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Well I installed my JBA headers (EGR Driver Side) which I purchased at Underdog-Performance (great shipping and got them on sale for $399.99!) and here is my review.
First Glance -
Looking at the headers they had a nice thick feel to them, felt really well built and came with the proper gaskets and enough bolts. I found it funny that the instructions were for a 4.3L Chubby engine. It didnt matter though its all the same and I didnt need instructions anyway. They were well wrapped in the box they came in and arrived in top shape.
Install -
Installing the headers was quite easy and took about a little over an hour and a half. I am a mechanic however so for other people it might be another story. I used a hoist to lift my truck and took the front two tires off to gain easier access which helped greatly. Anyone can do this themselves however, it will just take longer if you dont have air tools or a hoist. (I would guess about 4-6 hours without.) The gaskets and everything lined up easy enough and only ran into one problem with the EGR tube (from the header to the EGR) wasnt in the correct position. I used some muscle to re-shape the tube and it fit fine. I was a little worried because I could only get it on 3-5 threads on either end but no leaks.
Up and Running -
When I went out for a test burn I was almost disapointed in that I felt no difference after the install. Now that I have driven for a week and have almost 1000 miles on them I can hear and feel quite a difference. Sound wise the engine is deeper and when its in my garage if I rev up to 3,000 RPMs and let them drop to idle it has a sexy gargle sound. When I install my borla cat back I have no doubt it will increase the sound and improve on the sound of the system. I also now feel quite a performance difference in the truck too. I feel no "lag" between gear shifts and the truck feels like it keeps on pulling even in the lower RPMs. Shifting almost seems smoother even.
Worth it? -
I feel they are worth the $400 total because of how I intend to use them. I plan on some serious modification to my truck, it wasnt an issue of if to buy, but when. If you have the money and want them but just cant pull the trigger I say go for it. Be sure to let them break in before you make up your mind. Mine still might get louder continue to give my truck extra kick. Its all about letting them break in.
If your not to serious about performance I would say stick to Intake, Bama, and cat back. However if you really want the best possible performance, then you wont be dissapointed in the end.
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Current :-: 2004 F150 Lariat 5.4L 3V | Whipple 8PSI | True Dual Exhaust | 14.5 @ 93.3 (Quarter throttle launch due to horrible traction)
Well, thanks for the review! Sounds like I might not get them, just because, up here in Colorado, I prolly wouldn't feel much. $400 might go towards something else.
I'm impressed that you are seeing gains already. 99% of every other review say that with out building up the block and exhaust you'll never notice a difference and they are almost pointless without. Since you plan to seriously mod then they make sense, and not it seems like the gift that will keep on giving the more you tweek.
i got my headers too from underdog! mine are for the 3.0 but still i noticed a great difference with them on the 3.0. the only thing i was dissapointed with was the fact that they were not nice and shiny like the pics everyone shows of them!!!!!! they are plain unpolished stainless steel. looks just like regular exhaust tubing. i would have rather had chorme that blues alittle than no shineyness at all! great customer service from underdog though!!!!!!!! oh and my instuctions weren't for my truck either.
i got my headers too from underdog! mine are for the 3.0 but still i noticed a great difference with them on the 3.0. the only thing i was dissapointed with was the fact that they were not nice and shiny like the pics everyone shows of them!!!!!! they are plain unpolished stainless steel. looks just like regular exhaust tubing. i would have rather had chorme that blues alittle than no shineyness at all! great customer service from underdog though!!!!!!!! oh and my instuctions weren't for my truck either.
Thats silly, so you would rather have chrome where no one would see them anyways, and after a while they would start to rust..
or
Stainless thats more 'dull' looking, and never have to worry about them rusting?
actually you can see them quite well on an 06' nothing is covering them at all. and its not even a dull finish on the stainless its NO finish on the stainless, and they look like they already have a reddish rust color film on them that i have to wipe off every other week! so yeah i'd take chorme. i've had bbk's on a mustang for a few years and no rust on them!!!
It depends on the finish of the stainless - if its a low grade then of course its going to rust. You should of done your homework there. And im sure the chrome BBK's havent rusted on the mustang yet becuase you dont drive it everyday like the ranger, and it sits lower..
LOL not really, maybe after 50 years a car here will get rusty, we just went like 200 days without rain or something stupid, then it rained and now we are 90 days without rain.
LOL not really, maybe after 50 years a car here will get rusty, we just went like 200 days without rain or something stupid, then it rained and now we are 90 days without rain.
Yeah, but Tucson has had one of the rainiest years to date since they started keeping records ;-) We've had just a touch 12" this year
Things do rust out here though. I have some angle iron and sheet metal that I'll be using for the frame for my outdoor grill sitting in my garage since summer (start of monsoon season) and it has started to rust.
i wouldn't have to do an assload of question asking if people didn't advertise their products with pictures of chrome headers and not put on their websites that the product in the picture is not what your gonna get!!!!! every web site i went to had the same picture of the headers. i expected atleast a polished finish!!! oh and they were already kinda rusty right out of the box so i cleaned them up and two weeks later they looked the same. if i would have know they weren't polished i'd have spent 200 more for the coated headers!
JBA Header Review (4.0L)
