Gibson headers

danco3636

danco3636

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GIBSON HEADERS - CERAMIC COATED (07-11 WRANGLER JK)

Any one install or run these?
Any feedback or noticeable performance difference, benefits or challenges?


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I haven't run them. But headers can be tricky. A lot of times they leak, don't fit right, and increase under hood temps. Why are you wanting to put these on?
 
danco3636 said:
Just wondering if they would help low range power and add a bit more overall performance.


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danco3636 said:
Wondering if they are worth the potential troubles you mentioned vs performance gains


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My experience with headers has been race applications and not jeeps. My experience has been a loss in low rpm gains, but great for midrange and higher speed passing performance. But with a lot of installation headaches too. On something like a Jeep, re-gearing is more practical bit comes at a cost, IMO.
 
I have jba's and aside from heat and the flange bolts coming loose I love em. Worth it for me... that being said I do have to tighten my flange bolts very frequently, for a while it was twice a week, now it's every couple weeks...


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danco3636 said:
GIBSON HEADERS - CERAMIC COATED (07-11 WRANGLER JK)

Any one install or run these?
Any feedback or noticeable performance difference, benefits or challenges?


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Click to expand...

I have a set i'll make you a deal.

but my experience on my 2010 3.8, I had them on for about a week and went back to stock. the ceramic coating didn't seem to do much to help with the heat.

My 3.8 wouldn't idle with them on, not sure if the ECU never adjusted for them or if they were just too hot and causing the plug to miss.

It did burn a couple of plug wires and instructions indicate having one of the wires custom made to angle away from the header tube (which I did but still ran rough)

by the time I installed enough heat shield to protect all the plastic and rubber under the hood if I needed to change plugs or other items around the headers I think it would've added a few extra hours of labor to remove the heat shielding and put it all back.

they put off a lot of heat, I could feel the heat coming out of the wheel well after parking and to open the hood required gloves - it was hot under there!

I've run headers on other engines with good results, but IMO the JK engine bay has no room to accommodate headers. I've look at and talked to guys with long tube headers , they seem to allow better room for the plugs but still put off a lot of heat. None could really determine if they got any better performance.

if you still want to try the Gibson's I'll make you a deal but no refunds no returns


I'm a lousy sales guy, i should've said they work great! good increase in low to mid-power, you can cook a 15lb turkey under the hood on the way to grandma's house, will make your engine feel better than new and you'll be attracting chicks up to a mile away!! :cheesy:
 
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I noticed a power difference. But I have no dyno proof. Run jba plug wires and route them the way jba says to in their header instructions (you can find online). Then pull those damn fender liners out and let that heat disperse.


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RockinAZJK said:
I noticed a power difference. But I have no dyno proof. Run jba plug wires and route them the way jba says to in their header instructions (you can find online). Then pull those damn fender liners out and let that heat disperse.


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Yeah I have vented fender liners and hood so this may help. Thanks for the tips.
No issues with them coming loose like others mentioned?

I'm going to have my shop install them if I do it and the guys over there are great so that may help.


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danco3636 said:
Yeah I have vented fender liners and hood so this may help. Thanks for the tips.
No issues with them coming loose like others mentioned?

I'm going to have my shop install them if I do it and the guys over there are great so that may help.


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They occasionally come loose at the flange bolts, but that's super easy for me to get to with no liners... also I didn't pre heat the flange bolts or apple the rtv that I was supposed to. So maybe that is my problem


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I installed JBA headers a few months ago when I replaced my catalytic converter and the rest of my worn out '07 exhaust. My stock headers were cracked on both banks...which is the reason I decided to upgrade.

Here is a picture of what came with the JBA headers.

IMG_0142.JPG
You get both header banks, two additional spark plug wires (the OEM ones would melt if re-used) and a mounting hardware kit. You do not get new gaskets for the headers to engine block. I had to order mine. Since I used new gaskets, I did not use high temperature RTV.

I can attest to the increased temps under the hood and my fear that it would start to damage components and spark plug wires (even following JBA's instructions). So I added heat resistant wire loom during the install. That helped but also began to melt near the headers even though it wasn't in contact with any metal. So I installed a heat shield wrap that I purchased off of amazon.Image1479530934.993548.jpg

Here is what it looks like on the roll.
Image1479530977.105602.jpg
I used the two inch width and it worked great. If you choose to use it...install it before you install your headers. I installed it with the headers already installed and it was a pain in the ass.

I did see slight performance gains, but I noticed an exhaust leak last night. So I need to tighten my flange bolts too (as previously mentioned).


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It's a jeep and doesn't go anywhere fast nor should it lol adding headers is a waste of money IMO and only really needed if you do a motor swap


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danco3636 said:
GIBSON HEADERS - CERAMIC COATED (07-11 WRANGLER JK)

Any one install or run these?
Any feedback or noticeable performance difference, benefits or challenges?
Click to expand...

If you're looking for more power, regearing is your best bet. The only people who will swear by headers, CAI's and tuners are guys who've chosen to buy them believing it will make a difference. Rarely do I ever see a guy willing to admit that he may have made a mistake. Of course, others do a great job of convincing themselves that they made the right choice and reaffirm it by going on the internet and telling guys like you that it's great. The biggest challenge is the significant greater amount of heat they put off.
 
I did forget to mention that my headers are wrapped, but they are not ceramic coating. I bought mine for same reason stated above. Both stock exhaust manifolds were cracked almost in half and everyone I know with a jk has had or currently has the same problem. So I went with headers to (hopefully) avoid that problem in the future. Is it an incredible horsepower gain? Not at all? Is it enough to tell a difference? Yes. Eddie may tell you there's no power gain at all, but that is completely incorrect. I am not saying nor have I ever said it was a huge difference, but you asked if there was a noticeable performance difference. The heat can be a challenge, I knew that going in. So I wrapped mine, and threw out my liners. Also threw one heat sleeve on one small wire as a precaution. Also did not read instructions seeing as I did. Or have them and didn't route my two jba plug wires correctly. So I ended up melting a stock wire and just went ahead and order the entire jba set, and yes I saw the slightest amount of difference there, although I would not recommend that just for more power....



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RockinAZJK said:
Yes. Eddie may tell you there's no power gain at all, but that is completely incorrect.
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So prove it. Post up dyno results that YOU have done showing the measurable power gains you now have. Anything less is just you going off of what you hear and believe you feel.
 
Well not all of us have a dyno around. I'm sure you can appreciate that. I live in a small town and getting someone to throw your vehicle on a dyno isn't cheap. Anyone that was in my Jeep before and after noticed a difference without my saying. So no I don't have graph proof, but hey, my word must mean nothing, right? He asked our opinions and thoughts, I gave them to him. If I need proof that it made a difference then please show proof that it makes no difference with my specific headers.


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