**UPDATE** - DT has made right - Buyer Beware - Doug Thorley Headers

[Marfy]

So Doug Thorley warranty does not cover this? What the hell IS covered?

If Doug Thorley and Jason say their headers are made of stainless steel, and then sell you this crap that dissolves under your hood, then someone may be commiting fraud.

How did you pay for the headers? Some Visa cards have a surprisingly long dispute period if fraud is involved. Well over a year, sometimes two. Get a copy of your agreement and and check. Some guys here may be able to successfully get a chargeback done by their card issuer if the construction or warranty of these Doug Thorley headers was misrepresented.

Good call. I bought these December 2016 and installed mid year 2017. I’m doubtful I’ll be able to take advantage of this but others should look. I will still check too.

 

[4RunnerAquasport]

Idk, my girlfriend's already had the exhaust tick when we bought it at 215k and I took the manifold off and where the driver's front tube mated to the flange was visibly cracked and her truck is stamped as 10/02 so was around the same production date as yours. Course it has a lot more miles than yours.

Hmmm curious. Toyota wouldn't have bolted the exhaust on at the port of entry right? That wouldn't make sense to me but, crazier things are done in the corporate world.
EDIT: Lol I'm just reachin for shit now, hoping mine don't crack soon.

 

[Cloud9]

I have one of the first production runs with an 03' (produced 12/02) German delivery V8, purchased by the US treasury dept. and then it was imported to the states in 04'.
At over 140K (PO put these 35s on her, so it could be over 150K) miles these factory headers are still sounding great and aren't cracked as far as I can tell.
It makes me wonder if they were, as Jason put it "tweeners", where they used parts off another vehicle in the beginning of the production run.
All I can hope for is they are of better quality than subsequent years.
Do the Lexus versions crack too?

I've heard that too. Maybe in your case that's true. I know mine failed at 118k. You can drive with them cracked but that can cause more issues the bigger the crack gets. Then when you have a hot date and you're embarrassed to pick her up and take an Uber instead of her hearing the worst sound in the world. Yes, I've been there! :eyebrows: With how expensive gas is and how many more miles I'm getting to a tank of gas I'm happy.

 

[Rannd]

I was actually going to buy these this week but not after seeing this post along with another person in the 4Runner group saying he spotted a leak on one of the welds.

I don't even care about performance, I want headers that will last another 200k. Tired of my factory headers leaking and hearing the ticking sound.

 

[Marfy]

I was actually going to buy these this week but not after seeing this post along with another person in the 4Runner group saying he spotted a leak on one of the welds.

I don't even care about performance, I want headers that will last another 200k. Tired of my factory headers leaking and hearing the ticking sound.

Check around too. I googled DT headers warranty and saw a couple other boards talking about some bad experiences. Their lifetime warranty does not seem to amount to anything. Same kind of deal, “we will recoat them”.

 

[rokr1292]

So the part that rusted is the air injection lines, as part of the secondary air injection system?

I see someone mention that the headers for earlier year 4th gen v8s dont have these lines, is that the only difference? could you feasibly use the older headers on a newer v8 that has the air injection pump bypassed/blocked off?

I've wondered if that system could be deleted for a while now, and this is just what I was thinking reading this thread.

 

[Az4runnin]

Where is Jason B? People need some answers on this.

 

[Cloud9]

You can see by the oxidation on the value cover that is turning white, that there is severe environmental issues. When aluminum oxidizes, it turns speckled white, instead of a rusty brown color like steel, each have their own reaction color. I'm talking about the Toyota™ valve cover, see the white on it? (aluminum valve cover) and the BOLTS ON IT are the same color as the rail, and those bolts sit higher up than the rail. This is SEVERE to see happening on the valve covers. Factory headers in this condition you'd go through multiple sets. Wherever you are currently located it's bad, very bad. My point is it's either serious road salt and the frame under your truck is probably worse. I would seriously look into POR-15 on the frame.

I said earlier I wasn't going to get into the how's and why's but I'm an engineer and have built my own headers when I was younger for diesel trucks and in race applications. This is definitely where you live.

 

[Marfy]

Bro - I don’t understand you. You work for DT? For the third time, you are missing the point completely. Let me simplify it for you: Look at the header, it looks completely fine. Look at the injection tube. It looks rusty as hell. The point is they sold a product that is not stainless steel fully and portrayed that it was. They cut corners and this is the result.

My original manifold was actually fine despite your claims of severe conditions.

You can see by the oxidation on the value cover that is turning white, that there is severe environmental issues. When aluminum oxidizes, it turns speckled white, instead of a rusty brown color like steel, each have their own reaction color. I'm talking about the Toyota™ valve cover, see the white on it? (aluminum valve cover) and the BOLTS ON IT are the same color as the rail, and those bolts sit higher up than the rail. This is SEVERE to see happening on the valve covers. Factory headers in this condition you'd go through multiple sets. Wherever you are currently located it's bad, very bad. My point is it's either serious road salt and the frame under your truck is probably worse. I would seriously look into POR-15 on the frame.

I said earlier I wasn't going to get into the how's and why's but I'm an engineer and have built my own headers when I was younger for diesel trucks and in race applications. This is definitely where you live.

 

[Cloud9]

Bro - I don't understand you? I think it's been asked where you live multiple times and you won't tell anyone. I'm trying to help you if you you answer the simple question above. I do recommend though with these trucks to do POR-15 to the frame. It's worth it if you plan on keeping your 4Runner a long time. I have NO more rust thanks do doing this 4 years ago.

