Headers for a V6

[SPD_FRK]

I'm not disagreeing with you, yes they flow better (hence more power most of the time) and there are gains but they aren't like the gains that happen from say a supercharger, maybe 10 whp at the absolute most is gained on a cali spec car, but with a shorty header, most of the gains are up top, there are some at the bottom end of the rpm range, but they aren't that much. In anycase, I can see some of the confusion you might have had from my first post, when I said 'they won't give you that high of a gain (if you had a FED spec car)', I should have clairify a bit more with the Cali spec manifolds, I have no actual hands on experence with them, but I should have given a bit more info on that they do flow even worse than the FED spec manifolds, so as I stated earlier, yes more gains are given on a cali spec car with headers

Foxbrand...you REALLY need to just stop posting at this point. Your information is far from accurate, or even helfup.You have 0 hands on with this stuff and have yet to really even dig into your own vehicle to start giving any type of advice on a subject such as this. It would be more reasonable for you to be the one asking for the information rather than giving any.

First, why the hell are you introducing an FI (Forced Induction) component to the power output equation here when ANYBODY knows FI drastically increases output regardless of stock exhaust or aftermarket...PERIOD. Go back to basic engine theory if you need to understand this. You simply cannot compare power gains from somebody installing aftermarket headers to somebody adding a supercharger or turbo.

Second, did you completely read and understand what was stated twice before about Cali Spec and Fed Spec manifolds!? Cali Spec Manifolds are CAST, Fed Spec are STAMPED steel. Both of these manifold designs are practicaly equal in design, and the design is heavily restrictive. These manifolds are installed on the same engine, so how is "A" engine going to gain more than "B" engine when the engines are the exact same?

Third, you definitely need to go back to engine basics and understand how long tube and short tube headers affect an engine's power increase on an N/A application. Short tube headers favor more low-end to mid-range increase as the basic design simply does not allow sufficient exhaust flow for high RPM. Long tube headers favor more mid-range to high-end power increase obviously because they have more length to allow easier exhaust flow at higher RPMs.



oakrdrs187- Yes you can tune the stock engine wth your stock ECU. You can tune your setup in an N/A application, or if you go to a turbo setup you can run one of our conversion harnesses to swap in the Evo VIII ECU and tune that way.




I don't mean to come across as an asshole here, but this is really aggrivating when improper information is being given out, especially when it comes from people with no experience with the subject. We all started learning at some point, as did I...but when you don't have experience, or know for sure...don't post. All you do is steer people in the wrong direction, along with everybody else that reads that information. It does nothing for that member, or the entire community.

[RedGalant2k1]

Well said, and thanks for the information SPD_FRK!

[beam514]

California will likely void your state inspection on these headers simply because they do not include any C.A.R.B. certifications or other documents you would need...even though they have the O2 bungs to re-install all 4 Cali spec O2 sensors....hard to get around that.

Tampering with or removing the stock catalytic converters is flat out illegal here. End of story. Even if one of your cats goes bad, you are not allowed to replace it with an aftermarket or high-flow cat, it must be of OEM fit and quality.

Just a clarification.

There are three reasons why I still haven't gone to headers yet:
1) it's very illegal and will get me quite a hefty fine
2) I live in a town where the old guys will complain about my purple wheels and loud exhaust
3) my dad is a hippie so it's in my blood

And like SPD_FRK said, if you have information that has absolutely no backing whatsoever, don't put it out there.

[Grieverr]

The kit is a bolt-on replacement from the header back to where the mid pipe connects, save the stock piping for future emissions testing. You should also note that these cheap headers have some issues with the exhaust stud flange holes not being 100% lined up. You can simply drill them out a little larger (maybe 1/8" or less honestly...don't remember for sure how much I did mine). They will fit just fine, and for the price...you really can't bitch too much about them

I can confirm what SPD_FRK said about the holes not being lined up, and yes it is an easy fix. The kit is better quality than I was expecting, welds are smoothed out, not polished, but no longer rough.

I've been taking pics and will post some after I am finished, did about half yesterday. Sprayed some PB on some stubborn nuts and called it a night.

