novae500

Didn't a new owners wagon have his ds benzworks headers rub ??

OCKlasse

I have been in this car and it is an absolute monster

DVC

It seems like the elliptical motion of the column has given just about everybody fits.

uberwag

Indeed I did for my E55 wagon. Clearance issues on the driver's side header and frame/heat shield so that it rubbed up against the frame whenever I turned to the right (would shaken the whole car, and ruined an O2 sensor with the vibration). See below for the picture of it.
I've been working with Serge on it (first to try and get it adjusted/re-bent locally, and now to have it exchanged/refunded), and I know he is aware of it. Situation isn't fully resolved yet, but I don't have any reason for folks to not do business with BenzWorks: well known in the community, they seem like up front guys and I'm sure they will make good with me (I'll of course post back if for some reason that doesn't happen). I'm sure these have been adjusted so that they don't rub like my set does.

Material/quality wise, fitment aside, they are tremendous headers. Very well made right up there with MBH I'm sure. Sounds great too, and though I didn't have before and after graphs, I made good power a stage 3 from BenzWorks (see graph in my build thread).

DVC

Uberwag- Thanks for the sharing the great build thread. That's some solid torque at 3k. Nothing can bring frustration like aftermarket sh*t, that's for sure.

cij911

Interesting...not sure which version headers those were or if they made changes, but mine do not rub at all....I also know Serge has a 100% warranty, so I'd just have him send you a new set.

Max.H

2.5 grand is a group buy price?? Where is the up side??

johnnyblaze

The upside is the 30-40 wheel horsepower..

But 2.5k for a set of long tube headers is a good deal.. As I said before you should look at the prices for the 63 platform before complaining

PACougar

I don't think comparing one really really over priced thing to another really over priced thing some how makes the cheaper one a good deal. Don't get me wrong I'm running MBH headers and mid section, but I would not even begin to claim they are a "good deal" regardless of the quality. The LTH's for Merc's are very expensive for what you get, that being said I do understand why they command the price they do, but that doesn't make it reasonable.

DVC

Very well said.

cij911

Well if you guys are really serious, get a group to commit and I am sure you can negotiate a better deal if you get a lot of people....The fact is, this market is ridiculously small, the headers will be hand made, and will thus not be cheap.

On the performance side, I absolutely LOVE the power the car has now. I can easily rotate the car in a turn and easily light the tires up driving in 2nd gear at any speed. Sound wise, the car sounds just awesome - stealth when cruising and a nice growl when WOT. I'd love to get the car to the track to see what it could do in the 1/4 mile, but I doubt that day will ever come.

ghettoroadster

BlueML99

These prices r kinda ridiculous for 30-40 more hp/tq but I guess the more hp your car comes w/ stock, the more u have to pay to add extra hp with mods. Comes w/ the territory and like the saying goes, u gotta pay to play lol

99lightning

i agree here is the bs part now roughly i looked in 05 3500 e55's produced just in that year for example a 04 cobra mustang there were like 5600 car produced so if you were to add 03 it would still be less then 03-06 run of e55s. Now just like the E55 not every 03-04 cobra owner will buy long tubes and prices for those cars can range 400-$1,200 for long tube headers. Also about 10 different companies at least make them for that car. so i wouldnt get caught up in its a small market its the fact that the ones that make our headers want to make a killing on it and are not in it for sake of horse power, drag racing. so im hoping my guy can make mine at the price im thinking they can be made for to put others out of commision. I just got my stall converter more than fair price built by a great company that loves power and racing.

shardul

iTrader: (1)

Well said!

DVC

+55K!

kipper215

I still think you are comparing apple and oranges. If you can get long tube headers for $400, where do you think they are made and what quality do you expect to get. The mustang is a mass produced mainstream car that's every where. If you think mods for AMG cars is expensive wait until you buy a Porsche. GTR mods are expensive too if you are looking to get real power. I challenge anyone to make long tube headers of the same material and quaility that benz works has and sale them for $1000.

Unless you have a factory in China that will do the work for pennies I can't see it happening. Last, comparing a mustang cobra to an AMG is out right silly. They are not in the same league and I think that is where the confusion comes from. There is a big difference in the cost of a new AMG vs. a new Ford cobra. People who had cobra's are use to cheap mods because it's a Ford with a mass market. Then when they move to an used AMG that's 7 to 10 years old and is fully depreciated they expect the parts to be cheap.

My point is that you need a fair comparison. When I had an EVO the parts were cheaper then Mercedes, but I was driving a Mitsubishi. If you were to compare the EVO to the Ford Cobra that would be a fair comparison. If you are to compare an AMG car to something it should be BMW or AUDI. See what mods costs for those cars then you will have a fair and realistic comparison.

cij911

Well this thread has deteriorated....

A few facts (IMHO) :
(1) Hand made, low volume headers will be more expensive than machine made headers, but that does not mean they are better....A while ago I questioned why the prices were so high....
(2) ALL MB parts are expensive IMHO (I have addressed this before)
(3) These Benzworks headers DO NOT rub and are made of high quality stainless steel with an uber thick flange
(4) I am sure we could get a better price if we get a good group of people, but for some reason there just appears to be a lot of "lookers", so I doubt this will happen
(5) I am super happy with my headers....

PACougar

I agree in practice what you're saying is what's going on, however just because a car costs more you think it should cost more to make a part for it? Don't get me wrong low volume and made in the USA definitely adds to the price, but I think you'll find that doesn't come close to making up the difference to the crazy prices some people are charging for these parts. Eurocharged for instance has 82mm TB kits for sale right now at 1350.00 yet others are selling the exact same thing for 1800-2000. It's the markup on Mercedes parts or Porsche parts or GTR parts that's ridiculous. All that being said, if you can charge it and people will pay for it more power to you!

99lightning

funny how they are made from stainless steel and the reason for the price is for what i said above bottom line. You keep looking how nice those headers are i have seen some nice headers too. Im sorry saying the headers do not rub like thats a big deal they shouldnt rub. I think a stall converter takes way more machine work to make etc and its priced more than fair. AS

99lightning

untill someone comes along and makes that part just as good with real data to back it up and for a cheaper price, thats fair too.

shardul

iTrader: (1)

I have seen people sell them for 800

PACougar

I've seen that too, but I haven't seen a company that wants to stay in business sell them that cheap. Plus if you purchase it from a company vs. a individual you get service, warranty, and so on.

shardul

iTrader: (1)

from what i have heard about the cost of parts the margin on the kit is good at 800.
you can probably get the mentioned services from a individual who sells them for profit

DVC

Actually, the '03/'04 Cobra will probably be at least as strong, if not higher resale, than the '03/'04 E55. I would say resale value should be a determining/influencing factor to vendor's pricing. Possibly more so than the original MSRP at this point.