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If you dead set on shortys, then the best are ceramic coated JBA's. They are pricey but install without a lot of the usual hassles. Well made installation kit. It took me about half a day to get mine in once the car was up on my ramps. Like I said tho, they don't come cheap for a $ / horse power value.
From: St. Peters MO Sometimes you have to prove yourself by doing alot of killing or alot of dying...
The shorties offer you no additional power so the only advantages are weight loss and they help to control under hood heat. They also look more attractive. They are only an advantage if you have to test emmissions in your area... otherwise you'd be wise to save for some LT's
Here's another choice that I went with. Hooker's from Jet-Hot with their Sterling ceramic coating, inside and out.
Just to set the record straight, shorties do give you an increase in hp, just not as much as the long tubes. They help with lowering the heat under your hood. They look good and they will pass the snif inspection. One other thing is they bolt right up with no fabrication, except for the brace from the ac/alt brackets which take a little grinding. Because of the thick flange, you should use 1" header bolts, socket head is the best (allen).
Keep saving until you have enough for long tubes. In the mean time if you're looking for a project, there is a bit of room on the stock exhaust manifolds for some porting. I doubt it will help much though.
Gotta ask... Please don't hit me
I have to imagine that shorties gotta flow more then the stock manifolds... with my ported heads/bigger camshaft, wouldn't it be better the stock?
I know, not as good as LT's, but I really want to keep my cats... and I know that she is wheezing now...
You're right...
better then stock, not quite as good as LT's...
much easier install...
I should look up the part number of those 1 1/2" shorties from summit now...
The major benefit of shorties is that they will bolt right up and will look pretty, you'll also easily still pass emissions. I'm sure there is some power gain but it is minimal at best, especially on a stock motor.
If it's a money concern, think about it. You buy shorties now and then long tubes later, or you could just save up and buy the long tubes later, which would be cheaper in the long run.
Something I've been curious about is noise level. I'm running Power Effects, which are loud enough even with stock cats, and really don't want to go LT headers. Can anyone with shorties tell how much the sound levels changed after they installed them?
If you leave the cats intact the shorties won't change your sound level much at all. You will likely hear more "under the hood" noise, that just comes with headers. It's the sound of exhaust flowing through the pipes that you're hearing.
Something I've been curious about is noise level. I'm running Power Effects, which are loud enough even with stock cats, and really don't want to go LT headers. Can anyone with shorties tell how much the sound levels changed after they installed them?
After I installed mine, I noticed a burble sound as I backed off the accerator. I now have a B&B catback and along with my Hooker Shorties the sound is deep and healthy at WOT. I like it, but this is one of those subjects that we tend not to agree on.