Random Mod thread

[Mr. Stroker]

Well i would like to keep this toward my truck but feel free to chime in.

So the lightning headers aint workin out for me. Thinking bout calling an exhaust shop and asking me how much they would charge to fix it, and i dont want it to leak when i go pick it up. But im not gonna let this bull crap stop me.

Now i want this thread to be a discussion about what people have done to their trucks and noticed some good gains. Also lets talk about some smog equiptment.

About that smog talk.. Id like to cut it all off. But i want to be sure i know 100 percent of what im cutting out or getting rid of. With the stock manifolds there is the EGR (I think) That has a metal tube that goes down to the manifold.

Well i put on lightning headers and there was nothing there to put that tube in, So i just took it all the way off. Cut the end that goes into the manifold off, and folded it in the vice. Not sure if thats what needs to be done but i did it anyways, and ive seen people with their trucks that have done it.

I also have that air pump and the canisters on my wheel well, Chris i know u said i can get rid of those. but what do i have to do with the air pump thats way down there??

Also theres that piece that has two tubes that seam to flow together thats inbetween the wheel well and the manifold/ header... Whats that for? Do i need it? It looks to me to have a tube that use to run into my cat, but the cat is gone and now its just a tube that hangs down flush with my frame rail..

Il have pictures later so you can all see what im talking about.

Also. Will a Ford Motorsport F303 (M-6250-F303) roller cam (.512-inch lift, 226-degree duration at .050) Work in my truck?

And does anyone know of a ford explorer with a 302 or GT 40 heads?

 

[F 150Cobra]

the biggest gain i felt was the exhuast system.. and the ECU of an E series Van /ambulance

ohh yeah and performance Ignition equipment Wires Plugs cap/rotor , box

and i really can feel a huge difference when i race with now tubes/airfilters just open trottle body

 

[TheRoadVirus]

and i really can feel a huge difference when i race with now tubes/airfilters just open trottle body

Wait... WHAT?! You're not saying you're running with no filter.. right? RIGHT??!?! AAAAAAAAAAAAH.

 

[F 150Cobra]

hahaha no buddy... only when i race so its like a 1 min WOT and turn off and filter back on

 

[TheRoadVirus]

Even that would make me antsy with all that sand (dust anyone???) down there? Right?

 

[lil_dq]

I think ony when he races! I HOPE! ( wow I got to type faster! LOL) <-----disregard!

Mike I wish I could be more help I think I noticed a little more gain from the stuff I did but couldn't honestly tell ya what it was. One thing I did learn is if you don't have a computer flash, the EGR is still needed on the gassers.(at least on my truck!) Good luck with the rest of your mods and keep us posted.

 

[F 150Cobra]

lol its not suadi arabia here buddy.. lol its aruba only the dunes have sand.. on the street there isnt any dust or sand

 

[Skandocious]

Do the efan conversion. Cheap HP and mileage, you'll like it.

 

[Mr. Stroker]

Ok what about the smog crap... Not really helping. I have the two hoses that go right from the canisters on the wheel well back, and a metal tube that use to go to my cat. Anyone have an idea of what this is all about? Can i get rid of it. Not like its doing n e thing n e ways.

 

[Skandocious]

You can delete the smog pump (some people call it an AIR pump) for sure, and delete all the related hoses that go with it. IIRC, you'll have to replace it with an idler pulley instead of just getting a longer belt, in order to keep the belt from slipping on the other pulley(s).

 

[Mr. Stroker]

Well can i do what chris did and just leave the air pump installed but just not have any thing going to it?

 

[Skandocious]

You could... But then you're still turning all of the components inside of the air pump which creates a parasitic load on your engine; not much, but every little bit counts.

 

[Mr. Stroker]

Well im not looking for more hp. Already tried that and its currently biting me in the ass. Im just looking to get rid of useless hoses and stupid crap like that.

 

[Skandocious]

Well im not looking for more hp. Already tried that and its currently biting me in the ass. Im just looking to get rid of useless hoses and stupid crap like that.

Just cuz you had 1 failed attempt at gaining some horsepower doesn't mean there isn't more horsepower to be had...

If you're going to disable the use of the smog pump by removing all the hoses then why only go 95% of the way and not just remove the whole pump? Doesn't make sense to me...

 

[TheRoadVirus]

The air pump doesn't cause nearly any load with the hoses disconnected. It's essentially an idler pulley in that state..

Why go that last 5% and pay for the pulley when you don't have too...

 

[Mr. Stroker]

I wanna go minimal work.... You cant see it anyways.

 

[conanski]

The Thermactor system is the technical name for the air/smog pump. The system consists of a couple diverter valves, 2 solenoids, the air pump, and bunch of plumbing. To eliminate this you need to pull out all the plumbing including the tube that runs across the back of the motor connecting the heads, the holes in the heads then need to be plugged, they are threaded and take standard pipe plugs. Then you need to remove the vacuum lines running from the solenoids, and plug the solenoid outputs, but leave them electrically connected... these solenoids are near the coil.
It also appears you are eliminating th EGR, this will actually hurt milage and performance but it's your truck. To do this right you have to pull the valve off and put a blockoff plate between the valve and intake, use a gasket to make sure it seals. Reconnect the electrical connection to the EGR valve(this is actually the EGR position sensor), but remove the vacuum lines connecting the valve to the EGR vacuum regulator(another solenoid near the coil), and plug the nipples on the solenoid. This may or may not throw a code, you'll have to ignore it if it does.

 

[andym]

If you really, truly want to do the minimum amount of work... then leave it alone.

No part of the emissions system puts any amount of noticeable drag on the engine. This includes the air pump, all those hoses, and the EGR system. Like Paul says, the EGR system saves you fuel. With it disconnected, the engine has to run richer to avoid pre-ignition.

I noticed about a 2-3 mpg hit with the EGR disconnected. It's not worth it.

 

[flareside_thunder]

That may be the case however people like me eliminate the thermactor and smog systems to clean the engine bay up a bit...get rid of alot of the clutter.....roller rockers are an easy bolt on......if you truly want more power get some different heads...yes the heads on a exploder 302 will work but IIRC they are GT40P heads which have a funny manifold bolt pattern and the headers are a bit more expensive......however, as me n Paul have talked about numerous times, the E7TE heads can give you a decent increase in power with a little work.Luck

 

[andym]

I never understood the idea of "cleaning up the engine bay". If we're being perfectly honest, I don't think, unless you are taking it to shows, that anyone really cares about how "cleaned up" their engine bay is.

When emission controls first starting coming out in the 70's, it ruined the engine's performance. Removing all the smog stuff on a 400, for example, gives you a few hundred extra horsepower. So I can see how this theory got it roots. Engineers didn't know how to combine clean burning motors with power. You either had one or the other.

These days engineers know a lot more about it. You can buy an extremely powerful car with near zero emissions.

But people are still stuck on the idea that the air pump, EGR, etc. somehow rob enormous amounts of power, and it's simply not true. I think that most people understand this at some level, but they still can't get the old ideas out of their heads.

Since it's taboo (legally and ethically) to remove emissions equipment - I think people use the "cleaning up the engine bay" as an excuse. What they really mean is, "I don't need this new-fangled emissions stuff on MY truck!"

If the truck runs good, then why hack it apart?