[Blue Mule]

I'm wondering if replacing my stock catted exhaust with a Hedman header and flowmaster muffler will give some worthwhile gains. Like worth it to spend the money, a feel it in the seat-of-the-pants gain. About $250 for the header, $50-60 for the muffler, whatever it costs for the rest of the exhaust tubing and the cost in labor to have a shop put it in. If all I'm going to gain is 10-15hp, forget it. Already got the Weber carb, DUI distributor and gears done.

[n00bie]

Theoretically it will help, but they really make it sound better. The 10-15 hp is hard to feel but the torque curve changes and makes things easier to drive from what I've noticed on mine.

[00bluedak]

i couldnt tell you about the gains cause i have the same setup that you have but in did it all when i swapped in the motor. mine sounds mean as hell though. i have no cat and turndown behind the axle.

[buzzbrick]

I've got the dual outlet hedman into flowmasters, and the power gain isn't absolutely huge, but paired with the other mods you have it'll be noticable. Plus, it sounds really nice and helps the gas mileage a bit when I'm not winding it up just to hear it

[47redwillys]

I've read that to get the best gain the headers should be part of a system upgrade--headers + ignition + carb, but that's if you can afford all that. Question for those with headers--do you think it is a hazard for them or the mufflers to exit in front of the rear wheels from the fume standpoint?

[Cutlass327]

With my stock exhaust coming straight out the back between the spring and the gas tank I smell the exhaust if the top is open in the rear and if it is down at slower speeds. You may not get that with a side exit. I'm wanting to do something so I don't smell it.. any tips? Not looking for loudness though - stock mufflers are fine.

[EtownCJ5]

Well, don't do what my PO did. Straight down right out of the muffler pointed directly at the pumkin. Not only do I get fumed bad, but I also have a leak from the pumkin from the heat on it.

[wm69]

I added a Weber and Jacobs ign to my Jeep around 1999, which really woke up the 258. In about 2003 I had my engine rebuilt, and had a Borla header put on while the engine was out. Difference has been VERY slight, and given the cost of the header, not worth it IMO.

[scramblerman84]

Cherry bomb Extreme muffler...comes out right in front of my rear tire on the driver side no cat no nothing...my girlfriend says I am deaf in my left ear because of it but holy S!@# I love the way my 258 sounds running down the highway!!!

[JeepHammer]

For a mall cruiser, or daily driver, I would say it is worth the money.

For a real rock beater or trail jeep, not for a second!
I've never had an exhaust system last more than two years, and I'm usually fixing the exhaust several times throughout the year!

Water, mud, rocks, logs, more mud, gravel piles, more rocks....
You get the idea! They just don't last long if you are going to actually WHEEL the vehicles!

[Happy Joe]

Best exhaust mod;
2 1/4 to 2 1/2 inch exhaust and tail pipes + a cheap turbo muffler (without internal neck downs).
Headers (shorty) that do not have around 30" primaries are a waste of money for a low reving engine.
2 1/2" pipes and a good turbo muffler are every bit as good as a shorty header+ flowmaster with stock pipes and nearly as good as a long header + flowmaster with 2 1/2" exhaust.
It can be done at home which further reduces the cost.
Header flanges are a waste of time... Mr gasket header flange gaskets are a bigger waste of time...

My thoughts (after having torn off expensive exhaust) is that exhaust systems on the rocks are only temporarily part of the vehicle and there is no sense putting big $ into them.

My thoughts on cherry bomb mufflers;
They sounded like S**T in the '60s, they still cackled in the '80s and haven't improved (but they are cheap, in every sense of the word, and fun to do muffler explosions with).

Enjoy!

[SuB8HaVeN]

I agree with everyone else, if you're driving it on the road a lot it's probably worth it. If it's a trail rig, the factory exhaust manifold is going to provide plenty of low-end torque. I run the Pacesetter headers with 2" straight through exhaust to a Cherry Bomb glasspack, and I noticed one heck of an improvement, but it was all on the upper end. I was really happy I did it because my CJ sees a lot of highway driving, and the header really helps with 60 to 80 accelerations, something my old 258 took eons to do before. I didn't really notice losing any power in the lower end, but it really comes alive in the upper range now, and it sounds great too.

[73jeep]

It may be worth switching to the late model manifold if you still have the early style. The exhaust manifold flows better and it drops about 40lbs off the jeep.

[Mike Romain]

Originally Posted by Cutlass327

With my stock exhaust coming straight out the back between the spring and the gas tank I smell the exhaust if the top is open in the rear and if it is down at slower speeds. You may not get that with a side exit. I'm wanting to do something so I don't smell it.. any tips? Not looking for loudness though - stock mufflers are fine.

It should take a 45 and swing out between the spring and frame off the corner with a down turned tip on it.

You could cut it, back a bit, and add the 45 fitting there just before the tank so the end goes out the corner and add the tip and be good to go.

[wendell]

The more the engine is built, the more a header will help. The more air and fuel you let in, the more needs to go out as exhaust. I installed a holley 470 TA 4 barrel, offy intake, comp cam, CRT HEI distributer, MSD and a header to let the spent gas out. This summer I'm going to P&P the head with rollor rockers for better flow. The more engine mods you have, the higher the hp gains will be from a header. Sure it will help a stock engine, but it really makes a difference on a built motor. You need all these mods to work in combo with one another.