im stumped just like you charger... that never made sense to me either

 

I know I have the answer to that one bookmarked. I just have to find it again. I'll let you know, but that is correct. Long tubes give you more torque better low end. Tri-y's even better.

 

I looked at Tri-Y's ...and I can't find one that is legal in California ...blah!

It's either shorty's or long tubes for me ...probably shorty's cuz I don't want to have to take it to a shop.

 

Grey ghost did you ever find that info you mentioned?

 

I've heard the same thing about the long tube versus shorty headers, I just can't find any evidence online (yet).

 

do the tri -y's give more torque than the long tubes

 

Local shop in my town quoted me for a set of edelbrock shorties for $340.00, but I really need some low end power due to the 3.42 rear end. Wonder how much more I am looking at for longtubes?

 

Shorty Headers - pressure is equalized sooner....torque relies on pipesize restrictions and muffler....smoother torque curve
Long tubes - just the opposite....Use at track with oversized exhaust to move more gas. HP is more important at the track because you spend more time in the upper RPM range.....Irratic torque curve to get you off the line



Sounds good to me.

 

you are right Cracker, Long Tubes are more for mid-high range, like at the track they flow more air.Shorties are not much different from what we have now, they are lighter and flow better than stock

 

i also found this on a other forum. The advantage of long tube headers is that it allows more of a terminal velocity for your exhaust gases to escape the engine. It creates sort of a twister affect compared to shorty headers. The quicker the exhaust gases escape the cylinders, the more hp it helps create. The shortys are a quick route out of the cylinders but allow the gases to bottle neck a little and create more back pressure which in turn can reduce the hp by as much as 20hp compared to the long tube headers in most cases. The equal length shortys give you the convience of shorty headers and the hp gaines of long tubes. They are in my opinion the best answer. There is normally only a 3-5 hp gain between long tubes and equal length shortys. You will not feel that little bit of hp in a street car in my opinion that much.

What I am trying to say is this. Shorty's give you maybe 10-15 hp.
Equal Length Shorty's 20-30 hp
Full Lengths 20-35 hp