 

[Marfy]

Yes we have salt on our roads in the winter, I’m not trying to hide where I live.

I know you’re an engineer so work with me here, but one simple question:

Why does the injection tube look different than the header material?

So the part that rusted is the air injection lines, as part of the secondary air injection system?

I see someone mention that the headers for earlier year 4th gen v8s dont have these lines, is that the only difference? could you feasibly use the older headers on a newer v8 that has the air injection pump bypassed/blocked off?

I've wondered if that system could be deleted for a while now, and this is just what I was thinking reading this thread.

Bro - I don't understand you? I think it's been asked where you live multiple times and you won't tell anyone. I'm trying to help you if you you answer the simple question above. I do recommend though with these trucks to do POR-15 to the frame. It's worth it if you plan on keeping your 4Runner a long time. I have NO more rust thanks do doing this 4 years ago.

 

[Inv4drZm]

Yeah guys just POR-15 the headers too. Problem solved.

 

[Seymore Butts]

The point isn't that the OP lives in a rust-prone region. I think his original complaint is that his Doug Thorley headers are severely rusted despite the fact that he was lead to believe they're made of stainless steel which resists rust to a greater degree than the lesser grade of steel he discovered was used in manufacturing this product.

His other complaint is that rust on his Doug Thorley headers that were purported to have been manufactured from stainless steel, is not covered by Doug Thorley's warranty.

I believe the OP is reasonable in his expectation that the Doug Thorley headers will resist rust to a greater degree than they have been able to so far as well as his expectation of successfully making a warranty claim with the manufacturer.

 

[Cloud9]

Yeah guys just POR-15 the headers too. Problem solved.

If only life were so simple :tea: One look at the valve covers tells me anything that's put on that truck is trouble. I can go snap a pic of mine if you want and I'm in DC, not the nicest place to live but I've seen some areas where the whole frame is gone. I still polish what I can see visible from when I open the engine just to keep it clean. That's something all should do occasionally so there is no build up.

 

[ac1617]

If only life were so simple :tea: One look at the valve covers tells me anything that's put on that truck is trouble. I can go snap a pic of mine if you want and I'm in DC, not the nicest place to live but I've seen some areas where the whole frame is gone. I still polish what I can see visible from when I open the engine just to keep it clean. That's something all should do occasionally so there is no build up.

Honestly man I don't know why are you still arguing and wearing Doug Thorley's coin purse as a chin. The fact of the matter is Doug Thorley advertises their headers are Stainless Steel (one of the BIGGEST reasons to use SS is because they are rust resistant) and OP along with others has shown that's NOT the case and very misleading. What relevance does OP living in salty roads have??? The headers are SUPPOSED TO BE STAINLESS STEEL AND NOT RUST AS THEY ADVERTISE.

You also typed a message to me which is impressive considering you have such a firm grasp on Doug Thorley's hot dog saying Toyota's Headers crack at 120-140k. Well considering my 2007 4runner has only 140k KMs on them I'd say they lasted pretty well... that's 12 years so far in rust country without issues. OP lives in the same conditions as I do and after 2 years those Doug Thorleys sure as hell don't look like they will last another 2.

Christ.
Do the math, Doug Thorley headers AREN'T cheaper than OEMs if they rust through after 4 years.

 

[Marfy]

If only life were so simple :tea: One look at the valve covers tells me anything that's put on that truck is trouble. I can go snap a pic of mine if you want and I'm in DC, not the nicest place to live but I've seen some areas where the whole frame is gone. I still polish what I can see visible from when I open the engine just to keep it clean. That's something all should do occasionally so there is no build up.

Fairly sure he was being sarcastic, engineer. Why haven’t you answered my question?

Also, yes, look at the terrible shape my rig is in. Anything you put on turns to shit. I wheel it through serious mud all the time... what else have you spewed?

 

[Cloud9]

They will crack eventually. Just like concrete. All concrete cracks, it's just when will it. I know mine and what my cousins 2008 did and the other guys I wheel with. It's a design issue with Toyota and we should all really be after Toyota here. They should be paying us for this issues. It's know if you read these forums that all V8 4th gen headers crack. Why isn't Toyota doing anything?

And what state are you in? You said salty area, WHICH? I don't know why you are so defensive on where you live??? After I wheel I wash it off with a foam brush and it looks brand new like yours I like the wheels. But the engine if you leave it go will look like crap.

 

[inscarguy]

Lol. How about a class action lawsuit against Doug thorley for fraud claiming they are completely coated and won't warranty their knowingly defective product.

Unfortunately you would have to prove they knew they were selling a defective product.

 

[Cloud9]

I'm going to sue TOYOTA since they made me spend all this money to buy new ones, twice! Toyota is a bastard. I really would have died getting these for the 3rd time. No Toyota didn't and wouldn't warranty the TWO sets of cracked headers I bought from them. That's a real lawsuit. These trucks are ticking time bombs but they are the last 4Runner V8! I'm happy with the better gas mileage though.

 

[Marfy]

Lol. How about a class action lawsuit against Doug thorley for fraud claiming they are completely coated and won't warranty their knowingly defective product.

Unfortunately you would have to prove they knew they were selling a defective product.

Product page lists stainless steel as material...