Beware! Purchasing Pacesetter Exhaust Headers can result in double or even triple labor costs!

After reading forums and product reviews I opted to buy Pacesetter Exhaust Headers to replace my cracked exhaust manifolds on my 2004 Nissan Titan. This is apparently a common problem on these Titans and the estimate I got from the dealer for the repair was over $2,500! Part of the reason for the high repair cost was the labor involved in the job. They have to nearly remove the engine from the truck in order to replace these manifolds.

I received the headers from Pacesetter and scheduled the repair with the mechanic. He is an experienced mechanic (25+ years experience) and has been my only mechanic for the last 15 years. He worked for 16 hours to replace the manifolds only to find that when the engine was remounted into the truck, at the end of the process, and the pacesetter manifolds were bolted to my exhaust, that they did not fit! The flange at the end of the pacesetter manifolds was built at the wrong angle, causing the joint to remain open after bolting, so that the gasket did not even touch and the connection was left open. The pacesetter manifolds did not fit properly as you can see in the photos below.

Pacesetter did offer to replace the manifolds, though they refused to overnight them, and they refused to cover the labor costs incurred due to their faulty products. They DO NOT stand behind their product. If anyone would like to see their communication with me, you can private message me and I will send it to you.

In the end I am stuck with this: My mechanic has put 16 hours into this right now. If pacesetter sends me replacement manifolds, he will have to spend another 16 hours to replace the faulty ones with the new ones just to see if the new ones fit! If they don't fit, I'll have to buy different headers from a different company and the mechanic will spend 16 more hours to finally resolve the problem. Even if I decide to avoid the risk that all pacesetter manifolds are manufactured improperly, I still have to buy new manifolds from a different company and have the mechanic install them, doubling the labor cost for this repair!

If pacesetter was a reputable company, they would not expect the consumer to be on the hook for the costs incurred because their product was manufactured improperly. However, they have explicitly refused to stand behind their product and their company by making sure they sell a product that actually fits as advertised, as you can see by reading the emails from pacesetter by private messaging me.

In closing - stay away from Pacesetter Exhaust! Their exhaust manifolds do not fit, and they do not stand behind the product. You run the risk of having to pay twice or three times the labor that you were originally quoted by your mechanic! I have been without my truck for a week and it looks like at least another week will pas before I am driving it again, maybe more! I regret buying from pacsetter!

 

I just bought a set for my 89' F150 4x4 302, have them stripped, painted, and ready to install. I'll let everyone know how they go on. I chose paceSetter's because of the flange thickness and the reviews on SummitRacing and this site. I cannot say whether or not they stand behind their product untill they go on or fit or not.