Okay Spoke to my manufacturer he would do a bulk price discount for 10 or more he also said if he makes them from mild steel they will be cheaper as well

I couldn't talk much to him as he was busy but its heading in the right direction

I wanted stainless because I replaced the wholes system in stainless but

For those who are just wanting the headers to replace cracked or stuffed OEM headers mild steel with a high temp paint on them should be more than enough after all how long do mild steel headers last with a bit of maintenance quite a while just an idea on getting the price down

They will still be mandrel bent and flow the same using the same design just mild steel

 

It's a group-buy situation, lots of threads here on the forum trying to get group-buys together. As one of your marvelous mods I say just get on with it.

If it's a minimum order of 10, then put up the price for 10pcs and try to get it going.

 

That's great!! So I guess Andy or Doc, could you put up quantity pricing for say 10 - 20 -30- off? I think the mild steel option will be perfectly suitable for many, plus they can easily be repaired and/or powder coated.

Obviously shipping costs will be a variable but perhaps we can cross that bridge later once there is an understanding of the interest level?

BTW, I was watching an old episode of Wheeler Dealers last night and they were doing up and Aston Martin DB7. The car had a bad exhaust blow and when Ed took off the (Jaguar) manifold cover, there were two (jaguar) exhaust manifolds with dirty great cracks in exactly the same place as on my XJ6. Couldn't help but laugh!! Funny thing though was that they said that the replacement cost for two manifolds, gaskets for the manifolds and downpipes was only £268 !!!!!! Couldn't believe it and it definitely took the grin off my face

 

Sorry guys double post went downstairs on the I pad and my previous post didn't come up

So started to rewrite it then my previous post came up

 

I don't have any crack on my manifolds, as far as I am aware and neither does my donor car, but given that prevention is better than the inevitable cure, depending upon cost,I would be very interested also. Based in Ireland.

 

I think a lot of interest will be driven by the cost, a bit of chicken/egg scenario of course.... but never the less.

If I end up with an X300, I'll likely be interested as I am very keen to avoid known problems up front when a reasonably cost effective solution is available.

Here's another question: Will one need any ECU mapping with new headers of this type? The reason I ask is that headers of this type will often flow better than cast units, and especially if one has installed a freer flowing filter/intake, that can conceivably alter intake/exhaust flow enough to need adjusting??

 

No need to remap ecu just disconnect the battery overnight reconnect in the morning the ecu will go back to standard mode and learn from there
Some guys say just disconnect both battery terminalls and put them together I'm not keen on that our ecu's are to expensive to replace

 

No remap necessary as the O2 sensors are downstream of the manifold and they provide the feedback control for the engine fueling. The ECM doesn't care how much flow is going through the engine so long as the fuel pump can keep up. The ECM map is just a grid of load vs engine speed values. There will of course be some change to the fuel trims but they should return to normal after driving a few hundred miles. Of course if you wanted a performance increase then you certainly could remap the ECM to take advantage of the better flow.

Disconnecting the battery will have no effect on the Long Term fuel trims as they are stored in non volatile memory.

Now if you remove the O2 sensors and cats and go to a straight downpipe, you will need a completely differently programmed ECU.

 

Both my manifolds have cracks and I think it's affecting mpg, noise etc. so very interested in price - and how hard are the old ones to remove? 19 year old nuts/bolts look kind of......stuck/seized/rusted/evolved into a single entity?

Still struggling with the other 'issues' - radio stays on when key removed (oh have I tried to fix that one!, horrible mpg (13 but it is mainly city driving), constant SRS / airbag light, bubbling (OK, it;s worse than bubbling) on rear arches - replacement panels bought but haven't cash at present to get welding and painting done, and parasitic drain somewhere - may be related to radio issue but just can;t track it down and if not driven car needs jumped after two days - I will find it eventually and terminate with extreme prejudice - once I find what is causing it the Terminator and Malcolm Tucker will look like nice kind reasonable sorts!

