[FoxBodyfirstplz]

Long story short I have a short BBK catted high flow x-pipe and the longtubes on my car don't fit it. It turns out they aren't even for a Mustang and are melting wires left and right. So I am buying a new set of Longtubes, and looking into Flowtech ceramics because they're super cheap and have ceramic coating. My car has no O2 sensors. They guy I bought it from took them off. What do I need, as far as sensors and extenders? I have been searching and researching and can't find definite answers. I am sooo confused. Can someone help.me out? Thanks I need to order these tonight!

[fogged306]

Just a heads up, the flowtechs leak and the flanges aren't shaped properly, or at least they were on mine. A little welding and grinding and they work, but if you've got ceramic coated ones you're going to be missing the coating where you have to grind it off to weld. Maybe not all are like that, but they're cheap headers and you get what you pay for, so I would expect it. I didn't need extenders for my o2 sensors on mine. The stock wires reached just fine. I may have cut the tape off the harness and pulled them away from the low oil level sensor, but I didn't need to extend them. As far as the sensors, just got stock replacement ones. I had some bosch ones that worked well, I got them at advanced auto I believe.

[FoxBodyfirstplz]

Thanks for the response and advice I appreciate it. I understand that Flowtechs are cheap....would it be better to go with the BBK chromes for a little more money? Or if I get chrome should I just settle for the Summit Racing ones for $130 or Jegs ones for $120? I can't go over $320 for the headers, so what is my best option? And for the O2 that's what I thought but I kept seeing all different things about them....so I had to double check. Are the Flowtechs still worth it for $270?

[fogged306]

I wouldn't bother with the ceramic coated ones. Get the regular ones for $129 or whatever they cost now, and do the necessary modifications to make them work and not leak All you have to do is weld up the slip joints because they fit pretty loose, and grind the tops of the flanges (head side flange) down because they hit the head and wont let the flange seat all the way on the head. It's easy work and they're 3" collectors with a 3 bolt flange on the collector. They're a better design that BBK garbage IMO. I would also hit them with some high temp paint because the coating they come with is like powercoat that they forgot to bake on.

[Mustang Boy]

How did the headers not fit and what are they actually for?

Also what kind of plug wire are you running what angle is the boot on the spark plug end?

[FoxBodyfirstplz]

Sounds like a lot of work my mchanic doesn't wanna do haha. But maybe I will....are they a ball and.socket or slip? Will they even bolt up to BBK mid-x? He will probably be welding.it anyway but he asked me about it and I said I didn't know how they attached. So welding would fix the leaks? And also the headers I have are longtubes that came with the car, likely cannibalized from an older ford with the same engine. They wrap around stuff and don't fit right. Its the same situation with my radiator actually. But I don't know the plug angle. Thanks for the help!

[fogged306]

They're not ball and socket headers, they're 3 bolt flange connectors. Which is a much better connector than the restrictive ball and socket connector. But no, they won't just bolt to your BBK mid pipe. You'll have to use the reducer for them if you're going to keep that midpipe because they're 3" collectors and the BBK is not going to be a 3" piece. You'll have to cut the ball and socket ends off the mid-pipe and weld the reducers on to it. The reducers come with the headers so you shouldn't need any parts unless your mid-pipe isn't the same size as the reducers they give you with the headers.

[jkeyz]

or why not just buy the bbk long tubes?

[FoxBodyfirstplz]

Yeah I was worried about having to modify it all....and yeah I thought about just buying the BBK but people keep saying theyre bad quality, plus theyre chrome and I could have ceramics for less. Also, would I need O2 extenders for BBK? That's the reason I don't just go for them. What part do I need to adapt a BBK midpipe to the flowtech headers? And also, what is the best connection, like what has the least leaks? A ball and socket, 3-bolt flange, or a straight weld? I really need to be able to place one order, receive the parts, and have the shop just bolt or weld pieces together with no major modification. What headers would allow for that? Also, do I definitely need a reducer, like did your flowtechs come with a 2.5"? Because then I should probably order them too haha

[fogged306]

BBK isn't the best quality, but they're better made than the flowtechs. If you're just looking for a header to put on there, then the BBK will be the easiest. The flowtech is designed better IMO. It's basically a knock off of a hooker super comp header. The collector is a much better design, but they take work to get them right, and in your case, the mid pipe will take work to make them fit too. The BBK's won't fall apart after 6 months or anything, they'll last. They'll just make slightly less power in your application, and possibly a good deal less power if you ever upgrade the engine.

[FoxBodyfirstplz]

Ok so I would really rather go with the Flowtechs, I just need to convince either my mechanic to work it out or convince my parents to let me outsource it to my local exhaust shop just for that install. I favor the latter but I know it won't happen, so what does my mechanic have to do as far as cutting/welding? Is he cutting the connectors off the midpipe AND the connectors off the headers and welding on whole new ones? Is he altering the connectors instead? I need to be able to tell him what to do because he doesn't have the time to fiddle with it. Also, what parts would I need other than what comes with the headers? Thanks for all the help I just need to get it straightened out so I can place the order and get this installed. I know nothing about it and my mechanic can't be bothered with spending time on the exhaust on my "hot rod" as he calls it.

[FoxBodyfirstplz]

Alright the issue is resolved and I'm going with the BBK headers. The Flowtechs are just gonna be a huge pain in the ass, and the BBKs can't be much worse if at all except for not being ceramic coated. Will I need O2 extensions?