I am trying to figure out wether to go for long or shorty headers. What are the pros / cons of each and which one makes the best hp gains and which is easier to install they seem to cost about the same and I would like to know what you guys think

 

I'm fairly positive that in most cases (if not all) long tubes will make more power than a set of shorty headers. IMO, the long tubes just sound better, but I wouldn't be surprised if they are harder to install.

 

longtubes are the way to go, theyll be a pain to install but totally worth it. the stock exhaust manifold flows relatively decent on the New Edge, so shortys would be a waste of money. MAC are a good brand to go with, buddy of mine had mac LTs, an o/r midpipe and super 40s out back and it sounded amazing

 

the stock manifolds on the sn95s are actually really nice for stockers, as said above, shorties would be a waste of money.
longtubes should give you a slight gain in power but are far harder to install. they will require a new midpipe meaning if you dont have it already, dual exhaust. i actually dont care for mac at all but they are 1 of the only 2 companies that make LTs for the 3.8 and from what ive seen, it would be better to buy the mac because the pacesetters dont come the collectors on the end.

 

Long tubes all the way

 

LTs, stock exhaust manifolds are tubular style which are prtty much short tube headers, and on a 6er, there really not to to hard to, along with a tune up and CAI i knocked about a full second off my quarter and gained 4 mph through the traps plus it bumped my milage even though it really didnt matter to me

you will need a new midpipe to

 

Long tubes are pretty easy to install. It takes roughly 3 hours to do.

 

If your a first timer, with no experience

 

So are you saying it took you longer?

 

LT's are easy to install unless you dont have all the tools (Everyone should have at least a basic Craftsman kit.)

Check with your smog laws in your area before getting them.
They are NOT legal in California.
No cats are not legal in ANY state so make sure to get a midpipe with cats, if it doesnt have cats then get on SummitRacing.com and get a set of high flows.

Stay away from CatCo because those things burnt up and fail easily.

Now for shorty headers, I wrote an Ultimate guide a while back that was sticky for a long while. I should also mention that a lot of other great comments and info was added by other users as well.

It all pretty much comes down to that aftermarket shorty headers are just stock replacment unless it is 99-04 which has the cast unit. 94-98 has shorty headers that are great, 94 has a cast version of that header that can be ported if your that interested in better flow.

The 99-04 Cast manifolds are more restrictive than the 94-98 header with just a 2.00" collector whilst the 94-98 has a 2.25" collector and 3-1 design.

94-98 shorty's can be used on 99-04 along with a modified flange to accept the 2.25" collector. I made the EGR tube fit on my 00' swap, it was easy with no cutting or bending.

Now what I did was use a 94-95 GT BBK X-Pipe and had the muffler shop put smaller flanges on. They really didnt even have to alter the angle too much with a 3 degree offset. In all it only cost $70 for the work.

www.YouTube.com/CrainRacing has my REALLY SH||TY open exhause video on it, 00' swap, 96 headers and BBK X-pipe.

For legality I have to stay away from LTs

-Eric-