I've got the smog legal ( the AIR tubes mysteriously disappeared ) Hedmans. Started the install today. Not too bad. Dropped the old exhaust, removed the driver's manifold, got the driver's header in and bolted up ( loctite is your friend ) and made a spacer so I could use the stock stud and remount the bracket that went to the AC.

Noticed there are 3 brackets for the power steering pump ( V-belt TPI car )
- one mounts to the front of the head
- another mounts to block below the 1st bracket
- lastly the one that gives another pivot point for the ps pump, and mounts on the front 2 exhaust bolts.

Anybody ever ditched the AC bracket? Looks like the one pivot pint and 2 mountings points would be enough to keep the pump snug. I've modded the AC bracket before on 80's GM V-belt cars by just cutting the back leg off ( towards rear of car ) and mounting the bracket normally, using a spacer to make up the difference in width between the header manifold ). The last one I did, I don't remember seeing the lower bracket for the pump, just the other 2. It seemed fine.

GM does make a non AC TPI F-Body PS bracket, and it's only $14, but I was too lazy to order it since I plan on going serpentine. ( I can dig the pt# up if needed ). It looks identical to the 2nd bracket already on my car.

Anybody else run across this?


I mean, it's no big deal to install the AC bracket, but it's ugly with NO AC installed.

As far as header fit, they fit nicely once they are in there. I could have slid the driver's header in from below, but I would have needed to remove the oil filter, and I just did an oil change...I'm lazy I guess........I ended up just popping the steering shaft out at both ends, massaging the brake lines a bit, and removing the hard fuel lines. The header slid right in from the front side that way.

Plug access is actually better than the manifold. Although I can't get a full, uncut socket on #5, it was reachable by hand, so snugging it down with a 5/8 box end wrench wasn't a big deal. Seems to be plenty of room between the tubes and the plug boots too.

I spent about 2.5 hours on it from jacking it up to dropping the old exhaust, taking the cat off etc, to having the header bolted up ( loose ). Came back out after lunch, spent another 2 hours making a spacer, loctiting the bolts, sipping from my whiskey and coke to "keep me warm". 45 minutes of that was messing with the pipe I decided to "engineer" into a spacer for the ps bracket. Also had to extend the O2 sensor wire.

Tomorrow I'm gonna get an early start, wrap up the driver's side, and then drop the pass manifold and get the header on and bolt up the Y-pipe. It's gonna sound good driving with the open Y-pipe to the exhaust shop.


Later