I'll soon be in the market for headers for my 2005 GMC Sierra 1500 SLE, 5.3L. I'm looking for a nice set but not necessarily the best. Which headers seem to perform the best and have least amount of problems with fit and finish?

The Flow-Tech LT ceramic coated headers were recommended by JEG's. I've never heard of them before but I haven't been around performance parts for many years.

When I was younger, Heddman and Hooker were the most popular.

 

Speed engineering.

 

X2, for price you can't beat em!!!

 

How well built are they finish-wise? I live in the country and have about a 1/2 mile of gravel road to my house and at some point, they will have mud on them. It's not bad keeping everything clean when it nice weather but during the winter can be a problem because the roads do get somewhat muddy in spots.

I don't want problems with them rusting out.

 

I searched the Speed Engineering website for 'X2' and didn't find anything pertaining to headers.

 

No, the X2 was "times two" for ezdaar's recommendation...sorry, Lol!!! Go to speed engineerings website and click on shop by vehicle and go to 99-13 trucks, they have 1 3/4 and 1 7/8.... Theyre polished stainless and really well made!!! Being that theyre stainless, i wouldnt worry about mud!! I typically spend three months a year in the mud, during hunting season, and i have a set wating to go on...

 

lol.... thanks, Wolftrk99. I just saw too that the headers are made out of 304 stainless, one of the better stainless series at corrosion resistance.

How much noticeable HP will I see between the 1 3/4 inch and 1 7/8 inch primary? Better sound?

 

Probably not much until you hit higher rpm levels... Saw a good comparison of headers somewhere abd difference was negligible

 

We will stand behind our 100% New York handcrafted systems for the life of your truck.

Coatings are often used on mild steel headers so they last more than 2 years, it's marketed as a feature, but in reality (when used on mild steel) it's really a requirement as they would start to pit and leak after a year on any truck that sees winter/salt conditions.

 

At $1500 a pair, I see how you can do that but my budget is considerably less. Thanks for chiming in, though.

The $240 headers are made of 304 stainless and, after 35 years as a machinist, I know that's pretty high when it comes to resistance to rust.