Hey guys, Just wanted to let ya'll know how the header swap was. took about 1 1/2 hours. pretty straight forward. move the heat shield out of the way by taking the two 13 mm bolts from the head. remove the two 15 mm bolts that joins the cat flange to the beginning of the exhuast flange. Take the eight 10 mm bolts from the factory header off the head. Pull the factory header out. the way I did it was I wiggled it towards the ground and put the left side of the top of the header as far to the left as possible and get the right side out first. The bottom side of the header just drops to the ground. Putting it in was the exact opposite. I did learn when you put the header in do not mount the bottom two 15 mm to the flanges just yet. bolt it up but leave quite a bit of wiggle room then bolt the eight 10 mm bolts to the head. Over all it was a very good experience. My dad was extremely impressed with the construction and fitment of Jan's header. I think its pretty impressive to build a header by hand it it bolt up perfectly, and I mean perfectly. If any of you guys are on the fence about it... do it. I'm a broke college student so I'm very frugal but this was a very good move I do not regret at all. Worth every penny. It changed the sound, which I don't mind. It sound lower and has a grumble to it now, it sounds pretty mean. At idle you can't even tell but when you get on it pretty good it sounds awesome. Not overbearing... just right and I'm not the kind of guy that I want you to hear me from a mile away... this header is sweet. The only mods I've made to my car in the video is k&n Filter in the factory air box and colder NGK iridium plugs and the header. Other than that completely stock. Hope this helps in some decision making. I completely stand behind Jan now. In the video I rev to 1000 rmps. 2000 rmps. 3000 rmps. 4000 rmps. then I go to about 5500 I think. *cold start* Hope this helps! thanks Jan! [ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mV-WmwnYcoY]My r53 Mini Cooper s with RMW header and k&n filter - YouTube[/ame]
The reason why your RMW header install went so easy is ALL RMW headers are hand made in the USA (CA) and welded on a gig so everyone is made to the exact same hight quatity specs. Congrats on you install and you will be enjoying that sound for years to come.
The RMW header comes with a Random Technology Super High Flow catalytic converter. There's no need to sacrifice gobs of horsepower to meet emissions requirements. Random SHF converters meet EPA and California ARB requirements and feature special flow enhancing construction that minimizes mechanical restriction for maximum horsepower. Random Technology Catalytic Converters can be added to vehicles that were not originally equipped with a catalytic converter, or installed as replacements when required on late model emissions-controlled cars and pickup trucks.
I used a floor jack and 4 jack stands. I got it pretty high off the ground. I lt made it a lot easier to put the new header in