I never even thought about the EGR valve and when I started taking things apart I saw it there in the rear exhaust manifold. Read through my Haynes manual and from what I can understand, if I just cover up the EGR port into the intake then I will
1)throw a code over the EGR not working correctly
2)engine might run a little hotter
3)nothing else will happen

Haynes talks about symptoms of a malfunctioning EGR, closed vs open valve, and it looks like only when the valve is stuck open that there would be a problem. Since capping this would effectively keep it in closed then I will have a CEL but that should be all? Can anyone confirm or correct my understanding here.

Thanks again for the help!

[M-Rod]

You can put a breather filter on the tube where air enters your egr system to prevent codes related to egr.

[mysticj]

Tampering with or removing the stock catalytic converters is flat out illegal here. End of story. Even if one of your cats goes bad, you are not allowed to replace it with an aftermarket or high-flow cat, it must be of OEM fit and quality.

Just a clarification.

There are three reasons why I still haven't gone to headers yet:
1) it's very illegal and will get me quite a hefty fine
2) I live in a town where the old guys will complain about my purple wheels and loud exhaust
3) my dad is a hippie so it's in my blood

And like SPD_FRK said, if you have information that has absolutely no backing whatsoever, don't put it out there.

Don't Magnaflow sales OE high flow cats?

[beam514]

I believe they do for some vehicles, but I'm pretty sure the fine print says they are not legal in California.

[Blue8g]

Wait.

Adrian, they say your exhaust is loud? WHAT THE I DON'T EVEN

[beam514]

Wait.

Adrian, they say your exhaust is loud? WHAT THE I DON'T EVEN

Not currently, no. Though I do get SOME looks from here and there, just because they don't expect it from a car like this. If a mustang drives by with a louder exhaust, it's perfectly okay. lol I'm saying if I get headers I would get a ticket pretty easily around here. My friend with a 3G just got one recently.

[Blue8g]

Oooo alright.

I was like, "Wait. He's got the street series Magnaflow, I feel like that'd sound like a ghost breathing after a light jog."

[oakrdrs187]

I believe they do for some vehicles, but I'm pretty sure the fine print says they are not legal in California.

They won't even ship FedSpec Cats to Cali. Sucks. You can do like a friend of mine who has a friend living in AZ. Just go pick it up after he receives it.

[Grieverr]

You can get a certain universal magnaflow cat in Cali, but only for the main cat, not the pre cats.

Follow-up - I do not recommend getting these headers. Apart from the holes not lining up where they bolt up to the engine, they also have many other defects.
-Nothing lines up well, you can get it to 'fit' but not in a good way
-It does not have clearance to go under the transmission, if there wasn't a flex joint right there (which needs to bend the opposite direction), this couldn't be done. As is it is solid against the bottom of the tranny, not ideal...
-The holes in the flanges are either too close to the welds or too close to the pipe. One out of three holes fits correctly, the others you can't fit a socket over, only the open end of a wrench. With the space limitation and lack of clearance it is very difficult to use wrenches in there, 1/6 turn at a time, was loads of fun
-The precat O2 sensor on the backside of the engine wouldn't reach the bung until I removed the connectors from the bracket that secures it, now it just reaches
-Small yet annoying additions to these issues, the stabilizer that wings out right before the main cat did not come with welded on nuts. The gaskets were not cut correctly, on one of them it blocked half the exhaust flow going into the header. Last the nuts and bolts provided for the flanges were different sizes, 16mm bolts with 14mm nuts. None of these were big issues, like I said they were just annoying.

Do yourselves a favor and go with a better quality set if you want to mod your car. This frustrated the hell out of me and I am just going to have to take it back off and send it back or eat the cost due to the non-clearance issue with under the tranny.

Grieverr

[oakrdrs187]

^^^That sucks. What about modifying it yourself?

[SPD_FRK]

You can get a certain universal magnaflow cat in Cali, but only for the main cat, not the pre cats.

Follow-up - I do not recommend getting these headers. Apart from the holes not lining up where they bolt up to the engine, they also have many other defects.
-Nothing lines up well, you can get it to 'fit' but not in a good way
-It does not have clearance to go under the transmission, if there wasn't a flex joint right there (which needs to bend the opposite direction), this couldn't be done. As is it is solid against the bottom of the tranny, not ideal...
-The holes in the flanges are either too close to the welds or too close to the pipe. One out of three holes fits correctly, the others you can't fit a socket over, only the open end of a wrench. With the space limitation and lack of clearance it is very difficult to use wrenches in there, 1/6 turn at a time, was loads of fun
-The precat O2 sensor on the backside of the engine wouldn't reach the bung until I removed the connectors from the bracket that secures it, now it just reaches
-Small yet annoying additions to these issues, the stabilizer that wings out right before the main cat did not come with welded on nuts. The gaskets were not cut correctly, on one of them it blocked half the exhaust flow going into the header. Last the nuts and bolts provided for the flanges were different sizes, 16mm bolts with 14mm nuts. None of these were big issues, like I said they were just annoying.

