Do shorty headers finally make sense?
 

With all this RA manifold talk & lack of availability of these manifolds do shorty headers finally make sense? In the past the question has been headers or RA manifolds with the answer typically being on a street car to get the ram air manifolds but now that they have been unavailable from multiple sources for quite sometime maybe the shorty header finally makes sense?

Note, I do realize that the 2.25” RA’s from the Parts Place are readily available but there doesn’t seem to much interest in a 2.25” manifold, just throwing it out there for discussion.

Shorty headers have always made sense to me since they bridge that gap between the factory performance exh manifolds and a full header.

Shortys make great sense on the RH side.

No they don’t.

I’ve never seen any point in running shorty headers on any V8 car and especially a Pontiac that has decent factory manifolds available.

With shorty headers you end up with a header collector in an awkward location. Probably very few to choose from. I’ve never seen a Pontiac with them and that’s probably for a good reason.

The 2.25” exit RA manifolds are fine. If your performance level dictates headers then full length headers are the only kind that make sense.

I have never had shorty headers on any of my cars. Mostly because I have never seen a test performed by anyone that show they are worth trying. I agree also the outlet exit is awkward. I think they are well suited on old street rods with tight engine quarters and a straight front axle. Beyond that, if you want headers, get long tubes. If you want manifolds, the small outlet on RA manifolds doesn’t hurt that much, especially when pushing through a full exhaust system.

If you have never read it, here is a link to a Motortrend test for a 389 and 455 with a couple different exhaust options. Shorty’s were not impressive at all.

https://www.motortrend.com/how-to/hp...manifolds/amp/

2.5 in stock https://www.ramairrestoration.com/po...o-v8-2150.html

I’m not sure how accurate that site is. With all the negative comments of people waiting years for those from that vendor & him showing them in stock when they are not I would rather spend my money elsewhere personally.

Either way I will probably run my log manifolds on my build but I do think shorty’s might make sense for some, just trying to get some objective data from the group.

Can you even get Pontiac shorty headers these days ?
Most companies barely want to make us anything at all.

My experience has been if they say the product is in stock, it is in stock. The quality of the actual product is excellent and the owner is very nice. The down side is they are often NOT in stock and they seem to have only minimal control and knowledge when another batch will actually show up. So, if they say they ARE NOT in stock, it could indeed be a long, long time before you get them. I personally waited over a year for long branch D-port manifolds after waiting several years for round port ones that just never happened. That's the unfortunate part of the deal.

The only shorty header I am aware of for a traditional pontiac is the Sanderson headers. I briefly flirted with the idea of putting a set of these on when I was replacing the old 40+ year old 3 tube headers that were on my engine.

At the time, the long branch manifolds necessary on a first gen were not available.

By all accounts the Sanderson pieces are pretty nice. However they have small 1 5/8" primaries and the header collectors aren't really anywhere near the same location or inclination as standard factory or long branch manifolds. That means extra work to fit downtubes...they don't just bolt into place.

I ended up going with a set of Doug's longtubes and couldn't be happier with that decision. The Doug's fit very well up against the floor boards. In fact, with an under-floor muffler setup on a first gen, your midpipes are actually lower than the headers.

In my opinion, if you need the performance manifold, spend the money on a quality set of headers that fit the chassis well. You'll be ahead of the game in money compared to the aftermarket manifolds and likely on power as well, without sacrificing ground clearance.

Sanderson makes some with 1 5/8 primary tubes. Made in USA.

https://sandersonheaders.com/product...h_word=Pontiac

I bought a set from RARE recently and have them in my possession. There was a time he said he had an x eta but once they were listed in stock they were in fact. Good luck with whichever path you choose.

Clarified; A fella would have to be lacking factory manifolds or regular headers to go shorty, on the RH side only. I'd make my own RH header like so, before using a shorty;