qipman

I have finally completed my LG Motorsports 1 ¾ Super Pro longtube headers and LG tunnel plate install. Much was learned along the way and I addressed other things while under the car such as installing a new front air dam spoiler, painted the tunnel frame area, and replacing various rusted screws and bolts. I encountered a few issues along the way (described below), however worked through them. I took the time needed to do everything correctly and enjoyed the experience greatly. I would say that the hardest part was lining up the catback after the exhaust install - however after a while it became clear what had to be adjusted (and in which way) to make everything line up correctly. For those who are planning on doing this in the future, here are a few notes from my install:

1- I broke a couple of bolts while installing an LG tunnel plate because I did not realize that some of the bolts were going in slightly crooked. The bolts broke easily and without warning. This was due to several factors:
a. One was that I painted the tunnel with POR-15 paint and it got up in the threads which made it harder to tighten the bolts. If you paint the heat tunnel before installing a new tunnel plate, be sure to simply run a tap through the threads to remove the paint before you install the bolts.
b. The other was that it seemed harder to line up the bolts on an aftermarket tunnel plate without several bolts being pushed over a bit. Be sure that if any bolts are going in harder than others to loosen the rest and carefully tighten all down simultaneously.

2- Before installing the headers:
a. Move (and wrap) the clutch quick disconnect line before installing the header (see before and after pics).
b. Also wrap any other wires that reside close to the headers before installing them.
c. Make sure your O2 sensor wires are routed away from the headers and exhaust pipes.
d. Consider new spark plugs and wires since you will have them off the car during the install.

3- Very important - do not tighten down the header bolts all the way until you have the x-pipe installed and lined up correctly.

4- The pipes should be evenly spaced within the tunnel area. My x-pipe has one inch clearance on each side (within the tunnel and before the flow pipes that connect to the catback system). It is very important to make sure the x-pipe is strait or you will have issues lining up your mufflers and tips. On my first attempt, I could not get my mufflers and tips strait even though the pipes looked correct. When I went back and looked at my x-pipe more closely, I saw that it was slightly crooked. Upon getting it strait the catback lined up just right.

5- Leave all clamps after the x-pipe loose until you have your catback hooked up and strait. Then go back and slowly tighten everything down being very careful to watch movement of any pipes.

6- No pipes or clamps should be touching anything. Be sure that the over the axle pipes are completely clear of the axles.

7- I used 50 ft/lb torque on all clamps, until I did that some rotated, especially the clamps at the 3 inch adapter for the big 3 catback.

8- Also note that you may come across a defective clamp that can strip before it’s tight enough. I had one strip at the header collector and it was not even closed all the way. Bobby at LG sent out a replacement right away. Be sure to use the upgraded band clamps.

9- Under the hood I found that the passenger side air tube was very difficult to line up with the air tube flange on the header. So much that it caused one of my bolts to strip going in, which resulted with the bolt snapping when I tried to back it out. I was able to drill it out and re-tap it without pulling off the header by removing the battery to give needed clearance.
The good news is that the air tube actually relaxes after a couple heat cycles and repositions itself properly and does not place pressure on the air tube joint. (Not to be confused with the air tube mod needed for years 2000 and below C5s, as mine is a 2002).

10- After a couple runs check all the band clamps and make sure they are still torqued properly. Several of mine loosened up a bit and had to be re-tightened after a short 2 mile test drive. I expect that I will need to check them regularly, such as at oil changes when the car is lifted.

Final thoughts: The car sounds amazing now that I have LG Super Pros mated with my existing LG big 3 catback system, much better than expected with the high flow cats. The car sounded good before the install (with just the LG big 3 catback) but now sounds fully the way I expect it to. Nice and deep at idle and low speeds and really roars at higher RPMS. I highly recommend these headers as well as the LG catback. Lastly Bobby and Anthony over at LG were extremely helpful throughout the entire process and it was really great dealing with them.

Pictures from the install can be seen at the following URL:
http://s107.photobucket.com/user/qip...ader%20Install

Vetteman Jack

Thanks for sharing your experience with the install.