3vze complete exhaust
01-31-2010, 07:21 PM
#249
Registered User
mak92-4rnr,
are you still having rattling problems with your exhaust?
i had the same trouble with mine, and although i do not have headers, i took the cat off and ran a cheap flowmaster or borla knock-off muffler(single in, dual out) and went into dual 3 inch tips on the driverside in front of the rear wheel.
i have the same noise, but it continues all the way up into the 4k-5k range(letting off going down mountains and gearing down as well). i have checked everything, and the only thing i can figure is that it might be caused from less back pressure? kinda like the noise that comes from a glasspack, but it is a much smoother rasp? does that sound like a good description of the rattling?
are you still having rattling problems with your exhaust?
i had the same trouble with mine, and although i do not have headers, i took the cat off and ran a cheap flowmaster or borla knock-off muffler(single in, dual out) and went into dual 3 inch tips on the driverside in front of the rear wheel.
i have the same noise, but it continues all the way up into the 4k-5k range(letting off going down mountains and gearing down as well). i have checked everything, and the only thing i can figure is that it might be caused from less back pressure? kinda like the noise that comes from a glasspack, but it is a much smoother rasp? does that sound like a good description of the rattling?
01-31-2010, 07:23 PM
#250
Registered User
mak92-4rnr,
are you still having rattling problems with your exhaust?
i had the same trouble with mine, and although i do not have headers, i took the cat off and ran a cheap flowmaster or borla knock-off muffler(single in, dual out) and went into dual 3 inch tips on the driverside in front of the rear wheel.
i have the same noise, but it continues all the way up into the 4k-5k range(letting off going down mountains and gearing down as well). i have checked everything, and the only thing i can figure is that it might be caused from less back pressure? kinda like the noise that comes from a glasspack, but it is a much smoother rasp? does that sound like a good description of the rattling?
(sorry for the repost, dummy me changed the font color to whtie in the first post haha)
are you still having rattling problems with your exhaust?
i had the same trouble with mine, and although i do not have headers, i took the cat off and ran a cheap flowmaster or borla knock-off muffler(single in, dual out) and went into dual 3 inch tips on the driverside in front of the rear wheel.
i have the same noise, but it continues all the way up into the 4k-5k range(letting off going down mountains and gearing down as well). i have checked everything, and the only thing i can figure is that it might be caused from less back pressure? kinda like the noise that comes from a glasspack, but it is a much smoother rasp? does that sound like a good description of the rattling?
(sorry for the repost, dummy me changed the font color to whtie in the first post haha)
02-08-2010, 09:32 AM
#251
Registered User
Is it common to have O2 sensor issues when you put headers on the 3VZE, and if it is, what is the common fix for it? I assume this would take care of any mixture issues also?
I am starting to consider putting headers on my '92 Xtra cab, especially after reading all 10 pages of this post, and am just trying to figure out everything that I will need. I want to get everything I need in advance, all at once, and then just bring it to a custom exhaust shop.
Any estimation on what total cost would for a shop to do it, soup to nuts, I'm talking pulling the manifolds off and everything? I know I'm looking at like around $600 for the headers alone.
I used to have the time to rip into all this stuff when I was younger. When I had my '88 in High School I spent all my time and money modding that thing, had 3" of lift, 33" BFG's, sick system with subs in it, dropped 4.88's in it eventually.....always dreamed of doing headers on it back then. 20 years later with a house, kids and working 50-60 hours a week, you end up with more money than time.
I'd love to do it myself but reality doesn't allow it, enjoy the free time while you can. Still I refuse to drive around in some lame grocery getter, and enjoy nothing more than driving my truck.
I only have 100K on my truck and hate the idea of heating up that #6 cylinder, and just waiting for a HG to pop, so I want to get that stock crap exhaust off of there and get some headers on, plus there's the added performance benefit.
Just looking for everything that I will need to get it done all at once.
Thanks.
Awesome post by the way, probably the only one over 7 pages that I've read every thread on. Sweet exhaust Mak!!
Later.
