The stock exhaust manifold in my JCW is leaking beyond repair so I'm looking at header upgrades. I understand that this has been discussed thoroughly in the past, but it seems availability, quality, and price have changed significantly in recent years.

I'm planning to put a Milltek cat-back exhaust on, but have read that the Milltek header isn't a great option, especially for cars with ported heads. RMW seems to be highly regarded, however, their header is not in stock and I'm reading that a 4-2-1 would be ideal. That pretty much leaves me with Scorpion and Supersprint, the latter of which is too expensive. Is Scorpion still a good option? Will it cause a CEL?

 

Running a milltek on my 05 R53, with cat now, and non resonated milltek exhaust. The sound is amazing, and the milltek is the closest to stock type fitment. No cat, it was raspy and extremely loud down here in Florida with all the concrete overpasses and buildings. Have no experience with other brands mentioned.

 

Sorry that the RMW isn't available because it's for ported heads, is a work of art, doesn't throw codes because of the GESI cat and it fits. Well worth the wait if you can.

 

That is the dilemma for sure. Hopefully someone can chime in on if the Scorpion is inferior to the RMW, or if it's a good alternative to pair with the JCW head. It would be a bit cheaper too.

 

https://advancedautofab.com/p/r53raceheader/

This is my next header.
Brad

 

I installed an OBX header from SparkTec back on 2013 on my R56 due to a cracked pre cat. Header eliminated the pre cat, never set any codes and has been solid on the car for almost a decade. Car is always garaged and never sees bad weather. Very satisfied with the very price friendly header. Sound is good, no obnoxious droning or any bad sounds from it. Easy install, lined up perfectly & no mods needed for install. No idea if still available.

 

I went with the mister catted header, need a spacer on the rear o2 sensor to keep CEL away. I have a factory JCW, I ended up using a grinder and opened up all the ports on inlet to the header where it bolts to the head. Confirmed by using a gasket to ensure it sat in line with openings on head and then traced it onto the header. Ground it, flared it in, sanded and polished smooth. Been good for a while. I would have liked to have got the rmw as well but needed it asap.

 

Nice to know. I was test fitting my Milltek header this morning for placement of a wideband O2 sensor for my air/fuel ratio gauge. I bought it because I was impressed with the build quality on my Milltek catback exhaust system that I installed a couple of years ago. It will probably be another month or so before I actually get this header installed. I'm going to wrap it too.

 

I have a Xforce header on my track car. Build quality is good. It has been coated and wrapped.

 

Just saw this one. 4 into 2 into 1. Stainless. And different fwiw.

https://www.gravityperformance.co.uk...53-1-6l-00-06/

 

Fwiw I have their catback system (not header) and I can't recommend it. Fitment is terrible and I suspect made in China. Wish I didn't went for the cheap option, should have bought a Milltek.

 

One thing I'll say about the rmw, it's a tight fit but everything lined up with no fitting drama...

 

Following up on this, my mechanic just finished the install of a scorpion/orranje header. Build quality looks good, as was the fitment. No check engine lights so far. However, the car is now LOUD. Currently the cat-back is the original JCW exhaust with a few small holes a previous owner drilled in the mufflers, while I wait for a Milltek resonated cat-back to ship. I'm hoping that my previous leak in the exhaust manifold was so bad that now that it's fixed, so much more exhaust flow is reaching the drilled mufflers and that is causing the obnoxious exhaust drone. I can't imagine a header would normally increase the volume this much, so fingers crossed that the new Milltek quiets things down. I can barely hear the supercharger whine now!

 

If the header you got doesnt have a cat, then that’s why it is as loud as it is. I ran my milltek catless for a year, loud as $h!t and raspy. It was fine in Ohio and down on the dragon in TN/NC, but once I got down here in Fort Myers, all the concrete buildings and overpasses just made it too obnoxious and I couldn’t take it, threw a cat on it and I’m back to hearing the supercharger whine and able to talk to the wife while just cruising around town, and that’s with the non resonated milltek exhaust. From personal experience, a cat makes the biggest change in exhaust tone and loudness.

 

I'm running the cat that the scorpion header came with, but the rest of the exhaust is a leaky, rattling wreck. Will update here once the Milltek cat-back goes on. I'm also in Florida, so I can relate to the ever-increasing amount of concrete.