Hey all, I recently aquired a 55 Fairlane 2 door club sedan. It has a 302 and a c-4 transmission. Does anyone know if there is a set of headers that are close to fitting these cars? I have an aluminum head 331 I want to put in it and don't want to run manifolds on it. If anyone can help it will be appreciated.
A set of Tri Y headers work too but you might have to bent them a little depending on if you are using a standard trans , a column 3 speed shifter or an auto trans . I have a 55 Fairlane that I am dropping in a 302 w/C4 / I like the sound of the Tri Y headers too . They do sound different that standard 4 into 1 style headers . I prefer the lone tube header because I want to be able to run open headers when I want to . I am installing a "Y" adapter that runs off a cable so I can open and close the headers whenever I want to raise some Hell ! There are also electric ones but I can't afford those . They are around $400 to $500 a set ! compared to the cable style ones that open and close like a hand choke in you car . They are less than $100 for a pair of 2 . This is just my personal opinion to give you some alternatives to the shorty header . I am just a long tube header guy but if I didn't already have the Tri Y long tube headers I would have bought the Hedman shorty headers for sure . Jim
I am not a shorty header person myself either. I know the 331 is going to like to be able to breathe. I bought the Tri Y patriot headers from summit and test fitted on the 302 now in the car. They fit very nicely! Supposed to get the 331 from the machine shop next week. I can't wait to get it all put back together and drive it this summer.
Same ones I have that were bought for a Mustang restoration I did last summer . The headers were suppose to fit a 4 speed car , well...yea right ! Had to use a hammer to put a dent in the one tube before the collector so I didn't matter . Then he changes his mind that he wants it to look stock . So I got the headers and gave him a set of 65 / 289 exhaust manifolds for the headers . So the header were free to me because the manifolds came off a locked up 289 that I sold for $50 and sold the timing cover off the engine to the same damn guy 2 months before that for $25 . Now I got the engine and trans ,C4 , for $25 ! Then sold the C4 as a core for another $50 , yep to the same guy ! Did real good off that locked up 289 ! I also really like the sound of Tri Y headers too ! They have a different sound that regular headers do . Jim
yellowcoupe: How did the collector work out with the frame slot where the exhaust has to go through? I put shorty headers on my 56 because I figured the odds of the collector being in the right spot would be slim.
Hey fordsbyjay, the collectors are a pretty good ways off. I haven't decided what I will do there yet. I will either have to go under the crossmember (which I don't worry about doing to mine because I'm not going to lower it anytime soon anyway), cut and put a mandrel bend in the headers to come out right, or shorten the headers. Hope this helps you out.
With mine I am hoping to do some changes and run them down like fender well headers the I am installing a "Y" so I can open the headers up anything I want to . Then run a pipe over to where the stock exhaust goes . If not I will keep the headers on the inside like stock and cut them off after the 2 to 1 connections and get some mandrel bent tubes and make my own to the original set up and then have a "Y" adapter in between the collector and the original exhaust then on back . Will see when I get that far . Hope to have the engine ready to run the end of the week end if things go right this week ! But we all know how plans go , right ? Jim
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