In preparation for my Magnum Powers supercharger install, I've been looking for a set of long tube headers to maximize my power gains. I am well aware of the type of gains that can be made from a good set of long tube headers.
Enter American Racing Headers and their long tube headers for the 4.0:
https://americanracingheaders.com/products/jeep-1998-2006-tj-4-0l-long-system
I was fortunate enough to stumble upon these guys (@ImpactOrange is the one who turned me onto them).
I had a hour long conversation with the Nick, the owner of American Racing Headers today. First off, I just want to add that Nick is a super nice guy. We talked in-depth about headers, the crappy stock exhaust system on the TJ, and how all of the Banks and other "headers" out there for the TJ were made in China.
He was telling me how Golen has been running their 4.0 long tube headers on their engines for a while now and been doing dynos with them. On supercharged engines they were making upwards of 35hp, while on stock engines they were getting around 20hp.
Another cool thing is that Nick was telling me that these things are made out of such good, high quality metal that he said every single set is guaranteed for as long as you own the vehicle. He was talking about how one of the reasons they made them in the first place was because he had seen so many of the stock exhaust manifolds cracking on 4.0s, that he finally brought his buddied TJ into the shop and built a set of headers for it.
He was putting a lot of emphasis on the fact that these things won't crack, even off-road, and if they do, they'll give you a new set, no questions asked.
One thing he also really focused on is how the collector on these things was designed right, and that it has a 6 into 1 merge collector with tube routing for rotational firing sequence.
Rotational firing is what some refer to as a "sequenced header". Put simply, the pipes join in a square of four into the collector in sequence with the firing order and spiral around in a circle. This makes for a smooth torque band. There are headers out there that are not sequenced and still work, but provide a much more "wavy" (for lack of a better word) torque band and don't work as well.
He really wanted me to understand that American Racing Headers isn't just some outfit that throws together some headers and calls it a day. Extensive research has gone into these headers, and all of it is done in house at their facility in Long Island, New York. He put a lot of emphasis on the fact that none of their stuff is made in China. All of these TJ headers are hand-built and made-to-order.
Some of the features of the headers are:
Yes, the price is up there, but considering that you'd probably pay $2000 to $3000 for an exhaust shop to build you a set of custom long tube headers, their price isn't actually that bad.
I'll be installing a set of these after the supercharger install, and my plan is to do both before-and-after dynos with and without the headers, so I can see what kind of gains I make with them. Based on the numbers Golen has been making with them, I expect I'll be able to pick up around 30 extra wheel horsepower with them... we'll see.
Mine should take a few weeks to build, but once I get them I'll be sure to post photos, and share the dyno graphs to see what kind of power gains I can make.
In the meantime, I'm just happy these guys are making headers for the 4.0s. Hell, I'm happy whenever I hear about a new product for our old 4.0s! Nick had mentioned that if any of you guys are from New York (@cliffish), he would love to have you come by the shop, check them out, and see the facility.
Last we spoke, Nick said he was going to join the forum, so he may jump in on this thread (hopefully)!
Also, Nick was telling me that if there is enough interest in these headers, he'd be happy to run a group buy on the forum for a discounted price.
Enter American Racing Headers and their long tube headers for the 4.0:
https://americanracingheaders.com/products/jeep-1998-2006-tj-4-0l-long-system
I was fortunate enough to stumble upon these guys (@ImpactOrange is the one who turned me onto them).
I had a hour long conversation with the Nick, the owner of American Racing Headers today. First off, I just want to add that Nick is a super nice guy. We talked in-depth about headers, the crappy stock exhaust system on the TJ, and how all of the Banks and other "headers" out there for the TJ were made in China.
He was telling me how Golen has been running their 4.0 long tube headers on their engines for a while now and been doing dynos with them. On supercharged engines they were making upwards of 35hp, while on stock engines they were getting around 20hp.
Another cool thing is that Nick was telling me that these things are made out of such good, high quality metal that he said every single set is guaranteed for as long as you own the vehicle. He was talking about how one of the reasons they made them in the first place was because he had seen so many of the stock exhaust manifolds cracking on 4.0s, that he finally brought his buddied TJ into the shop and built a set of headers for it.
He was putting a lot of emphasis on the fact that these things won't crack, even off-road, and if they do, they'll give you a new set, no questions asked.
One thing he also really focused on is how the collector on these things was designed right, and that it has a 6 into 1 merge collector with tube routing for rotational firing sequence.
Rotational firing is what some refer to as a "sequenced header". Put simply, the pipes join in a square of four into the collector in sequence with the firing order and spiral around in a circle. This makes for a smooth torque band. There are headers out there that are not sequenced and still work, but provide a much more "wavy" (for lack of a better word) torque band and don't work as well.
He really wanted me to understand that American Racing Headers isn't just some outfit that throws together some headers and calls it a day. Extensive research has gone into these headers, and all of it is done in house at their facility in Long Island, New York. He put a lot of emphasis on the fact that none of their stuff is made in China. All of these TJ headers are hand-built and made-to-order.
Some of the features of the headers are:
- 065 wall 1-5/8” tubing (1-3/4” Primaries Available for Supercharged and Performance Built Engines)
- Unique to ARH 6 into 1 merge collector with tig welded Scavenger Spike
- Tube Routing for Rotational Firing Sequence
- Gains of 20 RWHP (or more with Cold Air Intake pre-installed)
- Guaranteed to NEVER crack
- Works great from Bone Stock to Modified or Supercharged
- Direct Fit to Catback (most models)
- 100% Made in the USA - Never Outsourced
- Made entirely of 304 stainless steel
- 3/8" thick laser-cut flanges for a warp-free seal
- Optimized primary tube routing for superior fit and performance
- Catted systems feature 200 cell metallic substrate catalytic converters for extreme durability
Yes, the price is up there, but considering that you'd probably pay $2000 to $3000 for an exhaust shop to build you a set of custom long tube headers, their price isn't actually that bad.
I'll be installing a set of these after the supercharger install, and my plan is to do both before-and-after dynos with and without the headers, so I can see what kind of gains I make with them. Based on the numbers Golen has been making with them, I expect I'll be able to pick up around 30 extra wheel horsepower with them... we'll see.
Mine should take a few weeks to build, but once I get them I'll be sure to post photos, and share the dyno graphs to see what kind of power gains I can make.
In the meantime, I'm just happy these guys are making headers for the 4.0s. Hell, I'm happy whenever I hear about a new product for our old 4.0s! Nick had mentioned that if any of you guys are from New York (@cliffish), he would love to have you come by the shop, check them out, and see the facility.
Last we spoke, Nick said he was going to join the forum, so he may jump in on this thread (hopefully)!
Also, Nick was telling me that if there is enough interest in these headers, he'd be happy to run a group buy on the forum for a discounted price.
