ok picking up an 05 fx4 sat. morning. I had a 96 f150 but sold it and love the f150s and am new to here....Im just wondering what to do off the bat was going to go with a cold air intake and exhaust...cat back for now. I heard the air force one intakes are great and was going to go with the super 44 flowmaster....any thoughts

 

Welcome to the site. What size engine does it have? If you want to do the CAI and exhaust that's great but I've heard the 05's run pretty lean from the start so probably a tuner would be needed with the modifications you want to do. I'm not even going to touch the flowmaster part, a lot of guys on here have very strong opinions on which brand they like. Use the search feature and you'll find about every opinion on CAI's and exhaust. Good luck with the new truck.

 

listen to some clips on youtube of different mufflers and engine combos and go with what you like. Its all a matter of preference. I love flowmasters but some of them drone alot in the cab.

 

Welcome to the wide wide world of sports..... I mean mods!

From what you've provided, I can tell that you have an 05 5.4 engine. That's great and all except for the dreaded lean condition that can be exaggerated by a cold air intake (CAI). The only way around this is a custom tuned programmer (more money for you to spend!). Depending on your preferences we can properly recommend a good exhaust.

Pick one of the following:

A) Performance
B) Sound
C) I have no idea what I'm doing!

If you chose A:
You want to look at a straight through design muffler like Magnaflow, Borla, Corsa, or Dynomax Bullets. These mufflers are great for performance and have great sound, depending on which model you buy.

If you chose B:
A chambered muffler like Flowmaster or Cherry Bomb will best suit you. Guaranteed to give you that redneck, I mean good old fashion sound with only slightly better performance than the OEM muffler. Also depending on the model you get, they have a good variety of sound levels, but have the same tones.

If you chose C:
Get out!

Now we get to what you're going to be using your truck for!

Pick one of the following:

A) Daily driving
B) Towing
C) Racing

If you chose A:
A single inlet dual outlet muffler (SIDO) might be your best bet. These provide good sound and low performance increases to your entire range of RPM's. Look for a kit, or have a shop custom build one for you. The best pipe size will be 3 inch inlet and mid pipe with 2.5 inch outlet pipes. The Y-pipe will be the restriction on this setup because it ends at 2.5 inches.

If you chose B:
A single inlet single outlet (SISO) muffler will provide the best low end torque out of all of the other choices. The absolute best size would be 3 inch all the way back. You can find a kit, or have a shop build you one.

If you chose C:
True duals would be the only way to go. If you plan on keeping you engine naturally aspirated, than keep the pipe size down to 2.25 (better low end torque) to 2.5 (better high end power) inches.
You also have to get a crossover pipe, if you actually want a decent system of course. The choices are either an H-pipe, or an X-pipe. The H-pipe is better for high end power and can be made by an exhaust shop for practically nothing. The X-pipe is better for low end torque, but has to be bought or custom made, a lot more expensive than the H-pipe.
There are also sound differences between the H and X-pipes. The H-pipe tends to have that coveted "Mustang sound", while the X-pipe has that smoother, less choppy sound.

Look on youtube to find the system that you really want and make your decision wisely or else that's money down the drain!

 

Roush offroad is what i wish i had. Alot of other fellas swear by it. I have 14" maggies now and had super 40 flowmasters. they all sound good, it just depends on how much you want to drop on exhaust.

 

ive got an 07 fx4 and im 98% sure im goin w/ the MBRP XP stainless duals out the sides. comes w/ everything you need and is 100% bolt on. sounds amazing, to me at least. the msrp is like 600 but autoanything.com has them for like 440 w/ free shipping. i priced dual super40 flowmasters and they were only 30 bux cheaper than the mbrp and thats not even stainless. id rather have the mbrp cuz its stainless and lifetime warranty. i got a price on gettin the mbrp from the shop and having them doin it but it was 800 bux. F that, ill order it and do it myself...

 

You can have a shop custom weld you exhaust for probably 350. Im sure it will very, but i got my true dual 14"maggies with magnaflow tips for like 370 out the door. Thats another option. i dont see the point in paying extra for the same thing, it wont look as good under there i guess.

 

it makes no sense for you to spend 800 bucks on a bolt on kit and have it installed by a shop. buy the kit if its what you want for 440 (pretty good price) and stick it on yourself. youll have fun doing it

 

ha yeah i mean its more for sound and performance.....not really favoring one or the other but i will def be getting this thing modded asap. installation of all parts are all done by me because i grew up in a garage and dont mind saving money and knowing the job was done right lol. but i really know nothing about programmers....what kind would i want to get....

 

Here is the link to everything you need to know about tunes https://www.f150online.com/forums/ch...unes-read.html Simply put the best tuners are the Xcal 3 and the Gryphon. Go to VMP tuning, Troyer performance, and Power Hungry Performance for more details.

 

You cannot run an aftermarket intake un-tuned for it. It will run lean leading to the death of your 5.4L.

All FX4s come standard with 5.4L.

 

No mention of mandrel bent pipes?

If you're going through all of the trouble to pick out your custom exhaust piece by piece and take to a shop that uses crimp/crush bent pipes... You just "wasted" $250-450. Your exhaust system will be filled with "bottlenecks" at every turn. You'll get no performance gain, just the sound.

Having mandrel bent pipes is a VERY important piece to the exhaust puzzle.

 

Well, that's basically common sense. Smooth bent is the bare bones minimum.

 

they fixed the problems for the 07-08. somewhat fixed it on 06. the newer ones should run fine w/ a CAI w/o a tune. especially if its a volant bc from what ik, the hosing is about the same size as stock, if not the same.