Well I'm 17 yrs old and I own a 1997 Ford F150 4.6 V8 4X4, and I want to get some advise on a great exhaust for it. I want performance headers which lead into a high flow cat or dual cats if possible and out into dual pipes. I want loud and lots of power to it but i don't know the best combination of headers and cats and pipes so if someone would give me some insight that would be great. thanks!

 

I see you want noise and expect...performance... increases at the same time.
Well, first you have a.....truck......not a Mustang, so there is a big difference already in weight, areodynamics and camshafts.
If you value low end torque without constantly winding the engine, then the headers won't be the ticket nor the hi flow cats.
These items will lose in the torque department.
For noise, they will be fine and get you attention.
The factory didn't leave to much on the table when they designed the stock exhaust system for these engines and truck use.
Am I making my point without insulting you?
Sorry I have to use tricks to keep the board from dropping whole words.

 

I know i'm not going to get tons of power but it would be nice to get a little more. the main reeason i want it is for the sound and if it would save me a little gas in the long run. i'm also thinking of lifting it and putting a power chip in it, and for now the exhaust is just part of my project.

 

good luck man. but i also feel your thinking of starting out the wrong way.

the first way is to save your cash till you can do it correctly the first time. ask tons of ?'s in the areas, esp. the performance 4.6 and 5.4 area.exhaust wise you don't need headers or high flow cats. the stock parts already there work very well and frankly flow very well. they are no where near the old ones from the late 70's when they came out or what many old wifes tales say thet are. this is a street truck not a all out race truck right? behind the cat there are loads of companies selling great products. start by checking out the list of this web sites sponsers for what is offered. check to see if they offer fte memembers a discount some sure do.
flow master , gibson and magniflow make some real nice sounding v8 kits.

chip wise you have a 97 thats a obd2 motor and trans, there again are many great ones. sctflash has about the best as it's custom written tunes help get out the best in power esp. when written by a near to you dealer in CO. try www.sctflash.com type in your zip code to find a dealer near by where you live and work with them.

gearing would be on my list of need to do's. maybe up to 4:10's and stronger diff carrier. higher if your planing big tires. saving for a good autotrans rebuild if the truck has lots of miles on it is another . for all out power. out of a gas motor forget the bling bling and save for a super charger kit. that is what really helps a gas motor shine.

good luck and ask ?'s ok?

 

I say go for the headers and high flow cats. Its a start somewhere. It all depends too what you want first. If you want sound first go with those items. A programer is also a good first choice. Do like what captchas said though and ask lots of questions. You will get lots of differing opinions, but maybe you will see where you want to go.

 

thats great thanks for the info. the truck is actually a manual, which i really like. this truck is not a race truck at all, i just want a nice offroader that also is great for the street. i already put a complete k&n air intake on it and i'm very happy with it. i'm going to college soon and it's a 400 mile trip that i have to make every 2 months and so i want the better gas mileage. so you guys dont think it would really be worth spending the money on headers? and i have heard great things from glass packs and cherry bombs, any info on those? i really want the loud rumble sound out of it. i pretty much want to be able to turn some heads when people hear me coming. i've been looking at the flowmaster 40 seires but i'm not sure. i guess i'm pretty picky with the truck but i just want the best out there, the best bang for my buck i guess.

 

Thanks, espark. You got the intension without become insulted.
Yes the motor responds to the same things any motor reponds to but the difference is again the weight and the limited breathing that is part of the design for a truck.
The displacements are really small for the weight they have to move.
4.6L is only 281 cu/in. Smaller than an old Mustang 289 of about 1967+/-.
It is a big reason the fuel mileage is not so good when compared to a light car.
Air filters and intake tracts are not a worthwhile help either for the cost.
Many get excited at that statement but here is the basis of it.
If the driver is looking for fuel mileage, he would tend to use a light throttle opening while trying to attain that better mileage.
In so doing, the air entering the engine is solely controlled by that throttle body opening amount. This puts an absolute control limit on the amount of airflow the engine is allowed to injest.
From that point of view, one can see that the air filter or combined intake tract before the throttle body cannot add any 'more' air no matter if the filter were taken completely out, trying to gain airflow under those conditions.
Just something I thought you might find interesting to think about.
Enjoy you ride and good luck.
Sorry if some words are missing. The board drops some in translation and is hard to fix without a lot of fooling around.

 

i think we all are on the same track here. by asking loads of ?'s before you spend .you in the long run can get what your after the first time. not like the days before the computer and web sites such a this great one. not like when it was all pay ,hit and miss like when i was growing up and raceing in the early 1960's.

enjoy school then worry about playing durning the summer down time. remember the costs of books and think of helping mom and dad pay for your schooling.

 

I don't think a glasspack will really bring on a rumbly tone for you....the way to go is with the Magnaflow cat back system. Increased throttle response, nice low tone, easy installation, definitely worth the investment. http://motorhaven.autoanything.com/exhausts-mufflers/60A1835A0A0.aspx?kc=MOTORH

The coupon code FTEDEAL will also get you $20 off orders $199 or more. Magnaflows aren't part of this deal but most of our products are. Something to keep in mind for other mods.

 

i'm not hearing too good of reviews for the flowmaster 40, most people are saying it is too quite and i really want the loud sound even at idle but i'm thinking the only way that i'm going to be able to do that is by taking off my cats. but i dont want to have my obd2 system pulling trouble codes. i'm kinda confused on what to do now. there is just so many options

 

You got it. The cats quiet about 90% of the exhaust noise.
Your just going to raise hell with the noise anyway! Right?
Put some controllable cut outs ahead of the cats. That should do it for sure..
Best of both worlds until the fuzz looks at the truck.

 

ok so i have been doing a lot of research lately and i kinda know what i want to do. pacesetter or headman headers into high flow cats into flowmaster 40 series dual, i am still open to ideas but i think this will give me everything i am looking for. what do you guys think?

 

Personally,
I would probably go with the headmans and make sure that you do have some cut outs put in while your at it, just make sure they make them easily accesible so when you want even more noise you can have it on tap. As far as fuel economy goes, look into some kind of power programmer that lets you choose between performace and economy that way you can go either way.
-Chris

 

i went to super trucks usa here where i live and i was talking to them about hedman headers to high flow cats to dual pipes that curve out right in front of the tire with no muffler. what do you guys think about that one

 

If i had the headers and the high flow cats, that would make the flowmaster louder right? Because i'm scared that the flowmaster will be too quiet for me. i wish i could hear how it sounds with a flowmaster. any ideas