? about headers

Does putting headers on your car make it run hotter,heard this the other day just wanted to know if this is true. I want to make my flathead true dual's Thank's

 

If that were true, NO flathead Ford would have exhaust headers. It is not true, so they do.

 

No.

 

In a way it is true due to the fact the motor will run leaner. You will need to watch the plugs to be sure.

 

in theory, no, but here are a couple possible reasons why it may appear that way:

1. the increased flow of a set of headers will cause a lean condition in many engines previously tuned with restrictive manifolds. Lean running tends to be hot running, so from that you could have a car overheating after the addition of headers. Richening up the mixture would fix this though

2. headers, especially uncoated/unwrapped headers will cause far more heat in the engine bay (if you run a hood), so this will have the effect of you feeling more of a rush of heat when you open the hood, and could cause a minor change in actual running temperature because you're sucking in warmer air through the carb.

there are a couple of other ways I've heard suggested for headers and/or freeflowing exhaust to make a car appear to run hot, but I think they all relate back to the fact that you've significantly changed the engine as a "system" by opening up the exhaust end of things and changing the tuning pressures (in terms of waves within the exhaust) at a given RPM. This can all throw a previously well-tuned carb out of wack, but that's what a screwdriver and jet kit is for.

 

I had never heard that headers would make an engine run hotter until the other day at a cruise in. some guy walks up to my car and says that engine must run pretty hot. when he explain why I was just confused. The car runs cool all the time. No car I have ever had with header ran hot unless something else was wrong with it, like a stuck thermostat.