Thread: headers on 455 cutlass supreme??

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I was told that the frame is narrower on
s series cutlass's , and that headers would not fit the olds 455 in that car. Its a 72 cutlass supreme convert. The tech guy at summit said this to me. Why would gm change the front frame rails and crossmember on this , but other cutlass models, and 442 can run them . The only diff. in the frame should be extra body mounts for the verts and maybe extra boxing in the rear rails. Has anyone accomplished this or can I modify the crossmeber or rails by a simple notch or what?????

unlike some places in the u.s. the availibility of these cars at a boneyard isnt that great. I guess I could take a 4 hour one way trip just to "see" if theres a difference, but I cant be the only one to ever run into this question or problem.. I will call hooker, but then again your asking a salesman, not a builder. My question isnt about strictly the frame, but what others have done to correct this problem if its true.

Have you thought about custom made headers?

yeah custom made headers, would be pretty expensive , I would think. Thought about getting a cheap pair and trying to see how they would fit, and maybe modify a tube or two. But not to sure how that would affect the performance of them afterwards. Could go backwards instead of forwards with the idea. Know of a place that does custom headers and not just a local exhaust shop???

Hey, Dick Miller racing carries Kooks headers for 455 or 350. No they are not cheap...like $600 please let me know if ya find something less expensive. Thanks, paul

Sounds like pure-de-crap to me. I don't have an Olds, so I can't tell you first-hand from experience, but frame beefing should not make a difference when it comes to fitting headers on any GM A-body. I don't ever recall anybody having header fitting issues on covertible Chevelles as opposed to hardtops.

I think I would contact Hooker Headers in Ontario, California (I think they're still located there) and ask them what their take is on your Cutlass. Hooker makes a lot of headers for different cars and their quality and fit is legendary.

Headers are always harder to fit than stock exhaust manifolds. You can literally spend days putting a set on, depending on the space in the engine compartment. If you don't have headers now, and you do manage to fit a set to your Olds, I'll bet you'll be plenty pleased with the performance boost you'll get, not to mention the neat sounds they make under the hood.

Randy

Hey, evidently Olds mounted the engine at an offset in the Suprememmodel. Look in Summit racing and Jegs and you'll see most if nit all headers have an asterisk* sayin they will not fit supreme models lof ANY engine diplacement. Y'all got answers I am listening as I don't want to spend the $ for a set of Kooks headers at $600 a pop. Thanks, Paul

Hey, the Tech at Summit and Jegs said it was the Supreme models that the header DON't fit. Does not matter if it is a ragtop or not. The man does make a point that the ragtops do have a beefier frame so .....lets hear some feedback. Next I am lookin into Patriot headers as they custom build to specs. Paul

In this case I'll have to argue. I Built a 72 cutlass supreme 455, but it was a hardtop. The headers will not fit in stock incarnation, but it you bring them both in towards you motor about 1-1 1/2 inches and bend the head pipes to match they will clear without any heat issues. The clearance problems with the Supremes seems to lie more in the narrowing of the front frame. But it is doable. Just be sure to get stainless if you live in a rust prone area.