Macs vs. LT's
Thread Starter
Teching In
Joined: Aug 2006
Posts: 46
Likes: 0
From: Norman Oklahoma
Macs vs. LT's i currently have mac mids and ORY. based off my mods listed in sig as well as curr RWHP numbers, what kind of gain could i expect over current numbers from Macs? dont get me wrong, the Macs sounds great, and pack a punch for what i paid for em. But im wondering if some QTP's/Kooks/SLP's wont stout up that 368 i put down.....advice needed. worth the upgrade or not? thanks.
from all i have seen mids or shorties on an Ls1 dont do very much compared to Lts especially with the cam you have in sig,i bet you will pick up 3 or more tenths with Lts in fact you can look up my buddy(mike m)use search function and you will find his posts about his header discovery QTP,kooks and TTS are the way to go on LS1s.
i went through this exact senario I switched to Kooks 1 3/4- 1 7/8 stepped headers from my Ported and ball flange removed Mac's. This was on my old motor with a 231/237 cam and a set of AS 5.3 stage 2.5 heads. I think my peak gain was 1 hp but i did gain around 16 hp lower in the powerband and also gained some torque. I also have to say that i did not have a great catback at the time which probably didn't help my peak #'s!! would i do it again YES The Kooks are a very nice header and i still use them on my 408. Also the kooks will sound much better than your mac's.
TECH Senior Member
Joined: Nov 2001
Posts: 10,341
Likes: 1
From my experience you will pick up next to nothing at peak and will gain a bit at lower rpms. Through the 4000-6500rpm range you might gain 2-4RWHP. Not worth the cost unless your MACs are getting rusty and you need to replace them.
I ran 122.9mph through MACs NA with stage 1 heads/cam and ran 124.7mph with a powerdyne blower through MACs with bone stock motor. Those were with stock ball flanges etc etc.
Ground clearance with the MACs is awesome too. You will miss the ground clearance with LTs especially if you are lowered.
Better places to spend your money for HP imo
I ran 122.9mph through MACs NA with stage 1 heads/cam and ran 124.7mph with a powerdyne blower through MACs with bone stock motor. Those were with stock ball flanges etc etc.
Ground clearance with the MACs is awesome too. You will miss the ground clearance with LTs especially if you are lowered.
Better places to spend your money for HP imo
I agree with CHRISPY
Although I am very happy with my Edelbrock 1-3/4 stepped to 1-7/8 LT headers the gains from them verses the MACs were not worth it unless you are looking for every bit of HP/ET from your setup.
Looking at your setup info I think I would bolt on a pair of TEA budget heads for around ~$1000 before I spent $800+ on a set of high end headers. You will get a lot more HP per dollar spent.
John
Although I am very happy with my Edelbrock 1-3/4 stepped to 1-7/8 LT headers the gains from them verses the MACs were not worth it unless you are looking for every bit of HP/ET from your setup.
Looking at your setup info I think I would bolt on a pair of TEA budget heads for around ~$1000 before I spent $800+ on a set of high end headers. You will get a lot more HP per dollar spent.
John
On The Tree
Joined: Jan 2005
Posts: 174
Likes: 0
From: Hubert, NC
At 1st I wasn't going to do the switch but will be swapping out soon. I am changing over to LT's and a TSP true duel set up, seen the results 1st hand on the dyno from my friends SS, he picked up A LOT of torque( 21 ft lbs) and just a few HP(8 rwhp).
Trending Topics
Originally Posted by Pewter99T/A
yes im hearing alot of good things about the kooks. any chance i can get to 380 from where im at now by upgrading to kooks/slp/qtp, etc?
LS1 Tech Stories
The Best V8 Stories One Small Block at Time
6 Common C5 Corvette Failures and What's Involved In Repairing Them
Pouria Savadkouei
Retro Modern Bandit Pontiac Trans AM Comes With Burt Reynolds' Autograph
Verdad Gallardo
Top 10 Greatest Cadillac V Series Performance Models Ever, Ranked
Pouria Savadkouei
Top 10 Most Powerful Chevy Trucks Ever Made!
