BBK Long Tube install didnt go as planned but...

StangLou

Active Member
Jul 9, 2003
1,264
0
36
Holly Springs, NC
:shrug: ... I learned something today lol :D.

I learned that when you have a shop that can improvise, you can have a combo different from everyone else. Here is the scenario...

We start the L/T install at 2:30pm. Im like there is no way this will be done before 6pm even, we are going to be here at the shop all night. Before my car, the guy managed to put lowering springs on a '04 in 33 minutes. That the time he started to raise it on the lift, to when it was off the lift and in front of the shop... another guy and I were like :jaw: MAN THATS FAST!!! I still thought my install would take forever. Like I said, we start at 2:30 and this is with 2 people. Within an hour, my clutch is installed, and the stock midpipe is off :jaw:. 2 hours into it my K memeber and manifolds are off :jaw:. Finishing up the third hour, my L/T's are bolted on, K member is back in place, and front wheels are back on :jaw:. Now comes the fun part. You would think matching up the BBK L/T's with a BBK hi flow mid would be easy right??? WRONG!!! Apprently they sent the wrong midpipe for my combo :bang: . We improvise... we try 2 other hi flow mids laying around, no such luck.. still like an inch of space left. We try an off road BBK midpipe, still for the wrong year and no such luck. Ive attracted a few lookers with what all is going on and one guy suggests trying a Mac Prochamber since we were running out of options. Theres no way a Mac Prochamber is going to bolt to BBK L/T's right.... WRONG!!! It fit perfectly :shrug: :nice: . So we tighten it down and lower the car to start her up. I now have a nice crowd since no one thought the combo would match, they all want to hear what a BBK, Mac, Flowmaster combo sounds like. I hop in and start her up... let me tell ya... even after my BBK hi flow that fits comes in... Ill probably still buy the Prochamber just for fun :banana: :banana: :banana: . That combo almost gave me an eargasm on the ride home... and I havent even taken it past 4000rpm yet! I gotta wait 500 miles for my clutch to break in lol. My g/f thinks it feels a little slower at lower rpm. I nailed it in 2nd last night and let it go from 2000rpm-4250rpm. I thought it pulled pretty good, I could really feel it wanting to take off after 3750rpm but I had to cut it. I cant wait until I step on it after the break in and get to :spot: . I still need a good tune after all this. It took us until almost 7pm to get done and finally get everything matched up. Ill try to get it dyno'd and tuned this weekend or next Tues if I can put some decent miles on it. My .02c on the combo... I love it, its not to loud unless I want to get on it. At idle, its a bit deeper sounding. Giving it some throttle, it sings beautifully. My car just feels all around smoother with this combo, like there is a perfect power curve and Im in it all the way. Even gearing down, its just as smooth as silk. The clutch... well I LOVE the Spec Stage II so far. It has a nice bite and has a very streetable feel to it :nice: . All in all, I couldnt be happier... unless I was told I can floor it :D
 
StangLou said:
:shrug: ... I learned something today lol :D.

I learned that when you have a shop that can improvise, you can have a combo different from everyone else. Here is the scenario...

