Hi all,
I recently purchased a 2004 Supercrew 5.4 and I am in a serious competition with my bro and cousin with trucks. It seems we move from one hobby to the next. Anyhow, they have Powerstroke diesels and have recently done some mods that have made them pretty quick. Being a competitive person i want to kick there butts still and I have ordered and AF1 intake, Flowmaster Dual exhaust, & superchips power programer. I was wondering if Headers really add extra performance and which ones add the most? Any feedback would be greatly appreciated and I will keep all posted when the big race goes down!

Thanx,
John

 

I take it this isn't a very exciting topic or a question that has been asked a lot juding by the amount of replies I have gotten.

John

 

Sell the flowmasters and buy some magnaflows. Run a true dual setup with high-flow cats. Get a good set of shorty headers (JBA is a good place to start), and then buy some electric fans. You'll run, but if they're chipped with exhaust, good luck staying with 'em.


Welcome to the site
-Flea

 

Flea,
Thank you so much for the info. They are chipped, but no exhaust. I new going into this that I have the chips stacked against me, but that's ok, that's how I like it. How difficult is it to install headers and do I run a high risk of exhaust leaks? I think if there are any good shops that do that line of work, then I will pay someone else to do it, just to try and assure the quality of work.

Thanx again,

John

 

They're a pain to get in. Make sure you install good gaskets, because they'll be back out in a year for new gaskets otherwise. You might be able to hang with them if you do full exhaust and have your chip custom burned. You may need it custom burned because of your headers (causes a lean condition on some engines, like mine did), which will give you even more power (only 5-10 extra hp). Good luck.

 

If you're serious about racing anyone in a supercrew, save the $1,000 or so that you'll piddle away on typical bolt-ons and use it as partial investment in an aftermarket supercharger kit. Yes, your question is asked alot, but it's still interesting.

 

Thanks for the useful reply.
I gotta say I agree that I don't think headers on these vehicles would really add any extra performance, but then again, what would I know. I would love to add a supercharger to my truck, (I pondered an ATI) but, the consequences scare me. The truck barely has 3,000 miles on it right now and I would void the warranty by adding the kit. Also, fuel prices are so outrageously expensive now and I have to drop sixty bucks every time I fuel up. My roomate from college just dropped a GReddy turbo kit into his rice burner and it frickin smokes. Sure does tempt me.
Do you think adding this kit would take away the practicality of the vehicle? I tow every once in awhile and I often travel from extremely warm to extremely cold climates. Does this affect the driveability of the vehicle?

You guys rock,

John

 

You're Welcome !

quote: "Do you think adding this kit would take away the practicality of the vehicle? I tow every once in awhile and I often travel from extremely warm to extremely cold climates. Does this affect the driveability of the vehicle?"

No, it's the most practical way to achieve your goal. You'll just tow better. You'll go faster between climates. A quality system that is properly tuned will not kill your mileage or negatively affect the drivability.

 

Thanks again for the info. I think I'm going to get some good exhaust and then look into a supercharger kit. Thankfully, I am an engineer for a construction company that provides me with a work vehicle, so that helps keep the cost of fuel down. However, I still don't make a lot of money so it will be a bit of a strain on the wallet. I think it will be worth it though to see the look on my brothers face when I take his monster down!!!
Do you know of any shops that do a good job installing and tuning superchargers? I think I could probably do it myself, but I fear that I won't know how to tune it or won't do the quality of work that I want done. You've been great!

Thanx again,

John

 

John,
That entire situation sounds interesting. Centrifugal superchargers are easy for the backyard mechanic to install. Others require more intake disassembly. The good thing about installing a kit is that you get everything you need, thorough instructions, and technical advice which makes the installation straightforward. The kits that use a "chip" calibrated for the system already have the tuning R&D done and you just plug and play. When you're ready to proceed, I would call Crash (our aftermarket supercharger supporting vendor) and poke around over on his website. He has all the contacts and has been know to travel for installs as well. Keep us updated.

 

THank you so much for all of the help. It has been greatly appeciated.

-John

 

Anytime ! Good luck with your endeavor.

 

Are those powerstrokes your running against the new 6.0's? If they are you WILL need a supercharger to run with them. I have an 03' F350 Crew Cab 4x4 that's on the edge juice with an AFE intake and straight-piped exhaust and the power is freaking amazing. I haven't had mine at the track yet but many comparable trucks are running low 14's in the 1/4. I love our supercrew and it's pretty quick but it would need some forced induction to pull 14's. Good luck and keep us updated.

Corey

 

I'm definately and underdog. Both are 04 Supercrew's 6.0's with the edge and aftermarket exhaust and intake. My brothers truck is actually the slower one, but it still hauls ***. My cousins truck has a chip called the accelerator which is supposed to make it 600 horse. Had to have a special tranny make for the increase in ponies. I wanna take my bro down first before I try and step up to the big dog. Both launch in four wheel drive too. Seems like that would be hard on the vehicle, but man they sure do pin you to the seat when the take off. I'll keep everyone updated when the big day goes down.

John

 

Toanyone who may have been following my race wars,
I have decided to hold off on the blower for now, (weanied out cuz truck is still very new) and just go with bolt ons. Tonight I installed my first mod which was a superchips tuner for my 2004 supercrew. It was awesome! I really gotta say that I was impressed with how much more alive the truck is. It wasn't like bolting on a blower, but it really did wake the vehicle up. I have it tuned for premium fuel right now and even with my 33 in tall toyo's it still barks them pretty good off the line. I have an appointment made a week from this saturday to get my exhaust installed and I'm on a waiting list for an AF1 intake from Mike Troyer. Thanks for the R&D on the new superchips module Mike, you the man.

I'll keep everyone posted on how all the upgrades go, plus improvements. I have private drag spot with a quarter mile strip that my old roomie and I are going to test her on this weekend. That way I'll be able to provide times with just the tune, then exhaust, then the AF1 intake, and any other bolt ons you guys suggest. To everyone that has helped me, you rock!

John