Ok, I figured I would give you all a report on my custom made performance y-pipe on my '97.

The story started when I began noticing a performance loss. The loss was not evident at low rpm or low load, in fact the van still seemed to have oo get up and go, until you get really into it and tried to pass someone or accelerate really hard, then it would just fall on its face.

To fuel pump had already been replaced, and the fuel filter, ruling out fuel starvation as a possibility, and the fact that everything is running well overall and that the tailpipe was clean suggested that the engine is properly tuned.

I began noticing a subtle rattle noise, which I though was a loose heat shield. So I took it to the shop to investigate the rattle. Turns out the heat shields are already gone. So a few hard bangs on the cat revealed that the sound was coming from inside. Close inspection also revealed a dent in the front cat where something had struck it pretty hard, probably a rock or a piece of tire.

We removed the cat to inspect it internally, which confirmed the diagnosis.





I had wanted to have a better y-pipe on an Aerostar, anyone who looks at the stock one would agree it is pretty shoddy, with little attention to flow. It is build cheaply, with lots of turbulence and restrictions. So I took this chance to proceed with a nice performance upgrade.



I was originally going to unbolt the stock y-pipe from the manifolds, but the bolts were being difficult, so we left the stock pipe and flanges on and cut them a ways back and connected the new pipe to them.





I had them add a double braid flex pipe to the crossover. This would serve dual purposes. It would help us line up the y-pipe, and it would allow for expansion as the exhaust heats up, and would limit the transfer of twisting motion to the rest of the exhaust.

We used a preformed component y and cut a sensor port into it and welded it in place

We then bent the new pipe that lead into the y and flattened the sides where they meet and welded them together. Not shown in the picture, we ground some of the rough edges off.









We selected Eastern Tru-Performance brand converters to replace the stock ones. Several reasons for this. These are real high performance cats. Lots of other companies sell ordinary 400 cpi ceramic cats as high performance cats, but its a lie. Real performance cats use lower density substrate, and have much higher precious metal loadings to compensate for the lost surface area caused by the lower density. The result is a cat that flows much better than stock or regular aftermarket, without losing efficiency or setting catalyst codes. Because the loadings are higher too, the longevity of the cats is improved. Other reasons for this choice include the compact size, the resistance to physical damage, and the resistance to heat.

I opted to use two cats for several reasons. Since the van is a 1997, it meets OBD-II guidelines, and it would be illegal to eliminate any cats from the new setup. Since there were two cats from the factory, to be strictly legal, I would need to install two replacements. By running the same number of cats as stock, I keep my chances of having a catalyst efficiency issue to an absolute minimum. And by running two cats, I can keep the tone of the exhaust better under control. If I ran just one cat, it would make the van a lot louder, possibly louder than I would want. As it is, these cats are already MUCH louder than stock. I don't like my vehicles too be too loud.





The new setup allowed for better placement of the O2 sensors, they are now much easier to access for future replacement.

We did not fully weld the cats to the y-pipe because some of the welds on the cats would be difficult to get too. Instead we tacked the parts together and then removed them to get better access. The result is cleaner welds and less risk of leaks.







Once that was done, we welded everything into place and then painted all the welds with a high temp paint to prevent rust.

I already had a performance catback and the larger flex pipe assembly. The entire exhaust system is now a high performance setup. The only way I could really do better it to port the head, intake, and run headers. At that point it would be diminishing returns for the investment, this was an upgrade that became practical for me since the cat had disintegrated anyway. The headpipes are 2", which then join into a single 2.25" system. It remains 2.25" for the rest of the system.

Anyway, while I have no real numbers to post, this is not just an improvement from having a plugged cat, this van is just plain quick. I do have other well tuned Aerostars to compare with. I'm pretty sure this is faster than the Aerostang, I will have to have a race one of these days.

This was completed on Monday, I have since clocked over 500 miles, pulled a trailer, and hauled two 1 ton loads. This has plenty or power to haul it, and with my suspension upgrades, it handles everything very well. I actually mostly hauled the heavy stuff inside the van, all that was in the trailer was a couple 4x4x4 ******* boxes and pallets. I prefer keeping the real load enclosed since it is valuable.

