Pacesetter headers.

[xtremeRanger]

So I'm looking into purchasing Pacesetter Headers for my 1989 ranger 4x4. Whats everyone's input on them? i live in Canada and i priced them out and it would cost me $300 shipped. Is it really worth it? or should i stick to my stock exhaust manifolds. I'm wanting to get a little bit of kick out of my engine because it has a lot of life left in her, I'm going to port and polish my air intake manifold. What has everyone done for air intakes? like short ram or cold air. And does that v8 5.0L injectors really work? I have been doing lots and lots of reading.

 

[Dangeranger3]

pace setters suck. I've heard nothing but bad things. Modifying your intake and matching the upper and lower ports could help some.

 

[xtremeRanger]

why do they suck? wouldn't they be better than the stock exhaust manifold?

 

[Psychopete]

why do they suck? wouldn't they be better than the stock exhaust manifold?

Mine didn't bolt right on, they needed modded a little. I spent a long time on getting them installed where the end of the collector to the cat wasn't up into the frame and end of the radius arm. I was doing a whole new system, no clue if I would have ended up back at the stock cat.

FWIW, apparently 4.0L guys have had issues getting spark plugs out of their heads w/ Pacesetters. I didn't have this issue, they're no harder to remove than when the manifolds were installed.

I guess it comes down to what your abilities are and what you're willing to deal with. I just wouldn't expect them to bolt right up.

Pete

 

[rickcdewitt]

I just wouldn't expect them to bolt right up.

Pete

or make a power difference you can feel. one thing i have noticed is that headers;even my 700$ jba's(talk about turd polishing a 2.9) fit so much better with a lifted trucks extra rad. arm clearance

 

[xtremeRanger]

is it really just a personal preference cuz i was reading threads where a guy said they really do work. Said with aftermarket headers it will prevent the head from cracking, stock manifolds are causing the cracking.

 

[Psychopete]

Said with aftermarket headers it will prevent the head from cracking, stock manifolds are causing the cracking.

I wouldn't say that's the full cause of the problem; given a 2.9L with the older heads, they can last as long as the engine doesn't over heat. Some crack without ever seeing signs of over heating. But it could contribute to the problem.

It seems that the culprit of head cracking is unmaintained cooling systems and poor casting/design from Ford. I would suspect that switching over to headers wouldn't fully prevent this from happening, really the only 'fix' is better casted heads (eg. World Products) if you have a cracked head. And if you haven't cracked one yet, make sure the cooling system is free of leaks, coolant is fresh, and that it's in good working order.

IMO, best thing you could do to monitor your cooling system is to install an aftermarket temperature gauge.

FWIW, It's likely that in the event of installing the headers, the exhaust bolts will snap off into the heads. I am not sure if that's something you'd like to get into...

I don't want to discourage you from this , if you want headers, do it. And I agree, headers will help with venting some heat, but I am not sure that's going to help much when the head itself is the flaw. Exhaust is going to get hot as hell no matter what.

Pete

Edit:
Side note, and the heads always tend to crack on the #1 and #6 cylinders. The heads are interchangeable from left to right, #1 and #6 are the same cylinders. To me, IMO, this sort of debunks the possibility that the manifold is the main cause of it.

 

[projectAtoB]

just so you know

no one has talked about the manifold bolts breaking. its not the end of the world or anything if it happens, but i have never taken any off that no bolts break in the head just be preparred.

 

[Southern_Trendkill]

I have a set of pacesetters sitting in my closet because I haven't gotten around to installing them yet. The deal is, my exhaust manifolds are rusty as hell, and the right one has a hole in it. Am I better off trying to throw on the headers, or just buying an exhaust manifold?

 

[rickcdewitt]

use a lot of spray penetrant on the bolts for a week prior to getting into it.the threaded end of the bolt is accessable make sure you hit it well.

you won't gain hardly any noticable power so its up to you if you want to do it or sell them towards something you will notice like a lift or tires!

 

[Ric]

My 88 BII had half of the manifold bolts on both sides broken. There is no rust here either. I broke a couple trying to tighten them. As soon as I applied real torque to close the airspace on them, they'd snap.

Those bolts scare the hell out of me now. I dont want to install headers just because I know the bolts are beyond brittle now. I suppose you could take it to a real mechanic and have them worry about tapping and using heli-coils when they bust your bolts.

 

[Sunk]

Last year when swapping motors in my old truck I broke all but 2 bolts in the exhaust manifolds. After about 5 snapped, I gave just a little more torque on purpose since I figured snapping them all would be quicker, and I didn't give a crap about the motor.

 

[jaymegriffiths]

Edit:
Side note, and the heads always tend to crack on the #1 and #6 cylinders. The heads are interchangeable from left to right, #1 and #6 are the same cylinders. To me, IMO, this sort of debunks the possibility that the manifold is the main cause of it.

from what I've heard, the exhaust manifolds are flipable. this could still make the #1 cylinder and #6 cylinder have the same manifold design and possibly be an influence. im gonna say its not the cause but maybe part of it

 

[Rangermilitia]

from what I've heard, the exhaust manifolds are flipable. this could still make the #1 cylinder and #6 cylinder have the same manifold design and possibly be an influence. im gonna say its not the cause but maybe part of it

so what you are saying is that i can take my driverside manifold and put it on the passenger side? just to clarify to me, because i'm pretty sure you cant Flip the manifolds

 

[IRKillroy]

all I know is that you need to think of your engine as an air pump.

do whatever you can do to improve the flow of air through the engine (Air box,throttle body, plenum, runners, heads, valves, exhaust) more efficiently.

you can get a larger throttle body, which is the most restrictive on a 2.9, then port match all your runners (use a gasget to do this) then port match your intake ports on the heads (gasket again) then do a 3 angle valve job, and port match your exhaust ports...

now these are in order of air flow. the most important are intake exhaust first... just think about where the largest restriction is and open it up... port matching isn't as important as the throttle body at first... and your entire exhaust system at that... once you know you have an unrestricted intake and exhaust (off of the engine) then you can think about tearing your engine apart in order to port match stuff.

the reason so many people don't get the feel they expect from the 2.9 is most likely 'cause the throttle body is so damn small that the exhaust flow increase will only go as far as that most restrictive point.

I'm rambling, it's 2:30 am... if I repeated myself I'm sorry, I just hope this helps you out in some way.