While changing out my cracked exhaust manifold today, something I never expected happened! The two outboard bolts, the ones that hold the two manifolds together and are usually rusted solid, you guys know the ones. Well, they came apart without breaking!! A few shots of WD40 was all it took. I was fully expecting to fight them and had the propane torch out to get the broken pieces out. Anyway, got a chance to paint the block under the manifolds and painted the intake all nice and purdy. Went back together nice and easy. (Thanks for the artical on manifold installation). The only reworking I had to do was ream out the inboard hole that the new manifolds stud went through (the old manifold had a bolt the clamped the two together). I noticed that the exhaust manifold I put on (it originally came with the '73 engine in my car now) was way heavier than the one I took off (a '72 unit with the choke pocket that was on my original '72 engine). Anyway, thought I'd share my success and minor miracle with everybody. Oh, I HATE that dang washer, you know the one....

Congrats Eric! I have read in several places that over the years Chrysler kept adding more thickness and reinforcement ribs to slant exhaust manifolds in an effort to keep them from cracking and warping. The weight difference you discovered may be evidence of that. I have also heard a rumor the the exhaust manifolds installed on the Super Six had a 2 1/4 inch outlet pip and weighed nine pounds less. That rumor seems less likely to be true and I have yet to see it substantiated.

Anyway, sounds like you engine compartment is getting to look pretty spiffy!

Reed

I just pulled my super six stack, and it still has it's OEM exhaust manifold with it, it has the same reinforcing rib pattern and mass as the 1975 model I just cut up for a rear dutra dual mod. (Oddly they both look the same as the 1981 truck manifold I have 'just in case').

-D.Idiot

Both manifolds had the same reinforcing ribs cast into them, it seemed like the '73 manifold had more material on the bottem part of the manifold. I didn't compare them side to side as I was busy painting the intake, scraping old gasket from the head and other detail stuff. The crack in the '72 manifold was from the back of the heat stove area (through where the manifolds clamp together) toward the aft end of the Y, where the 3 runners flow together. It wasn't all the way through, but in time it would have caused problems. BTW, the manifold I installed today was the one I took the flapper valve out of because it was frozen and the flapper (for lack of a better term) was really flapping! I.E., the spot weld failed. I'll see how much of a pain it is to warm up when cooler whether gets here...though on the 400 I had in my Fury the valve was gone also and had no drivability problems with it. So hopefully it should be ok with a properly adjusted choke and the heat stove hooked up to the stock silenced air cleaner (run open element air cleaner in spring/summer months).

It's great when a plan comes together!

_________________
Official Cookie and Mater Tormentor.

I have never seen a 2 1/4" down pipe on a Super Six exhaust manifold and I have removed 5 of the things in the last 2 years, all with OEM exhaust pipes. On the otherhand you can go to the local Shucks and buy a 2 1/4" down pipe for a Dart Light, its listed in the Maramont catalog, special order.

Interested in gettin rid of that '81 manifold? convertin my '64 to a 2bbl and lookin to get a stock manifold to match the intake. let me know kevin_dolber@hotmail.com

Doober64

i had a similar miracle while trying to get a super six at a parts yard(they wanted $50), ran out of time and still had the exhaust pipe and kickdown linkage attached, went back later and they had smashed the whole thing