Thanks

nibbster

 

In the interim, I have checked with a few sources. One former supplier in the UK has discontinued the factory replacement, probably the market is too small. Another common find is that stainless steel is not a cheap solution, certainly more expensive than stock cast iron, but will save you money and the trouble of fixing/re-fixing some time down the road. The original design of the manifolds being so short explains why they crack easily; stainless steel is not foul proof, just more durable and repair-friendly. A more practical solution is extending it to the down pipe but this would be more expensive and have to be done professionally to produce best results. Distance-wise, anyone not in the UK or Australia would expect shipment to be expensive. Andy's several solutions include (1) starting with his flanges made of 8mm thick 304 grade stainless plate as a starting point for then make your own manifolds (2) find a local shop that can read his dxf files to programme the machine to cut out the flanges from steel plate; (3) fabricate a more extensive solution all the way down to the underfloor catalysts following his specifications.

The key message stainless steel headers aren't cheap, certainly not cheaper than stock manifolds. For those not thinking to keep your X300 long, they will have difficulty with the stainless steel option. A rough indication is just the headers in stainless steel made by professional workshops would be twice the cost of factory originals. Folks interested in Andy's solution may contact him via PM. Meanwhile, more news from doc would be welcome.

 

Just Got back been in Melbourne for 5 days and so much to do around the house and business up here
I will be seeing my builder again he seemed to think mild steel would be substantially cheaper
I have just been looking at a high temperature paint that is very durable as ceramic coating them is very costly
I will be on the ball when I next travel to Brisbane

 

Wonder if anyone preferably in the UK happen to have any cracked exhaust manifolds front and rear with Parts Number NBC 2902AA/AC and NBC 2903AA/AC lying around? PM me if you do. I need a used set to enable my workshop to custom-make a copy in stainless steel. Many thanks.

 

In the current addition of Jaguar Enthusiasts Magazine May 2014, there are two adverts for stainless manifolds. Hayward and Scott on www.hawardandscott.co.uk and Classicfabs on www.classicfabs.co.uk . Could be worth an enquiry.

 

Actually, it was Hayward and Scott which has asked me for a used copy to start rolling. Hope forum members who live in the UK can help with this. Don't want to dismount my own again and send them thousands of miles across the continents. I am asking a few Jaguar breakers on eBay if they have the right ones. I am trying to keep the original pattern to minimize alteration to nearby settings otherwise needed if going for doc's option. We have exhaust air control in Hong Kong so can't go for a completely new exhaust manifold design. Haywart and Scott may entertain group order only if the numbers work out. Ball park for a single order is at least double the factory originals' because (a) it is top quality stainless steel (b) it is done professionally. Factor in your own shipment destination cost and you have an idea. How far the price can be driven down depends on how many are genuinely interested. I am going it alone first, as obviously the group order idea is going to incubate for a while.

 

There are plenty of jag breakers in England. Why do they not pick up the 'phone and buy a pair from one of them!

 

No sweat, they too later suggested doing it in parallel, i.e. finding a set through their connections. Anyway, perhaps the forum is more efficient - a member in the UK has found me a set and will send it over. So with a set handy, they would perhaps handle the project faster. I am visiting UK later in May and hopefully they could finish it before my return so I can carry the fabricated exhaust manifolds back.

 

This looks promising. Their manifolds for the older XK engine at £600 look a good deal. If there was enough interest to get manifolds made for AJ6 and AJ16 motors to get the price down to that range, it would be a no brainer as new cast iron manifolds cost £550.

 

I will be tackling this at some point here in the US, ie finding someone/shop that is willing to do the work either straight piped similar to the style doc had made or a redo of stock with stainless. I was involved in building custom stainless headers for a john deer diesel tractor engine being refitted into a '76 F-250 and it was loads of fun and very rewarding seeing the finished product. I will ask when I'm doing mine if they are up for other "orders" and pass along what I know. It would be foolish for us here in the US to pay international shipping on something as heavy as these parts.

 

Agreed, with $1,000 for the headers alone, shipping would be HUGE.

 

Here is an update. They have looked at the used, stock exhaust manifolds and found that the distance between the flanges and the manifold curving downwards to the merging point is too short. The lack of room for heat expansion explains why they crack easily and short exhaust manifold is bad for air flow. One way of tackling this is to extend the manifold further outward by about 2 inches if there is room to do so. I have sent them pictures of my engine bay (RHD) cautioning that there are underlying or nearby pipelines (aircon, air-injection, EGR valve etc.). I too have sent them pictures of Doc's exhaust manifold solution for their reference. I beleive there is sufficient room for a larger manifold but as Hong Kong has pollution controls, it may be necessary to retain but relocate certain nearby pipelines. I would defer to the professionals. They may have to find an XJR6 in the UK to test their ideas.