O.K. here is my concern. I have a 1966 with 1" lowering springs all around. I'm going to be dropping in a 454 and I need some headers that will fit without any mods to them. My concern is that they should dump out above the oil pan so I don't have clearance issues.The cross member is at 4 1/2 inches above the road so everything must tuck up nice and neat. What headers do you guys recommend? What about Block hugger headers? Thanks.

I'm running Sanderson 3/4 length headers on mine and even though it isn't on the road yet, everything seems like it will clear fine.

I'm running Sanderson 3/4 length headers on mine and even though it isn't on the road yet, everything seems like it will clear fine.

Thanks Tom. They are the ones I was looking at but I was not sure they would work.

Get a set of Doug's full length headers, don't waste your money on shorties because they're no better than stock manifolds. I have Doug's on my El Camino, which is significantly lower than a stock Elky, and there's plenty of ground clearance under the headers.

Here's the info from Summit:

DOU-D313 Ceramic Coated, $545.95
DOU-D322 Ceramic Coated, $655.95
DOU-D313-R Natural, $397.95
DOU-D322-R Natural, $499.95

Not sure about the 1" drop but I'm running Headman elite 68198 (summit PN) and they fit great. No dings, dents, etc. Grat fit and great price.........good luck

Yelcamino - any information to back up your claim would be great regarding sanderson headers or is it just IMO?

Could not disagree more...running 3/4 sandersons on my 66 chevelle with a built 496 and bagged. The 3/4 headers allow the down tubes to be custom bent were as the full length do not. The quality on sanderson is top notch as well.

If it were me, Sanderson all the way, my .02.....and it will put alot more the .02 in your pocket as they are less expensive than full length. :thumbsup:

Thanks for the info. I am going to look at the Sandersons and Dougs headers.
Jeff, I had issues with the headman's before but they are nice...great looking car !

Yelcamino - any information to back up your claim would be great regarding sanderson headers or is it just IMO?

Could not disagree more...running 3/4 sandersons on my 66 chevelle with a built 496 and bagged. The 3/4 headers allow the down tubes to be custom bent were as the full length do not. The quality on sanderson is top notch as well.

If it were me, Sanderson all the way, my .02.....and it will put alot more the .02 in your pocket as they are less expensive than full length. :thumbsup:

I've only had experience with one set of Sanderson 3/4 headers - they were on the 396 that was in my Chevelle when I got it. IMO, they were a pretty low quality pair of headers. The passenger side collector angled down toward the back of the engine but the driver side collector pointed right at the side of the oil pan. :confused: I ended up giving them away. But hey, to each their own I guess.

I'm very happy with the fit and finish of the Doug's on my Elky and like I said earlier, there's plenty of ground clearance. They tuck up to the floor nice and tight, the steering shaft doesn't touch, and I can easily get to all 8 spark plugs through the wheel wells.

I've only had experience with one set of Sanderson 3/4 headers - they were on the 396 that was in my Chevelle when I got it. IMO, they were a pretty low quality pair of headers. The passenger side collector angled down toward the back of the engine but the driver side collector pointed right at the side of the oil pan. :confused: I ended up giving them away. But hey, to each their own I guess.

I'm very happy with the fit and finish of the Doug's on my Elky and like I said earlier, there's plenty of ground clearance. They tuck up to the floor nice and tight, the steering shaft doesn't touch, and I can easily get to all 8 spark plugs through the wheel wells.

Herb,
I know the Eky has a 454 and is dropped some, but what type of starter are you running and does it have a scatter sheild? The Dougs Headers look great and I'm not afraid of the coin it takes to get them, I'm just trying to avoid one fitment problem leading to another as you well know and I don't want to dipple the tubes if at all possible. I'm planning on running this car hard next year, from the highway, to the 1/4 mile track and a road course so I want it to be right.

Herb,
I know the Eky has a 454 and is dropped some, but what type of starter are you running and does it have a scatter sheild? The Dougs Headers look great and I'm not afraid of the coin it takes to get them, I'm just trying to avoid one fitment problem leading to another as you well know and I don't want to dipple the tubes if at all possible. I'm planning on running this car hard next year, from the highway, to the 1/4 mile track and a road course so I want it to be right.

I had a mini GM starter but it quit on me so now it has a Summit mini starter (it was on the Chevelle's 396) and after trimming one corner of the aluminum mounting block on the starter it clears everything pretty good. I'm also running a Lakewood scattershield with no clearance issues. The only problem I ran into was my oil pan. It's a Moroso with the kick outs on both sides. I wasn't able to get the oil filter out between the header tubes and the pan kickout without loosening the header. Because I didn't want to mess with the header every time I changed the oil I installed a remote oil filter. If you have a non-kickout oil pan or have a circular cutout in the wing it won't be an issue for you.

If you're not in a big hurry, Saturday night or Sunday I can post some pics for you, just let me know what you want to see.

I had a mini GM starter but it quit on me so now it has a Summit mini starter (it was on the Chevelle's 396) and after trimming one corner of the aluminum mounting block on the starter it clears everything pretty good. I'm also running a Lakewood scattershield with no clearance issues. The only problem I ran into was my oil pan. It's a Moroso with the kick outs on both sides. I wasn't able to get the oil filter out between the header tubes and the pan kickout without loosening the header. Because I didn't want to mess with the header every time I changed the oil I installed a remote oil filter. If you have a non-kickout oil pan or have a circular cutout in the wing it won't be an issue for you.

If you're not in a big hurry, Saturday night or Sunday I can post some pics for you, just let me know what you want to see.

I'm not in a big hurry as the motor won't be here for a few weeks. I am very concerned about the clearance, the oil filter change and the starter as I tried headman's on the 396 with stock starter and it just would not work...headers sat on the starter hung too low and would have been dippled more than a 500 lbs ladys butt.
Sounds like my stock starter might be my only issue. Do you take off the front wheels when changing the plugs or is there room when there just off the ground? Any pics would be great. Thanks!