I am starting to consider putting headers on my '92 Xtra cab, especially after reading all 10 pages of this post, and am just trying to figure out everything that I will need. I want to get everything I need in advance, all at once, and then just bring it to a custom exhaust shop.
Any estimation on what total cost would for a shop to do it, soup to nuts, I'm talking pulling the manifolds off and everything? I know I'm looking at like around $600 for the headers alone.
I used to have the time to rip into all this stuff when I was younger. When I had my '88 in High School I spent all my time and money modding that thing, had 3" of lift, 33" BFG's, sick system with subs in it, dropped 4.88's in it eventually.....always dreamed of doing headers on it back then. 20 years later with a house, kids and working 50-60 hours a week, you end up with more money than time.
I'd love to do it myself but reality doesn't allow it, enjoy the free time while you can. Still I refuse to drive around in some lame grocery getter, and enjoy nothing more than driving my truck.
I only have 100K on my truck and hate the idea of heating up that #6 cylinder, and just waiting for a HG to pop, so I want to get that stock crap exhaust off of there and get some headers on, plus there's the added performance benefit.
Just looking for everything that I will need to get it done all at once.
Thanks.
Awesome post by the way, probably the only one over 7 pages that I've read every thread on. Sweet exhaust Mak!!
Later.
02-08-2010, 10:02 AM
#252
Registered User
Thread Starter
having a shop do it? think about it... most mechanics charge 70-90 bucks an hour and it took me a day and a half to accomplish it on myself.
the reason the O2 sensor acts up is because it is moved from the stock position ( which is closer up the downpipe near the motor ) to the middle/rear of the truck. it has to be run like this because thats where the headers meet. if you order the header kit, it comes with a rather long Y pipe... you can cut that Y pipe and make it a helluva lot shorter, and it might correct this issue.
If you have kids? maybe doing this on your own is a good idea? get your boys ( if you have any ) involved and spend a knowledgeable project with them?
as far as parts you'll want to have. Get a muffler and tip of your choice, this is key because obviously the muffler is what result of sound you'll get. I went with 2.25" piping and a 3" tip. I also went with a borla turbo style muffler... ( it was 150 bucks ) but you can get a magnaflow for like 80 and probably get close to the same result in sound. if you want something more throaty and loppy... get a flowmaster. my muffler and tip both have 2.25 inlets. the muffler has a 2.25 outlet and the tip has a 3" outlet.
these headers are a huge increase, you'll be surprised how much of a difference is made...
also, one last thing, you probably wont get the same result in sound as I do because I have a test pipe in place of my catalytic converter. ( very illegal, dont do it unless you wanna take the risk like me ) but it'll be loud either way.
the reason the O2 sensor acts up is because it is moved from the stock position ( which is closer up the downpipe near the motor ) to the middle/rear of the truck. it has to be run like this because thats where the headers meet. if you order the header kit, it comes with a rather long Y pipe... you can cut that Y pipe and make it a helluva lot shorter, and it might correct this issue.
If you have kids? maybe doing this on your own is a good idea? get your boys ( if you have any ) involved and spend a knowledgeable project with them?
as far as parts you'll want to have. Get a muffler and tip of your choice, this is key because obviously the muffler is what result of sound you'll get. I went with 2.25" piping and a 3" tip. I also went with a borla turbo style muffler... ( it was 150 bucks ) but you can get a magnaflow for like 80 and probably get close to the same result in sound. if you want something more throaty and loppy... get a flowmaster. my muffler and tip both have 2.25 inlets. the muffler has a 2.25 outlet and the tip has a 3" outlet.
these headers are a huge increase, you'll be surprised how much of a difference is made...
also, one last thing, you probably wont get the same result in sound as I do because I have a test pipe in place of my catalytic converter. ( very illegal, dont do it unless you wanna take the risk like me ) but it'll be loud either way.
02-08-2010, 10:38 AM
#253
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where's best place to buy headers for the 3VZE (they used to be like 350$) and i know putting thme on yourself is time consuming but how "hard" is it to do? Is it simply unbolting and pullin things out etc.
