I won’t get to put it on until tomorrow so I’ll have to let you know on that.

View attachment 360643
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I've installed a few of those and for the price they're really not bad, when you mate the downpipe to the header give the bell a good schmear of anti-seize as it helps fully seat the joint to prevents leaks.
 
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I went through this recently.

Posted my notes here (scroll down). Has links to the thread where I first asked the same question.
 
TJ4Jim said:
Not to many options for us out there, the aftermarket cast iron manifold are universal fit for YJ's and TJ's that include a plugged O2 port not used on the TJ and they blow out in short time then become a headache. Also the castings are to thick at the intake/exhaust shared bolts and needs to be modified. See if you can find a used Mopar manifold or swap in another ebay SS manifold as they are cheap enough. Second time was the charm for my 2.5.
Click to expand...

I remember you had some good advice when I was looking for my replacement.

I ended up with the Dorman and was glad to find that I did not have to modify the corners that share the bolt with the I take manifold.
 
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I guess I need it to last a few years. The manifold that I took off the old motor had a massive crack in the back of it. Not a big fan of manifolds, but both manifolds and headers have their downsides. Ill give each of those brands a look. I'm just not too sure about running the same one I got off EBay if it will more than likely leak after a year or two.
 
kincaid.0678 said:
Just got mine delivered today from eBay. I couldn’t find a cheap SS one until another member on here pointed me in in the right direction. I paid $85 give or take after taxes for this one. Seems to be decent quality but I won’t get to put it on until tomorrow so I’ll have to let you know on that.

View attachment 360643
Click to expand...

Link please! I have a cracked manifold that needs replaced at some point and this is cheaper than the manifold.
 
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