 

Ok, so here is a video of me making some noise. The van is actually quite mellow and tame sounding when you drive normally.

1997 Ford Aerostar 4.0L AWD with WickedFlow Exhaust and Tru-Performance Cats - YouTube

 

Yeeaaahhh.. it looks great, sounds like hell , i try to imagine how the throttle do respond with this custom made upgrade - be carefull not to take off of the ramp. awesome!

Have to replace the entire exhaust system too until next march, when it comes to inspection. Because the system leaks almost anywhere (swiss cheese) and the cats are restricted and are rattling terrible. I hope to get little better performance after, even when ordering an ordinary replacement. Eastern Tru-Performance - need to check first if they do deliver to Germany.

cooool

 

Eastern does have German certifications. I'm pretty sure they are certified in all EU nations.

 

Sounds wild I'm envious..Nice job...

 

I just can leave well enough alone. I just have to be unique, mostly just to spite everyone and prove it can be done.

Ever seen a dual exhaust on an Aerostar? Well now you can say you have.

I opted to keep the WickedFlow muffler I already had, several reasons, one its the right configuration, not buying another saves money, and this setup has better sound control and more appropriate pipe sizes than running a dual outlet. And it fits better too.







The crossover to the passenger side was a challenge. I opted to cross over the spare tire as opposed to messing with crossing above the differential This resolves some potential clearance issues, and keeps away from the brake lines. Last thing I want to do is add more heat to the diff or brakes. The challenge was that we have to go up over the axle, then drop down under a cross member, then go back up and over the spare. This is a lot of tight bends in close proximity to each other.



I wanted to bring the tailpipes out the back. I have a hitch, so I choose a route that does not interfere with that, plus I have upgraded suspension parts, so we stayed clear of those too. Wasn't a challenge from that standpoint, but I couldn't run directly under the frame rails, and instead had to come a bit closer to the corners. Overall came out in the right place.

Everything was made to come back out, so some things were just tacked enough to stay together. The parts were then all pulled back off so that a pattern could be made, allowing the shop to make a duplicate if needed.

It also gave me an opportunity to show what the pipework really looks like



I have not had a chance to take a picture of the finished work because it got dark, plus I want video, and my phone does not do that great of sound, I need a real camera for that. It sounds awesome. Its not too loud, but it does have a bit more punch than it did, and as you can tell in my last video, it already had a great sound. I don't have my exhaust tips yet either. Those will really dress it up nicely.

The van is quiet while cruising, rumbles on acceleration. A bit more sound at idle, but no real drone inside the van. Maybe a touch of rumble inside at about 30 mph, but not excessive. Once you go faster or slower than that, the drone goes away, but its really not bad or too loud to begin with. The key to controlling the drone, which is more common and problematic on dual tailpipes is a good muffler at controlling the responsible frequencies at the right RPM, and not using overly large pipe. Also using adequate hangars helps, too few hangers allows the pipe to start vibrating and resonating. Mine is louder than most setups would be because I have the high flow cats, but as a I said, it is a tame and smooth sound when I want it to be, not inappropriate. It makes a little bit of a statement about the Aerostar. It says I am a family friendly kinda vehicle, easy to get along with, good with kids. But don't mess with me or underestimate me. I've got a reasonably meaty engine, I can haul, I can tow, I can definitely get around, I am not made for the slow lane, I am a truck in disguise.

 

LOL, now my EGR light is on. I'll bet the plugged cat caused the problems. Pulling a P0401 which from what I can tell is almost always the DPFE sensor. Plugged EGR passages is really unlikely because of the way the EGR tubes run on this and how little carbon is present in any part of my engine I have looked at. There is virtually none anywhere in the exhaust system, so why would there be any in the EGR. The valve seems to work properly, no drivability issues either. I thing the backpressure cause excessive exhaust gas to flow through the EGR, and exposed the DPFE to too much heat and pressure and damaged it. Got a new Motorcraft one on order through RockAuto Auto Parts.