i am frustrated with Bob of TMH. i have been trying to get him to build me a set of his newest edition, the 1-1/2 to 1-5/8 stepped headers for my Mounty. we have talked on numerous occasions over the last 4 months and i still have no real date. communication is terrible. he has never called me back and 1 out of 10 times i try to call, he picks up. to his credit, he told me he wouldnt take a penny or promise shipment until he had a perfect set of headers. but i am putting my new engine in in 1 month and i need some friggin headers and the standard TM's won't flow enough.
well, necessity is the mother of invention, so i decided to come up with my own design. i did this before on my 351w based mounty project and it turned out well, so i thought i would give it a go with the 302 engine. so, i started by measuring and building the engine and engine bay obstructions in CAD. then, i designed my headers in 3D. gotta say they are pretty nice! i used a 1-5/8 primary to a 4 in 1 collector with a 2-1/2 exit, 2 bolt flange and a ball flange gasket donut. they exit near where the stockers do, but without a set of stockers in hand, measuring through the wheel well openings is the best i could do. doesn't really matter, because to take advantage of these headers, i will need a custom 2-1/2 y-pipe. the pipes all run down from the head flange. none of this up and over crap and no 2 piece bolt together primaries.
i am very satisfied with the clearances around parts and there are no kinks around the steering shaft. the DS header should go in easy enough with only disconnecting the steering shaft from the column and swinging it out. the PS header may be more difficult. hard to tell without actually trying it. it may have to go in from below by removing the starter, which wouldnt be so bad. the only sticky point is i dont think the dipstick will route through its normal path, but a SN95 mustang dipstick might work. easy enough to mess with after the fact.
ok, so my question here is would anyone be interested in buying a set of these for their 2nd gen? it would be nice to have an alternative to TMH, but i won't put in the extra effort to test, productionize and have them professionally built if there aren't any takers. this isn't a call for money or commitment, just an indication of potential customers. i will do my best to keep prices in line with the competition, so plan on 700-800 for a set with all the hardware and gaskets. maybe even a new dipstick and tube if needed. 1 size will fit all for these head flanges...same as every other aftermarket mustang header on the market. i think even the bung for EGR would be there regardless. i would just sell a longer flexible EGR tube separately (since the location would be farther away than the stocker).
here are some teaser pics of the model...
well, necessity is the mother of invention, so i decided to come up with my own design. i did this before on my 351w based mounty project and it turned out well, so i thought i would give it a go with the 302 engine. so, i started by measuring and building the engine and engine bay obstructions in CAD. then, i designed my headers in 3D. gotta say they are pretty nice! i used a 1-5/8 primary to a 4 in 1 collector with a 2-1/2 exit, 2 bolt flange and a ball flange gasket donut. they exit near where the stockers do, but without a set of stockers in hand, measuring through the wheel well openings is the best i could do. doesn't really matter, because to take advantage of these headers, i will need a custom 2-1/2 y-pipe. the pipes all run down from the head flange. none of this up and over crap and no 2 piece bolt together primaries.
i am very satisfied with the clearances around parts and there are no kinks around the steering shaft. the DS header should go in easy enough with only disconnecting the steering shaft from the column and swinging it out. the PS header may be more difficult. hard to tell without actually trying it. it may have to go in from below by removing the starter, which wouldnt be so bad. the only sticky point is i dont think the dipstick will route through its normal path, but a SN95 mustang dipstick might work. easy enough to mess with after the fact.
ok, so my question here is would anyone be interested in buying a set of these for their 2nd gen? it would be nice to have an alternative to TMH, but i won't put in the extra effort to test, productionize and have them professionally built if there aren't any takers. this isn't a call for money or commitment, just an indication of potential customers. i will do my best to keep prices in line with the competition, so plan on 700-800 for a set with all the hardware and gaskets. maybe even a new dipstick and tube if needed. 1 size will fit all for these head flanges...same as every other aftermarket mustang header on the market. i think even the bung for EGR would be there regardless. i would just sell a longer flexible EGR tube separately (since the location would be farther away than the stocker).
here are some teaser pics of the model...
