HEADERS?

[hillbill]

I have a 05 GX 470 with a bunch of miles, 383,000 to be exact.
Still runs and drives great but once again it has developed an exhaust leak at the manifold, this makes the third go around on cracked manifolds so I'm contemplating going the header route this time instead, it needs new exhaust anyway .
It's my hunting rig and serves the purpose quite well so I plan to keep it for the rest of its /my life.

Mods so far are
lift / shocks
wheel bearings, seals tie rods, control arms etc.
E locker from a later low mile 4 runner
reworked the AC completely
new dash cover
bumper/ winch
I've had this rig for 20 years and don't plan to part with it any time soon, so I want to do the exhaust right.

 

[Rednexus]

Headers are a great mod. They really wake up a VVTI 2UZ-FE and substantially increase mid-range torque. The increase is even better if you pair them with a cat back exhaust.

I installed a set of Doug Thorley long-tubes on mine in 2021 and they have been great, other than the fact that the collector gaskets seem to fail yearly ($10 part from Lexus so I just replace them). Unfortunately, GX headers are no longer made by Doug Thorley. Brockett Built now appears to be offering them, but they are quite pricey. They are a worthwhile mod, but they are expensive and very difficult to install (20+ hours of wrenching for me).