TRD Header questions

Couple question before I attempt this install. I cant seem to get ahold of an installation manual. Is there anything in there I need to know? Does anyone have one? Next question, where can I get a set of spring bolts? What size do I need? I bought the headers from ebay and the spring bolts were not included. Last question which joint or joints need the sring bolts?

 

All I can say is that install is a huge pain. You will have to cut the old exhaust out because it is crammed up by the firewall. Do a search on here, a member did this install a few years ago and made a thread on it.

 

I installed my own DT headers a few months back with my dad, and it took us a few hours. A few things to know before you do it are that your truck MUST be completely cooled down. Also it will tell you to tighten your bolts to a certain torque with a torque wrench, but once you start you will understand that it isn't really possible in such a tight space. Just do the best you can. Make sure you drive it around and after a few miles re-tighten the bolts. Then after a few weeks retighten them again and you should be good to go.

Another thing is that gear wrenches saved my ass (socket wrenches but they are hollow, google if not sure what they are). The bolts themselves are too long for regular sockets, and unless you have deep sockets that you can handle in the space, the gear wrenches were the way to go (at least they were for me). The only real issues that we had on the install were being able to jack it up high enough to work underneath the truck. We used another jack my buddy had, but you will need to work under the truck in order to reach some of the lower bolts with enough of a angle to tighten the bolts down.

Don't let this deter you from doing it though, I learned a lot about my truck in the process. Just make sure you have the patience to do this, and realize that if something does go wrong (i.e. you strip a bolt, which you definitely DO NOT want to do), then you can't just drive your truck to the shop, you have to get it towed.

Good luck and let me know if you have any questions. I took a ton of pics to do a "how to" thread on it but never got them up. If I have my camera here I will post them up for you.

 

BTW, is yours a V6 or I4?

 

I read some posts on different forums and everyone says its a pain to install but they love the results after its installed. I couldn't find any how to threads on this or any other site. I would love to see some pictures if you get a chance to post them. It's a v-6. Thanks for your help.

 

I have TRD headers on my truck. If you need me to take some pics I can. lol

I didn't install them though..

 

What's the hp/tq gain on a v6 for these? Keeping it emissions legal

 

There is no HP gain unless you have an SC kit. The headers should keep emissions legal.

 

Gotcha . Thanks.. I hate the power the cats take.. But I hate the egg smell more

 

I believe that.. On my other car I tried catless.. It dynod more top end whp, but lost a bit on low end trq.. Ended going with 200 cell race cats.. Nice compromise..

 

http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/performance-tuning/46370-startedon-my-headers.html

http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/performance-tuning/47331-noooo.html

http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/performance-tuning/47807-not-again.html

http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/performance-tuning/46785-finally-done.html

http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/performance-tuning/48463-its-all-fixed.html

http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/performance-tuning/49670-yippy.html

 

yup, I found those threads when I was considering buying some headers before they were discontinued. His story kinda put me off lol, way too much money and headache for the small gain they give.

 

yeah one guy lol. He used to have a sweet 1st gen double cab.

I agree, too many threads, it was a pain to find all of those again just now.

 

If anyone could put up some pictures of them installed that would be awesome!!

 

True story

 

i installed my trd headers this weekend with trd gaskets and its leaking in a few spots i think. i did the install with my shop foreman who has done them before on a 4runner. hes gunna take a look at them tonight to see what we can do about leaks. this sucks

 

I didin't have to cut anything apart when I removed the manifolds or piping from the original exhaust on my 3.4L. I was able to finagle the parts around till they came out. I can't remember for sure, but I think I unbolted the piping from the manifolds, so I wasn't dealing with the assembly as a whole.

The only issue I had was putting the passenger side header on. I just unbolted the passenger side engine mount and raised the engine just enough that I could get the header in place. I did use the TRD exhaust gaskets, but I put the copper RTV sealant on them before I put them together. If I remember correctly, the instructions said to put the sealant on the gaskets, then to let them set up before installing them. As others have said, I torqued what exhaust nuts I could for the headers and tightened the others by hand to what I thought was close to the others that were torqued with the torque wrench. I retorqued them several times after driving so many miles. I have never had a leak or issue to this day.

The big thing was getting the new flange welded onto the front of the cat. If you know a good welding shop, it is worth the money to have it welded. The shop where I took mine welded it on the inside of the flange, so you don't even see the weld. Also, any parts you need, should be available from the stealership--mounting hardware, gaskets, etc.

 

i had to go to a mufflershop to put on an aftermarket cat since my OE one didnt fit. We found that it was leaking from their welds, you could feel the exhuast on your hand while the engine was running cold.

So i took it back into the shop today to have them reweld it. They fixed that spot but now it seems like it is leaking from one of the y-pipe flanges. we didnt use any RTV sealant around the gaskets. We used some kind of black sticky glue type stuff to hold the gaskets in place while we put everything together.

So i got a couple different types of gaskets to try out tonight. One is shaped the same as the entire flange with holes for the bolts to go through and has a metal ring around the inside middle of it. the other is a plain donut style metal one. Hopefully one will work better than whats on it now

 

Finally got em installed took two days and a trip to my local custom exhaust shop to have em modify my catalytic converter and weld it up. I used factory gasket and Copper RTV silicone. Havent had any leaks and just retightened the bolts after about 100 miles or so. Everyone was right would never wanna do it again but I sure am happy with the results. I also bolted on a TRD catback. It got a nice low rumble to it now, and more power throughout.

 

exactly what gaskets did you use?