Drivers side header early vs late?

[2buicks]

Hi,

Is there any difference on the driver's side header between the '84-'85 and the '86-'87? ie. Can they be interchanged?

Greg

 

[83ttypecooled]

Hi,
They can not be interchanged. The attachment to the crossover is different. They look similar, but it will not fit.

 

[2buicks]

Thanks. I had a few kicking around here and they all looked the same. I will lOOk more closely!:frown:

 

[blown okie]

I have an 84-85 DS header & crossover on my car with the later pass. side cold air header... seems to be working just fine.. no leaks at all... master cotton even told me to do it like this..just my 2 cents

 

[2buicks]

Hmmm..see here's the thing....I have an early hot-air Buick with a cracked D/S header (big surprise), and I have a new motor that is going in. I was going to get an old (good) set of headers I have around, thermal coated. I have had both early and late cars and I have about 1/2 dozen of these things but they all look the same...? No numbers etc.

 

[83ttypecooled]

Hi,
I must defer to someone who has done it, but I could have sworn the two model years' headers wouldn't interchange. Something new always comes up.

 

[ATEURV8]

My 83 is still sportin its original Carb setup drivers side header on the 87 stuff in the car! The only diffence I found was the 83 header had a heat sheild on it for the carb preheat.But your results may vary!:biggrin:

 

[Anthony P]

Hi Greg,
the '84-'85 hot air driver's side header will fit on the '86-'87 turbo engine. All four years of production used the same heads (casting ...8445). The only difference is that the '86-'87 header had the U-shaped heat shields between the primaries. The '84-'85 version did not have these.

Also, the oil dipstick was located between the 1-3 primaries on the '84-'85 engine while it was between the 3-5 primaries on the '86-'87 version.

Depending what you choose to use, you would have to either remove the heat shield or use the later dipstick and tube with your combination all the while making sure the dip stick does not interfere with your MAF pipe to the throttle body. If you remove the heat shields from between the primaries, make sure you get some spark plug wire booties (insulators) for added protection of the boots. I'll attach a couple of pics for you.

Left pic => NOS '85 LM9 hot air engine. Right pic => NOS '86 LC2 engine

 

[noslo6]

Yes, agreed with the others. I have used an 84-85 header on my 87 and it worked perfectly .

 

[2buicks]

Hi Greg,
the '84-'85 hot air driver's side header will fit on the '86-'87 turbo engine. All four years of production used the same heads (casting ...8445). The only difference is that the '86-'87 header had the U-shaped heat shields between the primaries. The '84-'85 version did not have these.

Also, the oil dipstick was located between the 1-3 primaries on the '84-'85 engine while it was between the 3-5 primaries on the '86-'87 version.

Depending what you choose to use, you would have to either remove the heat shield or use the later dipstick and tube with your combination all the while making sure the dip stick does not interfere with your MAF pipe to the throttle body. If you remove the heat shields from between the primaries, make sure you get some spark plug wire booties (insulators) for added protection of the boots. I'll attach a couple of pics for you.

Left pic => NOS '85 LM9 hot air engine. Right pic => NOS '86 LC2 engine

Thanks! Great info!
Greg:smile:

 

[turbofish38]

And I think the only other difference is the size of the crossover pipe mounting bolts. The HA header uses M6 and the late 86-87 uses M8. My 86 GN with a build date of 2/86 has the tiny M6 bolts and it's darn near impossible to keep the pipe tightened down enough to keep it from leaking.
I also think the drivers side from the 83 carb turbo is the same with the only difference being the heat shield.