Manifolds vrs Headers on the Caddy

Ricky B

Ricky B

Wiiide Open
Joined
Mar 20, 2005
Location
LKN - Tha Dirty Mo (Mooresville, NC)
I keep hearing arguments for keeping the manifolds from alot of people, just trying to get a general consensus, but obviously the argument I hear for the manifolds is they create more low end power . . . . fact or fiction?

I got ahold of some new heads since my old ones were trashed from lack of coolant :shaking: the new heads will put my compression at 13:1 so I'll be running the 110 race fuel. I'm planning on swapping a new intake manifold (edlebrock) on at the same time but otherwise I don't have the $$ to do a cam at this point. With that high of compression are the manifolds really going to restrict my motor? I don't see how they would I mean there basically a big single chamber all the ports flow into . . .

Plus the fact that its like $400 bucks for the shorty side dump type for the cad motor :rolleyes:
 
Make sure that the valves don't crash into the pistons with those new heads.
 
Organ pipes straight up out'a the hood - keep it real!
 
yes, they add power, but for the biggest gain you will want long tube style headers. They will add a lot of grunt, especially if you are doing a head swap. If the stock manifolds are cast instead of tube they you can pretty much assume that they are restrictive.

You will not see as big a gain with the shorty style manifolds, but you will see a little.
 
rick, I didnt realize that was you when I replied, I put long tubes on the camaro, and saw a 30 hp difference over stock. If space is an issue check out R&J exhaust out in Apeex i believe, he can make custom LT's for around the price of those shorty headers.
 
dlbrando said:
rick, I didnt realize that was you when I replied, I put long tubes on the camaro, and saw a 30 hp difference over stock. If space is an issue check out R&J exhaust out in Apeex i believe, he can make custom LT's for around the price of those shorty headers.
Click to expand...

thanks for the tip on that exhaust shop, if he can make custom longtubes for bout the same price as those shorties then i see no reason to do the shorties, might have to give him a call . . . .
 
R&J was one of the most expensive places around IIRC, but they do damn good work.

Not like it matters, now Ricky will be complaining that he can't go wheeling because he can't afford to fill the tank with $6 a gallon race gas.. :lol:
 
Rich said:
R&J was one of the most expensive places around IIRC, but they do damn good work.
Not like it matters, now Ricky will be complaining that he can't go wheeling because he can't afford to fill the tank with $6 a gallon race gas.. :lol:
Click to expand...

Tru :lol:

What does it take to run your rig on alcohol? Does it work with a normal carb? Ethanol has an octane of 114 . . . .

BTW: whats IIRC?
 
jrraw23 said:
BTW: whats IIRC?
Click to expand...
If I Recall/Remember Correctly

says the peanut gallery while adding nothing useful to the discussion.

(Or it could mean "Iraqi Islamic Reconciliation Conference" but I have a feeling that wasn't what Rich was implying?)
 
hscrugby said:
If I Recall/Remember Correctly

says the peanut gallery while adding nothing useful to the discussion.

(Or it could mean "Iraqi Islamic Reconciliation Conference" but I have a feeling that wasn't what Rich was implying?)
Click to expand...

knowing Rich its probably the "International I h8 Rocks Club" cause we all know how much that guy likes running throu the mud . . . :shaking::lol:
 
well propane tuned right doesnt smell bad... and also with a big enough mixer for your motor it could handle the high RPMs fine... id say that dual 425s would probly be enough...

and alcohol has to have a different carb, or atleast the internals in the carb have to be changed IIRC...

you can always try to bum fuel off Chad & Bently though haha
 
have fun paying for that gas and finding/transporting it on trips. not to mention the extra heat on a motor you've already had problems keeping cool.
 
Maybe I missed the boat but I always thought shortys and tri-Ys were better for low end and long tubes were used for high end high HP gains?

That said, I wouldnt trade the reliability and sealing of manifolds for headers on a trail rig.

Then again, high rpms are relative when you are talking a Caddy BB, they redline just below a diesel....Unless you beak the bank

BTW Why in the hell would you want 13:1 CR on an off road rig? It goes against all logic and reasoning...oh wait....hey Ricky, I understand ::flipoff2::
 
have fun paying for that gas and finding/transporting it on trips. not to mention the extra heat on a motor you've already had problems keeping cool.
Click to expand...

Yea I know the cost is gonna suck, i figure i'll just buy it a barrel/drum at a time and just carry the barrel in the back of the Z71 to trips

as far as the cooling you should see the the absolute awesomeness of my new radiator, its quite possibly the nicest thing I've ever owned, plus I got a sweet dual electric fan setup for 20 bucks :burnout:

SkyHiK5 said:
Maybe I missed the boat but I always thought shortys and tri-Ys were better for low end and long tubes were used for high end high HP gains?

That said, I wouldnt trade the reliability and sealing of manifolds for headers on a trail rig,

Then again, high rpms are relative when you are talking a Caddy BB, they redline just below a diesel....Unless you beak the bank

BTW Why in the hell would you want 13:1 CR on an off road rig? It goes against all logic and reasoning...oh wait....hey Ricky, I understand ::flipoff2::
Click to expand...

Yea I thought the shorties were better for low end and the long tubes were better for high end as well, that being said I'm probably gonna run the manifolds at least for now since I am really low on $$, but I didnt know if having high compression required more free flowing exhaust.

As far as the high compression it was basically my old heads were trashed from running w/o coolant and I got the new heads for 20 bucks so . . . . lol, plus yea, it is me :driver:


btw where do the caddys redline? I can rev mine to bout 5 grand if I mat it, I always assumed 4 grand was starting to push it . . . . .
 
long tubes are better all around, but they definitely make torque. You see shorty monifolds in a lot of space saving applications, and forced induction applications. Long tubes will improve the exhaust pulse and scavenging effect.
Tri-Y on a V8? I want a set for my stroker that use a tri-Y but it is a line six.
 
dlbrando said:
long tubes are better all around, but they definitely make torque. You see shorty monifolds in a lot of space saving applications, and forced induction applications. Long tubes will improve the exhaust pulse and scavenging effect.
Tri-Y on a V8? I want a set for my stroker that use a tri-Y but it is a line six.
Click to expand...

I mean that makes sense what your saying, i think he was referring to inline 6's when he mentioned the tri-y thing thou.

But if I'm upping my compression significantly over stock isn't that producing the same effect that a forced induction setup would do?

I mean forced induction forces more air into the same area to be compressed x amount, where as upping compression compresses the same amount of air at a rate higher than x . . . isn't that the same effect?
 
dlbrando said:
Tri-Y on a V8? I want a set for my stroker that use a tri-Y but it is a line six.
Click to expand...

Yep Tri-Ys on a V8.
Ran em on my old Mustang for years, actually thats where the design came from if Im not mistaken the Shelby racing development team.

Front two cylinders Y back two cylinders Y then the twoYs Y

So it looks like

\/ \/
_\/

Or here is a pic: http://www.cal-mustang.com/showdetl-7-3306-19-0.html
 
BTW if sized appropriately for high rpm runs I have seen LTs have a hrd time providing ENOUGH BP at low RPM
 
No expert here, but the stoichiometric air-fuel ratio for alcohol is less than gasoline, so the jet sizes in a standard carb would have to be increased significantly. When I was about 13-14 I had a go-cart that ran methanol which is 120 octane. It had a special carb on it. The Sunoco down the street from my house sells 100 octance race gas for $5/gal. Not really a huge jump from $3.08 for the cheap stuff.
 
Back
Top