Do yourselves a favor and go with a better quality set if you want to mod your car. This frustrated the hell out of me and I am just going to have to take it back off and send it back or eat the cost due to the non-clearance issue with under the tranny.

Grieverr

Though some of these are valid issues, they are quite minor and easily dealt with.

What transmission are you using? Automatic or Manual? If you are running these on the 3.5L or 3.8L engine this issues is not a problem as you have to modify these to clear the oil pan on the engine anyways, thus why it was never an issue for me.

You pay under $200 for a set of short tubes that have minor issues, go look at the cost of the Megan Short tube headers (identical design in fact) and come to a conclusion financially. These are very inexpensive headers, and in comparison to others of identical design these are well worth the $200 or less spent for them. Granted you have to spend some wrench time, but you at least have a good chunk of money left in your wallet to do something else, or even fill your gas tank to enjoy some driving.

Long tubes will generally cost far more than short tubes, until something else pops up for more competitive pricing you will pay top dollar for that product.

[Grieverr]

Its a 2003 3.0L with an A/T. The more I thought about it the easier the issue is, was rather frustrated when I wrote last. I can increase the clearance by adding probably 2 flanges to act as spacers on the front of the engine and 1 on the backside for a relatively good fit. Not sure if that is a good thing, having multiple flanges back to back like a double stuff oreo cookie, figure as long as I have gaskets in between each I should be alright.

About the long vs short tubes, am I right in thinking that the shorts are more for normal style of driving and longs are more of a race application? Thought I read somewhere that you will lose low end torque with long tubes if you stay under 3krpms, I rarely go over 3500rpms so it seemed shorties would be best for how this car is driven.

[galant1983]

might be a dum question but do 3000gt headers fit the 8g? like these,

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/OBX-9...item5ae0f5867a

[mysticj]

^^^NO

[SPD_FRK]

Its a 2003 3.0L with an A/T. The more I thought about it the easier the issue is, was rather frustrated when I wrote last. I can increase the clearance by adding probably 2 flanges to act as spacers on the front of the engine and 1 on the backside for a relatively good fit. Not sure if that is a good thing, having multiple flanges back to back like a double stuff oreo cookie, figure as long as I have gaskets in between each I should be alright.

About the long vs short tubes, am I right in thinking that the shorts are more for normal style of driving and longs are more of a race application? Thought I read somewhere that you will lose low end torque with long tubes if you stay under 3krpms, I rarely go over 3500rpms so it seemed shorties would be best for how this car is driven.

Believe me I can relate to the initial frustration of the fitment quality. My main concern really was the quality of the tig welds on the kit, which were surprisingly well done.

The long tube designs do favor for more mid-high RPM results which is suited more towards racing applications. The shorties are definitely an ideal upgrade for your normal daily driver. The 3.0L and 3.5L engines don't make as much benefit with long tubes on them as the cylinder heads are practically identical and really don't acheive much air flow on the top end of the RPM range. Long tubes definitely favor the newer 3.8L engine as those cylinder heads flow exceptionally well, and they have tons of torque in stock form that you won't notice much low end power loss even.

might be a dum question but do 3000gt headers fit the 8g? like these,

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/OBX-9...item5ae0f5867a

The 3000GT manifolds have an oval shaped port whereas the Galant and Eclipse are rounded, you could machine the ports on the heads to match, but that requires more money spent for an already existing upgrade for the platform

[Dotd0t]

The megan racing headers i have on my car that i put on after my 3.5l swap are super quiet and im on stock exhaust :). All quiet till i give it gas and car is all engine noise and away we go haha :P! <3 7 mpg city 12.5 mpg highway.

Anyways to topic. if you want decent cheap then OBX and megan, and as for raspy? it all depends on setup also. My megans are quiet. If i have some one rev engine and i go by pipe i can hear alittle rasp but not much. OBX are same way.