Hennessey's New Supercharged Silverado ZR2 Has 700 HP
Verdad Gallardo
Coachbuilt N2A Anteros Is an LS2-Powered C6 Corvette In Italian Clothes
Verdad Gallardo
Awesome K5 Blazer Restomod Comes With C7 Corvette Power
Verdad Gallardo
10 Camaros You Should Never Buy
10 LS Engine Myths That Refuse to Die
Verdad Gallardo
dont waste money on headers, get a tune and get that thing at the power level it should be, that power is low and the tune is what is hurting you, headers will only make the tune worse
Thread Starter
Teching In
Joined: Aug 2006
Posts: 46
Likes: 0
From: Norman Oklahoma
Originally Posted by WS6FirebirdTA00
dont waste money on headers, get a tune and get that thing at the power level it should be, that power is low and the tune is what is hurting you, headers will only make the tune worse
Maybe a solid tune and swap heads?
Well we shall see hopefully this week what the difference reallly is on my car. I had unmodified mac and went to pacecetter combo. I felt the ball flanges and the y were hurting the power a bit. I wont know until I dyno/retune. I will let everyone.
PS I did have to port the pacesetter y at the merge. I hope they all dont come that way. That is BS.. If everyone looks like what I saw and is installed without any work you are leaving a bunch on the table.
John
PS I did have to port the pacesetter y at the merge. I hope they all dont come that way. That is BS.. If everyone looks like what I saw and is installed without any work you are leaving a bunch on the table.
John
Originally Posted by CHRISPY
From my experience you will pick up next to nothing at peak and will gain a bit at lower rpms. Through the 4000-6500rpm range you might gain 2-4RWHP. Not worth the cost unless your MACs are getting rusty and you need to replace them.
I ran 122.9mph through MACs NA with stage 1 heads/cam and ran 124.7mph with a powerdyne blower through MACs with bone stock motor. Those were with stock ball flanges etc etc.
Ground clearance with the MACs is awesome too. You will miss the ground clearance with LTs especially if you are lowered.
Better places to spend your money for HP imo
I ran 122.9mph through MACs NA with stage 1 heads/cam and ran 124.7mph with a powerdyne blower through MACs with bone stock motor. Those were with stock ball flanges etc etc.
Ground clearance with the MACs is awesome too. You will miss the ground clearance with LTs especially if you are lowered.
Better places to spend your money for HP imo
I made 399RWHP through my macs. IMHO, they are VERY underrated.
Originally Posted by gillbot
+1
I made 399RWHP through my macs. IMHO, they are VERY underrated.
I made 399RWHP through my macs. IMHO, they are VERY underrated.
I made 398rwhp also. but what surprised me was the torque 409
. I like the ground clearance too. I just needed to try the LT and go from there. +2
John
I would say I lost about 3/4 to 1 inch max. I thought it was going to be more, but it is totaly workable in my car and Im lowered 1.5 inches for road racing. The y pipe is the lowest part of the car. But even then, from the side you can barley tell that I have anything done to it. I will say the car pull way better on the top. My tuner struggled to get 400hp, but he came up with a killer torque band with 350ftlbs available at 2600rpm. Will see if what he Lt do for the Torgue number and Hp number. Later John
I'm bumping an old thread, but thought that would be better than starting a new one on the same subject.
First off what do ball flanges have to do with power? I read a couple posts that said they hurt power but that doesn't seem right to me. I like the idea of the ball flanges because I had so many exhaust leaks and problems with the slip-fit pacesetters, it was a headache.
I have already seen what LT's and ORY can do on a past car of mine, want to try the mac midlengths with cats now...Are there any LT's you can use cats with? Thinking back, it doesn't seem like there is any place to stick a cat on that little ORY...
First off what do ball flanges have to do with power? I read a couple posts that said they hurt power but that doesn't seem right to me. I like the idea of the ball flanges because I had so many exhaust leaks and problems with the slip-fit pacesetters, it was a headache.
I have already seen what LT's and ORY can do on a past car of mine, want to try the mac midlengths with cats now...Are there any LT's you can use cats with? Thinking back, it doesn't seem like there is any place to stick a cat on that little ORY...
Already getting out the mods on the new car huh? Maybe you can move that fan in your intake to the end of a y-pipe. Mad horsepower to be had there...lol.
You can run cats in a Y-pipe with the Kooks' headers. I've never had problems with leaks when using stainless band clamps. I do install a ring of RTV before installing all the clamps though. On the other hand I do like the ball flanges on my pacesetter's that are on my V6. Ball flanges have basically infinite adjustment capability...up, down, left, right, etc....
You can run cats in a Y-pipe with the Kooks' headers. I've never had problems with leaks when using stainless band clamps. I do install a ring of RTV before installing all the clamps though. On the other hand I do like the ball flanges on my pacesetter's that are on my V6. Ball flanges have basically infinite adjustment capability...up, down, left, right, etc....