Group-Buy: custom heddman headers (need 10)

Goin to take a tour of the factory tomorrow and will discuss this further with the owner. Here's the deal so far, if we have at least 10 people willing to pay up front they will make custom headers for our cars. We are talkin made on the USA real deal Riviera headers! No more gp or Bonneville stuff! So I ask how many want them? And what are we willing to pay?

All the ones I've been lookin at for grand prix and bpnnies are almost 600. What's your vote AA? I know you'd like to replace yours with some that are made just for our cars..... Lol

The headers that I (and most of us) have fit just fine IMO. With just a different trans dipstick tube and an O2 harness extension they fit great. Unless they can somehow make a better flowing header, I don't really see the point.
Not only that, but if they make only 10 sets, what happens if a header fails? Cracks? Someone gets into an accident and needs a replacement? The support for such a "custom" header would be nil.

Fabulous idea? Absolutely.
Realistic? Not really

My $.02

They stand behind them 100%. And once they make the first ones he said they would offer them thru kegs and summit racing. It's the initial research and design that cost so much. I think based on what I saw while there it would be a def improvement in flow and since they would be made off my 97 as the research car (basically stock compared to others) we would see a great product that requires no changes in dipsticks or o2 stuff. I'll take plenty of pics tomorrow and ask plenty of questions while I'm there so if anyone has a question they'd liked as let me know asap

I would be interested, but money is pretty tight right now. Would I be able to get them near the end of summer? And if you could get a final price, that would help a ton.

Quote :

What's your vote AA? I know you'd like to replace yours with some that are made just for our cars..... Lol

Haha. Not a fit for Riviera?. Replacing a $10 dipstick really isn't an inconvenience at all.

But this is great, really. Nice job setting up this opportunity for those Riviera owners looking for their first set of headers. As a happy owner of SLP headers, here's what I'm thinking: there's no $1000-up option.

That's what it would cost Heddman to even come close to matching the quality and fit that SLP offers, with such a low quantity order. ZZP sells their house brand stainless steel headers for $690. Assuming Heddman can match that price in stainless steel (doubt they can), they still would need to have them Jet-Hot ceramic coated inside and out, which runs another $300-400.

If the price were $1200-1500, I might be more interested, even though I don't have it to spend at the moment. SLP headers originally sold for $1200, before ZZP and INTENSE started offering the last sets for $900-ish. If mine were anywhere near wearing out after 7 Ohio winters, then maybe, but they're still like new. Maybe next year?

I'm not sure how I feel about this. It's not like we have no options for headers. We have ebay ones in a couple varieties in the $200-$400 range and then the zzp/wbs headers up in the $600-$700 region. (just off top of my head - I could be off) I think real pacesetters can still be bought too? If they are going to come along with something different/better, I'd be kinda interested but otherwise I don't see a demand. That being said if they came up with something that was more longtubesk and more equal length or something that's going to change the game sound-wise, I would be downright intrigued. Price would be less of a factor to me because it would be something special

my 2c
DO mention to them how there is room for improvement in the sound department of things as long as you're gonna be talking to 'em

If you were doing this for the 95's I would be all in....Otherwise I agree with AA SLP quality is top notch even if they do sound bad my dos pesos

Yeah really. Series 2 guys can make the bonnie grand ones work but us series 1 nuts are up the creek

setsuna57 wrote:

If you were doing this for the 95's I would be all in

9 more, comith fourth lol
I don't know why I didn't think of series 1 but that would make a lot of sense since there isn't much out there for headers

XS/speed daddy headers are FTW... /end thread.

I had custom headers made for my old cadillac motor. I bought the flanges that match the exhaust pipe from a cadillac specialty shop for $75, then went to an exhaust shop that specialized in mandrel bends and making headers. I spent about $400 start to finish then an extra $250 to have the Jet-Hot coated. So $650 for one-off completely custom headers. I was always disappointed with the price of the headers for the 3800s. Headers aren't that complicated.

And the SSAC/XS/whatever they are called today cheap stainless knockoff headers are good enough. It's a simple thing.

That said, I love Hedman and would support their company if I could, so if you can get them at a reasonalbe price through them do it.

Also the prices I said were from about 20 years ago. Labor has gone up since then.

Details from visit soon guys.

ok im up on a lil net now. heres the scoop. im going to come up with the initial r&d cost ( about 2500ish for the very first prototype set) the will be equal length design and chris said they will def tune the sound. btw this is heddmans race division i got to play with a few top fuel and nhra funny car sets of headers today!! their "street division is operated out of cali. im all go and dont care about show lol. anyway we are probly talkin no emissions (egr crap) and they will make a jig off my set. their new camaro headers produce 45whp gain over stock, not sayin we will see that but he will be gettin everything our 3800s can push out of them. they are starting the research into the engines now to find out where they make their power and where they can get the most out out of them. they are slammed right now with orders for their race headers and their slow season starts around october november, my busy season starts around the same time( perfect time to drop my car off) the initial turn around (time they will have my car) will be minimuim 2 week. after that chris said they will be able to do 5-10 a day once they have the jig made.

now the material. they dont like stainless 1. its overpriced ( you can only blow so much air through a straw weather its stainless, mild steel, carbon, etc they will all do the same) 2. you get more bang for the buck out of the steel 3. stainless turns blue!

and the part everyone is wondering the cost. this is an estimate only. hard prices cant be established until the r&d and first set is made
raw steel chris said would come in at around the 400 area
blackmax (his fav) would be about 150-200 more
and cerimic coated (btw this is actually a dipping process and they are cerimic coated inside and out) is 250-300 more than plain
chrome will also be available did not ask about the price tho
so all in all cerimic coated top of the line will be an estimated 700 a set

now for an interesting twist. i need to paint my car before these are released because it will be the cover car for them! also chris will make me an authorized distributor of them so people will be ordering direct from me for cheaper than what jegs and summit racing will be selling them for. thats right once made they will be distributed thru me, jegs and summit. chris said jegs and summit mark up about 30% of cost. no way i will do that. yes ill slowly make some back on these but 5-10% mark up is pushin it in my opinion.

ok question for the 95 series 1 guys whats the diffrence in the heads of my series 2 and the series 1s? if i ever find myself a 95 at the right price those will be made also.

so for the record this is a go and they will be available by dec of this year!

hope yall are excited about this as i am

Damn man if I had the money id help with the r and d

its no prob. i cant wait to get it all in action

If you get the ball rolling on the 95's I will buy another 95 just to put em on. the 95's are always for sale in TX and I miss having a running riv

If it comes up, suggest 1 3/4 primaries. The 3800 headers have come in varieties from 1 5/8 (possibly smaller than that even) all the way up to 1 7/8 which were the TOG extreme headers IIRC
I say 1 3/4 because the stock material is probably a worthwhile amount cheaper and more flexible to fit and I'm pretty certain that would be enough to match the largest practiced exhaust porting on our heads.
If they are going to end up using a mockup engine/car, I'd suggest to the S1 people if anyone has a spare S1 head, send it and they could do another jig or whatever for that. If they are using a full running car for their mockup then that might not work (not going to take apart the engine and bolt on different heads) but just thinking out loud..

they will be using my 97 cody

I really do wish you good luck with this, but I feel your market may be too small to be successful.