How much of a difference do they really make? My b-day is coming up soon and I'm trying to figure out what to ask for. Right now it's between a winch, rock sliders (no use for them really), lifting a bit more, or mud terrains with wheels. Does anyone have any suggestions on what I should ask for? I have a fairly stock 87 p/u.

 

I purchased an LCE top of the line header for my '81 pickup and really did not notice any performance gains. I had a major crack in the original exhaust manifold, so it was a necessary purchase. That being said, you would notice performance gains using a header in conjunction with a high flow cat back exhaust system and a free flow intake + the removal of the smog equipment. Doing it one stage at a time makes the gains less noticeable than if you were to do it all at once, but improved none the less.

 

Okay, now I know. Thanks

 

Like he said, it depends on what else you've done. I've always done my mods in steps to see if there's a real noticable difference. In conjunction with a free flowing exhaust I noticed small gains in the mid range, but the biggest difference was on top. This was also on a hybrid 22/20r engine which will actually still make power as it revs higher than a standard 22r.

 

the extra power is nice, but you could improve your off road more with a winch or tires that you mentioned. that said i do like having a header on my truck but i did it when i rebuilt my engine with a few other mods so i cant testify to how much the header did but it is faster than stock.

 

Well, the truck the headers would go on already has the cat cut off, and I threw a glasspack on there cause that's all I could afford. I just don't really know about the winch, it might be a bit too pricey. The tires I would have to find used, and also I would need to find used wheels as well.

 

for a winch that new one from smitty built is $299 whcich is a great price to get more power from your truck when you have the money put in a freeflow converter it made a difference

 

I had a Pacesetter header on my '89 22R, and thought it made a significant difference, but then I had a Weber 32/36 carb, so I had plenty of fueling capacity.

I would NOT get a Pacesetter - I fought exhaust leaks at the flange constantly. It's also a 4 to 1, I wish I had gotten a Thorley tri-y header.

 

Pacesetters are junk! Definately go with one of the big names, thorley, downey, nwor or lc engineering. They're all good designs and good quality. Had 2 downeys and 1 nwor and both are excellent build quality, though I do really prefer the 1/2" thick flange on the nwor!

Look on ebay for mufflers. You'll have to either be patient or have good timing, but I snagged a new $185 magnaflow for less than $35 shipped!

 

I have a Pacesetter and mine is okay, but I did have to modify it to move the O2 sensor since it was right where the steering shaft is at. As far as the NWOR headers, I would not buy anything from them as they have the worst customer service. Their complete lack of customer service is legendary here in WA where they are located. If you want NWOR headers for your 20R/22R/RE then get them from the guys that actually make them for NWOR: Stan's Headers http://www.stans-headers.com/

 

I had a set od downey headers and i really didnt notice that much of performance so i sold them

 

It hasn't ever made sense to me why people spend lots of money trying to get a little more power from their 22r/re when regearing would ultimately bemuch more effective.

 

Not true at all. Re-gearing isn't the answer for everybody. If you have a trail queen then gear it as low as possible if you want, but for a truck that mostly pulls dd duty you'll end up at too high an rpm on the freeway.

I've done enough mods to my truck since buying it with a stock 20r to be able to notice if there's a difference with each one, and there's not one I've done that hasn't helped atleast a little. Nothing cost me much money either. $35 for a junkyard header, free 20r head after parting out a celica, free 22r block from a wrecked truck, $35 to rebuild the weber that came on the truck + maybe $15 for jets to make it run better, maybe $50 for 2.5" exhaust from the header back. That's not much money or work to have a truck that will either hold 65 or accelerate up the long hill to work, as opposed to dropping down to 55 or less when I first got it.

 

Not if it's geared right. My truck with 4:88's and 33's is equivelant to stock gearing with stock tires, and it runs 65mph at 24-2500rpm.

Try to find a nice used winch somewhere if you do that instead, I got a Warn 8274 for 300 bucks in perfect shape minus fairlead.