I was looking at getting a set of JBA headers, or an Xcal2 tuner from Troyer Perf. for my 4.2L V6. Im still in highschool and dont have that much green so cost effectiveness is key. Which of these two would give me the most noticeable increse. Ihave a K&N filter, and flowmaster 40 series with pipes run at 45 infront of the rear tire.

How hard is installation of the headers, can i do it myself??? I love the sound of a v8 with headers, but what does the 4.2 sound like. I read a previous post about the Xcal2 and liked what i heard, but i dont know which purchase would be best.

Any help would be greatly appreciated!! Thank you

 

You will get the best performance gain from the Xcal 2 than headers.

I have Gibson headers with no muffler.

 

wow i like how that sounds

Did you get the Xcal2 from Troyer, or is their another place that is better??

how much hp did you get from the tuner by itself??

 

I got my tuner from Vmptuning, and they have a lot of experiance with the 4.2. I dont know anything about troyer, so I cant give you any info on them.


Full mods list: (Not to impressive)

MAC CAI
Gibson headers
Xcal 2 on 91 performance
P&P throttle body (every little bit helps)
No Muffler (soon to change)

Im wantin to say 180 to the wheels, but dont think its over that.

 

tuner would be the better choice, got mine from vmp. i dont no about troyer, but the guys at vmp are good.

 

thanks for the info guys.

im prob gunna go with the VMPtunig Xcal2 b/c its cheaper than the Troyer Perf. one.

It looks like from the website that i have to get it custom made...what perf. settings should i get, which works the best.

i heard that it takes like 2 weeks or so until you really feel the programmer working is that true??

 

I was grinning from ear to ear right after I took my first ride with my custom tunes. I was told it can take a couple hundred miles for the PCM to re learn it's new programming, though.

 

If you only do one of the two, get the tunes as they would give the most gains. However, if you got the green to at least cover both, do the headers first, then tune your setup with them in the equation. As for install, dont know about the V6 but it probably wouldnt be much different or easier than installation on a V8. If you can hoist your engine up from the bay and let it hang on an engine crane then you should have no problems. Biggest pain will be working on an engine still mounted in place. Good luck!

 

No need. There is plenty of room to go in from the wheel wells.

 

thanks for the help guy. I have a few more questions though...

Are the JBA or Gibson header a direct bolt on. i know tht they are shorty style, which is as close as you can get to the stock config. but would i have to runany piping anywhere??

 

I dunno how the V6 reacts, but the V8 guys say that shorties can actually kill power, they all recommend long tubes.

 

Long tube headers from a mustang v6 will work on 97's to 03's... long tube headers will not fit 04's to present, unless they specifically made for the truck... which a custom machine shop should be able to fabricate... but it will cost some mega $$'s.

 

My Gibson's fit perfect, just the hole for the 02 sensor on the passenger side had to be deburred to get the sensor in.

If you go with MAC equal length headers it will take some effort to get those to fit, but should bolt in without having to reconfigure the exhaust.

Mustang Long tubes will require rebuilding the whole exhaust and some ingenuity to get them to fit properly.

 

thanks for the help

Does anyone have set of the MAC shorty headers??? They're a lot cheaper than the Gibson and the JBA but are they junk??

Did anyone do the Xcal2 first, and the headers later,id really like to get the programmer first and the headers last, but would i need a new tune???

I was looking at some posts in the chips/ programmer section and i saw tht someone ordered an Xcal2 from troyer and had to wait 2+ months to get his custom tune. Did anyone have this problem with VMP and a V6???

 

I have heard they are a pain in the ***, but will benefit you more. Only because the MAC's are equal lenght headers.

No need for a tune for headers.

The headers from a mustang are the 3.8, but if you do that. 02 sensors will need to be rewired, new exhaust fabed up to the muffler. Just read this thread.

http://www.v6f150.com/forums/showthr...ht=Mac+headers