Header Gasket question
Thread Starter
Pro
Joined: Feb 2007
Posts: 538
Likes: 0
From: Orlando FL
Header Gasket question
OK, I can swear my headers on my 95 are leaking a little. It's especially bad when the car is started. I know the car 'ticks' from the lifter... but it seems even louder now, and especially at the end of the exhaust. Maybe I am just paranoid? 
I am flowing cat-free, so that could also be it.
But anyways, I have Stainless Works headers with Percy's Aluminum Dead Soft gaskets.
Maybe I need to get a video up here of the car starting from cold and let you guys hear it and see what you think.
I am flowing cat-free, so that could also be it.But anyways, I have Stainless Works headers with Percy's Aluminum Dead Soft gaskets.
Maybe I need to get a video up here of the car starting from cold and let you guys hear it and see what you think.
Le Mans Master
Joined: May 2004
Posts: 5,866
Likes: 60
From: Hellinois
Finalist 2020 C4 of the Year - Modified
I've tried the Percy's aluminum and I've tried Percy's XXX carbon gaskets. I keep coming right back to the plain old paper gaskets, cheapest ones you can buy and they seal the best for me.
Race Director
Joined: Apr 2000
Posts: 15,344
Likes: 4,009
From: Texas
Look for evidence of black soot/exhaust around the ports. Use a mechanics mirror to look below the ports. If you see any soot/black exhaust stains, you know where the leak is.
I have Percy's Dead Soft Aluminum on mine. Leak free for over two years. I've never had to retighten the header bolts, not even after the first time the engine fired.
I have Percy's Dead Soft Aluminum on mine. Leak free for over two years. I've never had to retighten the header bolts, not even after the first time the engine fired.
Melting Slicks
Joined: Jul 2006
Posts: 2,151
Likes: 0
From: Strongsville Ohio
I had the EXACT same problem. I saw the soot stains and the noise drove me crazy. It sounded like a POS with a motor problem. My gasket came with the hooker headers. It didn't even last 5 k miles. It just melted pretty much and fell apart
Thread Starter
Pro
Joined: Feb 2007
Posts: 538
Likes: 0
From: Orlando FL
OK. I honestly didn't really see any soot that I could tell. Only at the rear at the passenger side did I see a tiny bit of black powder around the top of the header, but it was barely enough to wipe your finger on. Maybe that's just enough to hear a difference? I can't tighten the bolts anymore, and I am not going to push it and break something.
I also am running straight pipes, aka no cats. That could also be a difference of sound as well.
Here's a little crappy video I took. Sorry if it's bobbing around a little.
I also am running straight pipes, aka no cats. That could also be a difference of sound as well.
Here's a little crappy video I took. Sorry if it's bobbing around a little.
Corvette Stories
The Best of Corvette for Corvette Enthusiasts
Top 10 Most Explosive Corvettes Ever Made: Power-to-Weight Ratio Ranked!
Joe Kucinski
150 hp to 1,250 hp: Every Corvette Generation Compared by the Specs That Matter
Joe Kucinski
8 Coolest Corvette Pace Cars (and Replicas) of All Time
Verdad Gallardo
Top 10 Corvette Engines RANKED by Peak Torque (70+ Years of Muscle!)
Joe Kucinski
Corvette ZR1X Will Be Pacing the Indy 500, And Could Probably Race, Too!
Verdad Gallardo
Top 10 Corvettes Coming to Mecum Indy 2026!
Brett Foote
Top 10 C9 Corvette MUST-HAVES to Fix These C8 Generation Flaws!
Michael S. Palmer
10 Revolutionary 'Corvette Firsts' Most People Don't Know
Joe Kucinski
5 Reasons to Upgrade to an LS6-Powered Corvette; 5 Reasons to Stay LT2
Michael S. Palmer
Safety Car
Joined: Dec 2007
Posts: 3,616
Likes: 5
From: Sandhills of North Carolina
OK. I honestly didn't really see any soot that I could tell. Only at the rear at the passenger side did I see a tiny bit of black powder around the top of the header, but it was barely enough to wipe your finger on. Maybe that's just enough to hear a difference? I can't tighten the bolts anymore, and I am not going to push it and break something.
I also am running straight pipes, aka no cats. That could also be a difference of sound as well.
Here's a little crappy video I took. Sorry if it's bobbing around a little.
I also am running straight pipes, aka no cats. That could also be a difference of sound as well.
Here's a little crappy video I took. Sorry if it's bobbing around a little.
Drifting
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 1,894
Likes: 3
From: Reading PA.
I run the Fel Pro Gaskets but before I install em put a bead of red permatex on both sides let it set up a bit then tighten em down. I also have the Totally Stainless locking header bolts and never had a problem. Pipe
Le Mans Master
Joined: May 2007
Posts: 8,448
Likes: 27
From: Valparaiso
i had a real bad (but pretty simple) problem with a leak , i used to have a ticking lifter
so i decided to swap them , after the swap , the tick was still there, it turned to be
that the gasket was somehow curved like a spoon and it was driving me crazy,im in a hurry so i did the gasket with a asbestos sheet that has a metal layer. it works great now ! its so annoying because it sounds like internal engine noises !!!
so i decided to swap them , after the swap , the tick was still there, it turned to be
that the gasket was somehow curved like a spoon and it was driving me crazy,im in a hurry so i did the gasket with a asbestos sheet that has a metal layer. it works great now ! its so annoying because it sounds like internal engine noises !!!
