Ebay headers

[JDM88]

Anyone got one? I know for Subie's the borla replica headers were of better quality than the originals but on miata.net the general consensus tends to be negative (nothing out of the ordinary then for anything cheap ;) ).

[metalman]

They work but often need 'fitting' with a hammer. On EGR models sometimes things dont line up either. On some the O2 bung is in a crappy area. Sometimes they fit fine, its a crapshoot. :)
Some OBX stuff is okay, some doesnt fit right. The OBX catbacks for NAs seem good for the money. The Racing Beat header is probably the best fit and quality for a Miata. Jackson Racing is good too.

[JDM88]

Groovy. There were some worrying pictures of an ebay header where the pipe really didn't line up well with the flange.

[amaff]

Yeah I've seen some scary ugly e-bay knockoffs. I just stayed patient and bought a used RB 4-1 at a decent price off of the miata.net classifieds.

[JDM88]

Notice much of a difference?

[amaff]

From stock? lol yes. There's the small bump in peak power, but it really changes how its delivered. It's a very nice piece.

[MeFryRice]

Yeah I've seen some scary ugly e-bay knockoffs. I just stayed patient and bought a used RB 4-1 at a decent price off of the miata.net classifieds.


^^ I agree 100%. When it comes to performance parts, I strongly recommend saving up and buying quality parts instead of settling. If you going to go through the hassle of removing the OEM stuff, I'd do it right the first time knowing that you won't have an issues down the road.

[simontibbett]

I used to only use eBay headers on my cars, and NEVER had a problem with any. And for the record, NEVER had one crack. BUT my RB header is complete cracking hell.

[MeFryRice]

Some people getting lucky like that I guess.

[Sawyer]

^^ I agree 100%. When it comes to performance parts, I strongly recommend saving up and buying quality parts instead of settling. If you going to go through the hassle of removing the OEM stuff, I'd do it right the first time knowing that you won't have an issues down the road.


Agreed.
It seems like everyone on Mazda-speed.com has an Ebay intercooler etc. on their cars. As tempting as it is for the price, I'd rather save up and buy a quality part.

[JDM88]

Well I think it varies dramatically from part to part. Alot of things can be of equal quality when it's a complete ripoff from of another original design. The procedures involved aren't out of the ordinary and shouldn't be anything too challenging for the infamous Chinese factories.

[MeFryRice]

Actually, a lot of the parts these days are made in the same factories. It's up to the manufacturer to determine the quality of the item. Most of the off-name stuff just wants to make an easy profit and arn't looking for quality which would draw costs up.

[JDM88]

They also don't bother with expensive advertising campaigns which lead to lower prices.

[MeFryRice]

They also don't take the time to dyno their products before releasing them either so they have no clue if it's better or worse. This has been a big debate on the S2K boards as all the off brands have been post tuned and proved to hurt the powerband then help it.

[JDM88]

Really? That's surprising. In the Subaru community I recall the OBX EL header matched and surpassed some of the name brand ones. As for the ebay UL header, it was identical to the Borla header except it had better welds and never cracked!

[MeFryRice]

weird. I guess it varies depending on the car. I've read that alot of the eBay stuff cracks easily. :(

[Oblio]

anyone have any experience with an NB header on a vvt engine?

[thx712517]

No experience on the NB header for the VVT engine, other than taking the heat shield off and looking at it. If I was going to buy one, it would be the Racing Beat 4-1 offered by RB and Flyin' Miata. The eBay stuff is tempting considering how cheap it is, but the point has been made already that you're not sure if you'll actually make more horsepower or less, and quality is an issue. The part may be almost the same, but the customer treatment SHOULD be worlds different. I learned the hard way with my old Saturn, the cheapest way to go usually ends up being the most expensive. Trying to avoid that lesson with the Mazda.