Stock heads...Will I benifit from 1 5/8 shortys or 1 1/2

latham83

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Hey I want to buy a pair of unequal length shortys but im not sure which size..JBA is the only GOOD brand that makes 1 1/2 but they are super expensive..i dunno if i wanna spend that much...ive been told that 1 5/8 wont give me the low end torque/hp that i want though..
i have granetelli maf, 70mm throttle and egr and im gonna have the whole gt-40 intake...with stock heads and stock internal engine...

 

91LX302

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#2

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I have 1 5/8 unequal lengths on stock heads and they are great for daily driving. They make take a little low end torque away but not very noticable, they make up for it on the high end anyway. Go with the 1 5/8's

 

ponyboy19

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I wouldn't waist my time with the 1 1/2's go right for the 1 5/8".

 

latham83

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really...see i dont wanna lose any low end hp or torque cause thats actually what im really looking for...
i dont care about high end....will they really make a noticeable dif. over the stock headers?? even at low end or no?

 

ponyboy19

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I would and have always used 1 5/8 equal length shortys. this is a good comprimise between unequal and long tubes. and don't be afraid of burn wires.. it's only and issue for the people that don't know how to route the plug wires. I have mac 1 5/8 unequals on my 92 that were on the car and i don't have and low end issues with that car. I wouldn't worry about the torque.. the gains will out weight the loses, although I don't think you will notice any loss.

 

latham83

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but everyone said that EQUAL length for the bitch they are to install..only have a 2-3 HP over UNEQUALS anyway?? i dont know about low end power..which is want i want...
so ur saying UNEQUALS will still give me a gain of throttle response/sound/hp/torque over my stocks right?

 

ponyboy19

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oh yeah unequals will give you a gain. the stockers are so pinched and crimped you won't have a problem getting gains.. Not sure your going to get throttle response and sound out of them but you'll gain some power. Make sure you have a realistic expectation of what your going to get. I have never really had much problems installing unequals but they are more time consuming and are more of a pain in the rear. once on there fine though. if you want and easy install go for the 1 5/8 unequal's. I would pick up a set of mac's and be done with it. I will say on my friends 92 with bbk's unequals they hit the steering shaft, and i have heard of others with bbk's doing the same. My mac unequals fit great.

 

cleanLX

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#8

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If you are worried about throttle response and performance under 3500rpm stick with the stock shorties, or, go with 1-1/2" long tubes.

 

latham83

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god dammit...im not installin shortys..and i dont wanna keep my crap stock....isnt there any shortys that will help me out low end and sound?? im confsued

 

88stangmangt

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had the problem with my long tube's hittin the steering shaft simply cure 3 hours motor mount install and tightend the mount bolts before fully leting the engine back down in the craddle. now no problems that is probally one of the most complained about issues i hear about header installs it is rubbing but no one checks the culprits the just say poor quality/design.

 

ponyboy19

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latham83 said:

god dammit...im not installin shortys..and i dont wanna keep my crap stock....isnt there any shortys that will help me out low end and sound?? im confsued

Click to expand...

listen, a set of 1 5/8 shortys will give you a boost in power but if you gain 8-10 hp and loose 3-4 ftlb of torque your not gonna feel it. your worring to much about loosing low end with the shorties.. Long tubes are the best for low end, equal length is the next then unequal but you have unequal crimped off stockers now. that's why i originally suggested a set of equal length shortys.. they are the middle ground both in performance and in the level of difficult of installing them, they are still much easier to install than long tubes and they will savage more low end. Headers are a tried and true bolt on that have proven worth wild time and time again. if your looking for that tough sound then get an off road h pipe and a set 2 chamber flowmasters, and if your really feeling wild cut the tail pipes off and install turn downs. IMO you will feel a lot more loss of torque with an off road h pipe by eliminating the cat's and back pressue then you will with a set of headers. but it's a worth wild trade off.. you can't have your cake and eat it too. relieving back pressure and increasing exhaust flow usually hurts torque to gain hp. but again the gains imo out weigh any losses.. install the headers and be done.

 

mike keirstead

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ANYTHING is better than stock. Long tubes are the best for power. Dont believe the myths about losing low end torque with LTs. I installed mine and went to the dyno after and gained 6 ft/lbs across the rpm range until 4000 and then it went up to 11 ft/lbs after 4000. I also gained almost 16 rwhp from 2500-5700. Never lost ANY power anywhere in the rpm range. Its all BS. If you are getting short tubes thats cool too, they will increase power across the board also. How ould you lose power over the stock crap. Its all BS.