02-08-2010, 10:49 AM
#254
Registered User
Yeah in NY it's more like $100-$110 an hour for labor, but the way I look at it they get paid for a reason. I figure a professional shouldn't take any longer than 6-8 hours on something like this, the manifolds off and headers on that is, the custom pipes and buttoning it up I figure would be another couple of hours.
I used to work for Nissan years ago, and they had an exahust manifold recall (well really a "campaign") on their VZ30 and VZ33 engines, used in the pickups and Pathfinders, they used to warp and crack pretty badly, I still hear them driving by me loud as hell every now and then. Anyway that was a bear of a job, especially on the VG30, you almost always snapped 2 or 3 studs in the heads, and the first time I did it it took me 6 hours start to finish. After a while I got it down to about 4 hours. I don't do this for a living anymore, hence the zero time for it.
So figuring the guy doing it might have never done this on a 3VZE before, so I figure in the extra time and I was figuring on like an additional $800-$1K in labor on top of parts.
My kids aren't old enough to even say the word truck (or any words for that matter), plus it's my DD and I don't have the time for it to be down for longer than a day, wish I did.
But since I'm not planning on doing it myself, I want to have everything ready for the guy when I show up with the truck, I don't want to get any calls about this and that doesn't fit or this or that piece is wrong, or we are missing this or that and I have to order it and it won't be here for 2 days, or some other BS. So I want to get it all first, then get it put in....done.
Honestly my biggest concern is getting the heat off that #6 cylinder and possibly saving myself from ever popping a HG,(they've been done already by Toyota). The performance increase will be nice of course, and a nice sounding exhaust will be too, but knowing that that crapola exhaust is gone will make me feel a ton better. I swear that is the damn stupidest exhaust I have ever seen in my life!! Put that together with the stock intake on this motor and you just sit there like WTF, how is this a Toyota??? Hahaha, I mean I love them, but seriously they should be more apologetic about this intake and exhaust than the damn stupid gas pedal recall thing.....it's straight up crap!
I used to work for Nissan years ago, and they had an exahust manifold recall (well really a "campaign") on their VZ30 and VZ33 engines, used in the pickups and Pathfinders, they used to warp and crack pretty badly, I still hear them driving by me loud as hell every now and then. Anyway that was a bear of a job, especially on the VG30, you almost always snapped 2 or 3 studs in the heads, and the first time I did it it took me 6 hours start to finish. After a while I got it down to about 4 hours. I don't do this for a living anymore, hence the zero time for it.
So figuring the guy doing it might have never done this on a 3VZE before, so I figure in the extra time and I was figuring on like an additional $800-$1K in labor on top of parts.
My kids aren't old enough to even say the word truck (or any words for that matter), plus it's my DD and I don't have the time for it to be down for longer than a day, wish I did.
But since I'm not planning on doing it myself, I want to have everything ready for the guy when I show up with the truck, I don't want to get any calls about this and that doesn't fit or this or that piece is wrong, or we are missing this or that and I have to order it and it won't be here for 2 days, or some other BS. So I want to get it all first, then get it put in....done.
Honestly my biggest concern is getting the heat off that #6 cylinder and possibly saving myself from ever popping a HG,(they've been done already by Toyota). The performance increase will be nice of course, and a nice sounding exhaust will be too, but knowing that that crapola exhaust is gone will make me feel a ton better. I swear that is the damn stupidest exhaust I have ever seen in my life!! Put that together with the stock intake on this motor and you just sit there like WTF, how is this a Toyota??? Hahaha, I mean I love them, but seriously they should be more apologetic about this intake and exhaust than the damn stupid gas pedal recall thing.....it's straight up crap!
