Hi all, first time here in the forums, name's jomar, just bought an 01 v6 last week and im planning to make it my first project car. Need recommendations for CAI and exhaust upgrade. This is my first time setting up a car so i dont really know anything yet and any of the good brands for mustangs.

Thanks everyone.

 

id just take off the snorkle ruubber on your stock intake. the aftermarket ones arnt much better just look better. get a k&n drop in filter.

for exhaust check out american muscle

http://www.americanmuscle.com/99-04-v6-mac-catback.html

possible a tuner & some gears but thats about it..

 

Welcome Jomar and congrats on your first Mustang!

There's a ton of mod options available for these cars. If you're looking for more power, I'd highly suggest a CAI/Bama tuner package first. It's by one of the most significant performance mods for the dollar, available.

As far as brands, there's a lot of choices here too. Airaid, JLT, Steeda, etc. would be the top premium choice, but SR Performance & BBK make great stuff too. For your application, I'd stick with the SR Performance CAI for some solid gains and to save some cash for more mods down the road.

Exhaust is more about personal preference. Some people are looking for different exhaust tones than others, so that's up to you. I can assist you with recommendations if you generally know what you're interested (high-pitched, raspy, deep, loud, soft, etc.).

I hope this helps give you a jump start on things! Let me know if you have anymore questions.

Shane

 

Thanks tomkat for the suggestion, was leaning towards that also. But it's the most expensive cai that ive seen lol

 

Hi shane,thanks for the input, but would the sr performance perform the same as the other better brands, so to speak? What's the difference?

As for the exhaust, i was leaning towards the deeper raspier tone, this is the more "muscular" sound right? Im not sure if im making sense.

Thanks!

BTW, i got some gears from AM just this past week.

 

As far as exhaust goes, go to you tube and listen to a TON of vids for V6s in your year with different mid pipe configurations and decide for yourself what sounds good to you.

CAIs in their own are nearly pointless and add next to no horse power on any 94-04 V6 Mustang. Dyno and weather pending most people will see a 1-4 rwhp lift over factory. Again, nothing to run home about. Also keep in mind all CAIs do exactly the same, but not all are the same quality. If you insist on buying one stick with a solid reputable brand such as BBK, JLT, MAC, etc as cheaper "knock off" brands often suffer from extremely poor craftmanship and are known for their difficulty with proper fitment, poor air filter quality, and poor durability.

The key to the performance lift lies in the tune as Ford did run some V6 models rather rich from the factory, so a tuner will help lean the fuel mixture back out right while adding in a little additional timing for a couple of ponies. Generally a tuner will yield 4-9 rhwp on a 96-04 V6, again dyno and weather pending. 7 rwhp seems to be the solid average for these cars.

BTW 87 octane is all you need as 89 and 93 octane tunes do jack sh*t nothing for these older essex V6s in near stock form. Sure they would offer power gains if you were running a highly modified or forced induction motor, but they won't do jack except lighten your pocket book faster with a near stock car.

 

Jmanto,

The SR Performance CAI won't out perform other name brands like Airaid, JLT, Steeda, etc., but the difference will be minimum with your application. Which is why I suggest saving more cash for other mods by going with the SR CAI.

I hear ya on the exhaust, too. If you're looking for a more muscular deep/raspy tone, I highly suggest running a full dual exhaust conversion kit. That's really the only way to make the 3.8 v6 sound deep. IMO, the Pypes True Dual Off-Road exhaust is your best bet. It should give you the exact tone you're looking for!

You can also deepen the exhaust tone by using Pypes True Dual Catted exhaust. However, you'll lose some of the exhaust rasp by running catalytic converters. The upside is you won't have any issues with State Inspection since catalytic convertors are required in most States.

Let me know if you have anymore questions!

Shane

 

Drop a cobra engine in it. lol Or get an eaton supercharger. Any plans on modding the outside of the car? Please post pics if possible.

 

Also here is a site you can go to get your v6 power needs.
http://www.supersixmotorsports.com/