AS far as installing longtubes.....unbolt the motor mounts from the bottom and jack the motor up with a bottle jack(or any other kind) about 6 inches and the longtubes will go in like butter. People say they hard to put. But to me they dont know what they are doing cause i did it less than 1 hour. Its easy when you lift the motor. You dont have to unbolt the steering or starter. Its easy as pie. I installed MAC LTs and they were supposed to be hard........hahahahhaha

 

latham83

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thanks guys..had longtubes in mind..but i dont htink i wanna spend the money for the other h-pipe and such..that was a bitch install..i dont wanna mess witht hat again..ill just go with shortys...bbk equal length?? i was gonna get unequal but equal will give me alittl more power..what bout all this bullsht about installing them thoug..whats so hard about it..and how do u avoid burning plug wires...also ishould get ceramic coated right

 

mike keirstead

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Equal length are NOT worth the hastle for maybe 2 HP. Whats 2 hp going to do for you. Changing plugs sucks, buying new wires sucks, tightening headers bolts on equals sucks........pretty much everything about equals suck. The power is VERY VERY minimal. I mean like max 2-3 hp. Whats that going to do. Nothing. You will be kicking yourself in the ass everytime you have to do ANYTHING that involves the equals cause they SUCK...but its your money.

 

mike keirstead

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LATHAM83----listen man....You have minmal mods. So ANY header you install will give you a gain across the board. Hands down. Long tubes are the best for power and sound but they are more expensive. Shortys are nice cause you dont have to change your current mid-pipe and they increase power a little also. We have that out of the way.

So moving on......if you are getting shortys why in hell would you take on the hassle of...burnt wires,hard to change plugs, hard to tighten header bolts for 2 HP. I am serious. I work on my friends car all the time for him cause he is not real good with cars and he has equals and i hate it when they need work......dont get me wrong every header requires tightening of the bolts now and then. But it is a hassle to even think about working on equals. It real sucks. Just get the unequal headers. They are so much nicer to work with. I had the BBK for 3 years and had no problems with clearance or working on them. Changing gaskets was a snap. tightening bolts was a snap. No burnt wires. Plugs were easy to change.......like i said its totally up to....but you did ask for our opinion and i am giving mine to fullest. DONT GET EQUALS. YOU WILL REGRET IT. GET LTs or UNEQUALS.

Equals vs unequal for power is very minimal. Maybe is some cases NONE.

 

mike keirstead

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#16

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If you want a HP INCREASE then get LTs. They sound awsome. The low end power increase you are looking for are not to be found in ANY header. They will not decrease power. They will not increase torque by much but they will. You are looking in the wrong place for a MAJOR power increase of any kind. Especially on a mild motor like yours.



P.S. SORRY FOR THE RAMBLING BUT I HATE EQUALS WITH A PASSION

 

latham83

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thanks guys i appreciate it..so i got both my intakes off, and the distributor..now..listen..i MIGHT GET HEADS....
whats everyones opinion...what im going to be buying is a gt-40 intake and frpp or bbk 1 5/8 shorties..probably leave stock cam for now...and i DONT wanna blow apart my car cause i have 165,000 but all cylinders have 155 compression them..dead on. and im not doing the rings, etc. right now they should be good..plus i dont wanna do it. so should i just leave the heads on theere ya think and not mess with em? or go ahead and get new ones..but they cant be crazy expensive.or crazy hp

 

mike keirstead

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#18

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you can get gt-40 p or gt-40 (cobra) for 200-300 and they work great.

 

mike keirstead

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#19

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leave on your stock heads until you get a new set. Gt-40 irons will give your 25-35 hp. It only gets better from there once you get into the aluminum heads, but they are big bucks. Gt-40 heads, Gt-40 intake and a good set of headers would be 40-50 flywheel hp. You would feel that in the seat of your pants.

 

latham83

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yea i dont wanna spend too much money on head..
200-300 fully assembled?? where do i buy those at??
which ones should i get again..just iron heads ya think..cause like i said..i dont wanna blow apart my car with all that milage...but i might wanna replace the heads with alittle more power if im already there dude