02-08-2010, 10:59 AM
#255
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yeah i hear ya, i was just wondering how hard a job it is, whereas i have little mechanical expeirence but i know some relatives could give me hand. Here in NS most labor costs are around $50 - $70 and hour, which really isn't too bad compared to NY
02-08-2010, 11:14 AM
#256
Registered User
Thread Starter
if you're planning on getting someone to do it. order a muffler, tip and headers. you might have to go two places though. my mechanic only touches mechanical parts ( engine accessories ) so you'd probably have to take the exhaust to a exhaust shop. i drove around with just my crossover on. and it was rather loud, but fun. 
haha
remember i spent 1200 on my exhaust... is your exhaust really worth 2200 bucks? labor will be your outcome here... its probably cheaper to do it yourself. but if you insist on having someone do it, go for it
haharemember i spent 1200 on my exhaust... is your exhaust really worth 2200 bucks? labor will be your outcome here... its probably cheaper to do it yourself. but if you insist on having someone do it, go for it
02-08-2010, 11:19 AM
#257
Registered User
Yeah I guess it's all based on your resources. If you have the time and patience, then that's way better than paying somebody. When I was a kid I did EVERYTHING myself, but I had a ton of time and NO money. Honestly it was just straight fun too, so I never even considered having anybody else do anything.
I mean like 85% of doing stuff to cars/trucks is just unbolting and bolting, but it's also a matter of knowing what to unbolt and how to do it also. When I first started working on cars for a living, as a kid in High School, I remember the old mechanic at the shop telling me a sort of joke/old story to explain labor and knowledge, that I'm sure many guys have heard, about a guy coming in and all that was needed to fix his car was one bolt, and the bill was $100.....$1 for the bolt and $99 for knowing where to put it and how to put it in.
But when you don't have the time, you pretty much don't have the patience either, and then there is nothing enjoyable about it, it is just a pain in the butt.
And to answer your question boxmaker, this is well known to be one of the biggest pain in the A$$ jobs to do, but if you have the time then what does it matter? To me not having the time is way more of a pain in the A$$ than doing the job. The time is the hard part for me, not the job itself.
I mean like 85% of doing stuff to cars/trucks is just unbolting and bolting, but it's also a matter of knowing what to unbolt and how to do it also. When I first started working on cars for a living, as a kid in High School, I remember the old mechanic at the shop telling me a sort of joke/old story to explain labor and knowledge, that I'm sure many guys have heard, about a guy coming in and all that was needed to fix his car was one bolt, and the bill was $100.....$1 for the bolt and $99 for knowing where to put it and how to put it in.
But when you don't have the time, you pretty much don't have the patience either, and then there is nothing enjoyable about it, it is just a pain in the butt.
And to answer your question boxmaker, this is well known to be one of the biggest pain in the A$$ jobs to do, but if you have the time then what does it matter? To me not having the time is way more of a pain in the A$$ than doing the job. The time is the hard part for me, not the job itself.
Last edited by mmcpeck; 02-08-2010 at 11:24 AM.
02-08-2010, 11:25 AM
#258
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yeah i wouldn't take it to a shop, thats for sure.
Oh, are downey headers basically the same as doug thorley? i found a set on ebay for $450
Also here in NS if your vehicles older then '92 you don't need a cat, which is sweet (i currently don't have one) and the emission testing, if any isn't very strict compared to california (depending on where you get your vehicle inspected)
Oh, are downey headers basically the same as doug thorley? i found a set on ebay for $450
Also here in NS if your vehicles older then '92 you don't need a cat, which is sweet (i currently don't have one) and the emission testing, if any isn't very strict compared to california (depending on where you get your vehicle inspected)
02-09-2010, 08:08 AM
#259
i did the work myself and although it was a pain in the a$$, I know I will be a lot happier driving my truck and when future problems arise I wont need to go back and pay to get it fixed. Order Doug Thorley headers it comes with the FULL kit and detailed instructions for the installation. cant get any easier! You CAN do this in less than a day!
02-09-2010, 08:13 AM
#260
I believe they are designed different but not sure... a couple reasons why Mak and myself went with Thorley is because they are rated to be one of the best and probably the only 50 state legal header made for our 4Runners. California has strict air laws.
i got my doug thorley headers shipped for $530. i would say spend the extra $80-$100 and go with the best!
