ROG100

Correct if they were current - according to the Maltese Falcon they were designed and tooled prior to 1985. So non-recurring has long been recovered and as they require no further design input costs should be driven down. Parts are now just a "cash cow" and it should have been easy to compete with an offshore supplier - just protecting your large profit margin does not work in the modern World.

James Bailey

Roger some people have a place of business , overhead, employees who get paid etc. and given that the minimum wage in China is about $250 per month it would be real hard to compete with that unless you are willing to live on $250 a month..

danglerb

I just now looked, ebay listing is up $399 plus $45 shipping.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/OBX-Steel-Ex...-/111269538875

I hope you can find a way to not let them get away with it.

simos

Roger, why don't you ask them make Devek level II style headers. Haven't seen any dimensions but I assume they are with1,58" primaries.
The harmonic lenghts of primaries may also be better tuned. The collector should end up to 2,5" tubing, there is no point to use 1,58" primaries with 3" exhaust tubes;IMHO.

ROG100

Simos,
I have no connection with OBX apart from they sell a very nice product for a reasonable amount of money and it is readily available. The other product mentioned in this thread (Maltese Falcon) I have never seen offered for sale anywhere apart from used.

Jim,
Not the case anymore my friend - the increase in the cost of living in China has been dramatic to say the least - the growth of the middle class and the demand for higher wages has put China on a path to be a level playing field with the USA and others an a short order. We will not be able to use the excuse of low wages much longer. We need to wake up and smell the coffee and meet competition head on. If the MSDS headers are as good as you say they are why are they not readily for sale?? I have sold about 20+ sets of the OBX headers because they are available, of good quality, good customer service, fast delivery and my customers love them.

ROG100

I believe we are all looking at the wrong product - the original poster is referring to the later 32v headers for the 87 to 95 cars. All I have seen available is the 16v version for the 78 to 86 16v cars.

riq79

How hard is it to make the obx headers fit to a 16 valve engine?

ROG100

The OBX headers available on eBay are made for the 16v cars - so plug and paly.

Lizard928

I can understand both sides of this coin.

And I'm afraid that I have to agree with Roger on this. You can still sell a USA/Canada made product for more than a Chinese made product. But when the USA product is an extra nearly $200, and is made of an inferior material, the logic simply is not there.
The OBX are made from a nice Stainless steel. The MSDS headers are made from Mild Steel.
This means that not only do you save $200 on the OBX, they will likely never need to be replaced.
Where as the MSDS might light 5-10 years, maybe longer with a really good ceramic coating.

If you look at the stock exhaust systems on our cars, especially the 85+ cars. They are all stainless, and still in fantastic shape nearly 30 years later. Show me a mild steel system last that long!

I'm sure some would justify the additional costs if MSDS updated the design with a proper merge collector, and possibly even a V-band option. But the stock flanges on them are horrible IMHO.

Ducman82

i cut the flanges of my MSDS, and added v bands.

DKWalser

So, the MSDS and OBX headers are not the same design and are not made from the same materials? That makes it hard to see how the OBX headers could be said to be a knock-off of MSDS' product. Given that, it appears that MSDS' intellectual property claims could not have been valid. That doesn't mean that threats of legal action over such claims wouldn't persuade a rational person to leave a small market rather than incur the costs of defending meritless claims. If that's what's happened here (please notice the subjunctive), its dirty pool.

Note: I'm not saying that's what's happened here. Nor am I suggesting that MSDS did not and does not believe that it had a legitimate beef with OBX. I've known plenty of people who genuinely believed they were in the right when they were not. (That's one of the reasons we have courts to adjudicate such matters. Too often, even parties acting in good faith cannot see the truth of their own position.)

Five-8

So these obx headers will fit my '82 and fit nicely onto my y pipe? Do i have that right?

Thanks,

Edit:Nevermind..i see the answer above

danglerb

The basic problem is that I doubt world wide much more than 100 sets of new headers of any brand were sold for the 928, 16v and 32v combined. Add to that early and stock motors maybe should be 1 5/8 or smaller and only modified higher hp motors running 1 3/4 or larger. Calif smog laws don't help either.

I'd be a little surprised to find that the cheapest place to make headers sold in the USA (including transport) isn't Temecula Calif, where most of the bigger brands are made.

Vilhuer

I think '87-95 versions are better than MSDS. Have seen several sets of both of them. Both could be made much better but I suspect there isn't enough demand to pay for it.

Ducman82

Looks like the overall shape, bends etc are the same. the materials and collector flange are the only difference.