How big/expensive of a welding job is this?

Nevermind...the posting disappeared. Damn.

In my area, I came across a pretty rare find for the Protege on craigslist.

Someone is selling a used Wagner shorty header for 20 bucks. Sweet, right?

Well, the seller details that the paint is flaking off (it really shows), and that the collector flange leaks and "needs to be welded". I have the ability to perhaps repair the paint, but I've no experience with welding, and would have to go to a custom shop for that.

Do any of you have experience with this sort of thing? It's a crazy low price, and I'm tempted to get it fixed up.

Probably just a crack in the header where the runners meet up. You may be able to get away with having it welded back together (maybe a 10 minute job). However, generally if the header or exhaust manifold is cracked then it usually means that it is junk. If you fix where the crack is now, chances are it's probably going to crack again somewhere else.

For the $20 it wouldn't hurt to try it, but save your stock one in the event that it doesn't work out.

pb4ugotobed said:

Probably just a crack in the header where the runners meet up. You may be able to get away with having it welded back together (maybe a 10 minute job). However, generally if the header or exhaust manifold is cracked then it usually means that it is junk. If you fix where the crack is now, chances are it's probably going to crack again somewhere else.

For the $20 it wouldn't hurt to try it, but save your stock one in the event that it doesn't work out.

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Sounds good, I'll definitely give it a go while keeping my old exhaust manifold somewhere in storage.