We start the L/T install at 2:30pm. Im like there is no way this will be done before 6pm even, we are going to be here at the shop all night. Before my car, the guy managed to put lowering springs on a '04 in 33 minutes. That the time he started to raise it on the lift, to when it was off the lift and in front of the shop... another guy and I were like :jaw: MAN THATS FAST!!! I still thought my install would take forever. Like I said, we start at 2:30 and this is with 2 people. Within an hour, my clutch is installed, and the stock midpipe is off :jaw:. 2 hours into it my K memeber and manifolds are off :jaw:. Finishing up the third hour, my L/T's are bolted on, K member is back in place, and front wheels are back on :jaw:. Now comes the fun part. You would think matching up the BBK L/T's with a BBK hi flow mid would be easy right??? WRONG!!! Apprently they sent the wrong midpipe for my combo :bang: . We improvise... we try 2 other hi flow mids laying around, no such luck.. still like an inch of space left. We try an off road BBK midpipe, still for the wrong year and no such luck. Ive attracted a few lookers with what all is going on and one guy suggests trying a Mac Prochamber since we were running out of options. Theres no way a Mac Prochamber is going to bolt to BBK L/T's right.... WRONG!!! It fit perfectly :shrug: :nice: . So we tighten it down and lower the car to start her up. I now have a nice crowd since no one thought the combo would match, they all want to hear what a BBK, Mac, Flowmaster combo sounds like. I hop in and start her up... let me tell ya... even after my BBK hi flow that fits comes in... Ill probably still buy the Prochamber just for fun :banana: :banana: :banana: . That combo almost gave me an eargasm on the ride home... and I havent even taken it past 4000rpm yet! I gotta wait 500 miles for my clutch to break in lol. My g/f thinks it feels a little slower at lower rpm. I nailed it in 2nd last night and let it go from 2000rpm-4250rpm. I thought it pulled pretty good, I could really feel it wanting to take off after 3750rpm but I had to cut it. I cant wait until I step on it after the break in and get to :spot: . I still need a good tune after all this. It took us until almost 7pm to get done and finally get everything matched up. Ill try to get it dyno'd and tuned this weekend or next Tues if I can put some decent miles on it. My .02c on the combo... I love it, its not to loud unless I want to get on it. At idle, its a bit deeper sounding. Giving it some throttle, it sings beautifully. My car just feels all around smoother with this combo, like there is a perfect power curve and Im in it all the way. Even gearing down, its just as smooth as silk. The clutch... well I LOVE the Spec Stage II so far. It has a nice bite and has a very streetable feel to it :nice: . All in all, I couldnt be happier... unless I was told I can floor it :D


:lol: GLAD THINGS WORKED OUT!! hey, it's ironic, I went through the SAME thing but opposite mods. started my LT/Midpipe install at around 4pm. in no time they had everything off, stock manifolds, k - member etc etc. So they finally install the LT's by about 6pm, they take my pro chamber, and what do ya know, Mac sent me a 3inch pro chamber instead of a 2.5 inch! :bang: :( ...

So Im simply depressed at that point. But one of the shop guys had his 98 cobra sitting out front that he wasn't driving and was parting out, sure enough, it had a Bassani O/R X-pipe on it and we took my car down from the lift, got his up on the lift, yanked off the Bassani, I gave him 120$ for it :D Fit good with the Mac LT's and have been happy ever since! and saved a few hundred bucks as well :nice:
 
lol very strange how things happen. If they couldnt work something out for me, the guy was like Ill let you drive on of the Cobras here home until we get your car running. After he said that I could have cared less how long it would have taken them to get something to fit :nice:
 
I'm having trouble with my Mac's like that. My Trubendz pipe is for Mac LT's and its like an inch too narrow on the header side. It bolted right up to the catback and the pass-side header, but doesn't fit on the driver's side.
 
Set me back a few pretty pennies thats for sure. I had been saving for a while, but here is the breakdown.

BBK L/T's hi temp coated $499
BBK hi flow catted mid $359
Spec Stage II 11" clutch ~$350
O2 extendors $35
Labor $450
Total $1700

They still owe me the BBK hi flow mid, that should go on around Fri am sometime I hope. I might owe them some $ for the Prochamber lol Im starting to like it :D.
 
Ive been going to that shop for a while now. They let me come in and hang out whenever I want to so I guess I am in pretty good with them. There are a few of us that have spent a good amount of money up there so its kinda like one of those you scratch my back and Ill scratch yours thing. I was expecting to see like 600+ for labor, when I saw what he was charging me I was like :banana: YOU GOT YOURSELF AN INSTALL!!!
 
StangLou said:
Set me back a few pretty pennies thats for sure. I had been saving for a while, but here is the breakdown.

BBK L/T's hi temp coated $499
BBK hi flow catted mid $359
Spec Stage II 11" clutch ~$350
O2 extendors $35
Labor $450
Total $1700

They still owe me the BBK hi flow mid, that should go on around Fri am sometime I hope. I might owe them some $ for the Prochamber lol Im starting to like it :D.

i bet it sounds freakin sweet. I know just prochamber + flowmaster catback sounds beatiful...but long tubes at the irresistable thump to the exhaust. Its so deep and throaty :).

If you stay with the prochamber you should save 150 bucks over the high flow catted waste of a pipe :)

kirkyg