Texas-Speed Header and OR X-pipe install and review
03-26-2013, 10:35 AM
#1
Drifting
Thread Starter
Texas-Speed Header and OR X-pipe install and review
I installed a set of the Texas-Speed 1 3/4" longtube headers and their off-road 3" X-pipe over the weekend and I wanted to post some thoughts on the exhaust itself as well as the install experience for those considering this option in comparison to XS Power or more expensive brands like Kooks, LG, AR, etc.
The headers and x-pipe were on sale at TSP, and I ended up getting the exhaust, all clamps and gaskets, and 2 Racetronix O2 extensions for about $820 shipped to my door. Everything showed up well packed and in great shape. The headers and x-pipe are polished 304 stainless and look very nice...here's a couple pics...
Weld quality also looked to be pretty good...
I got the stock H-pipe and both exhaust manifolds out with relative ease (Car is a 2002 Z06). I pulled the plug wires, coil packs, and alternator for starters, just to have an easier time getting to all the bolts. I unbolted the ground strap to the block on the driver's side, and I was ready to install the DS header up from the bottom.
***NOTE: I decided to completely remove my AIR pump and all associated piping, tubing, and bracketry. The TSP headers do not have provisions for AIR, and I don't have to pass emissions so I decided to remove it and pack it away should I ever want to return the car to stock. The AIR tubes unbolt from the stock manifolds via 2 10mm bolts. In order to get the complete piping assembly out, you will need to pull the intake manifold (or at least unbolt it and slide it forward, like I did) to get to a 13mm bolt in the back of the DS cylinder head that holds the bracket down. You do not need to completely remove this bolt, because the bracket is U-shaped and the bolt doesn't completely capture the bracket...just loosen it a couple turns and pull the bracket, and then tighten it back up. Once it's loose, take your time and snake the AIR piping all the way out of the car. The AIR pump itself can be removed via an access panel just forward of the drivers side front tire...it is mounted via 3 rubber plugs that just slide out of the bracket they are in. One electrical connector to unplug, and one other small vacuum tube remove and cap. You should be able to remove the pump and all the tubing now. One last thing to complete...remove the large rubber tube from your air intake that leads to the AIR pump, and cover the hole. ****
The DS header went in up from the bottom with ease. I did have the car probably 22-24" in the air just to make things as easy as possible. Once I had the header in place, I installed one bolt in one of the center holes to hold it in place, and then positioned the gasket behind the hole closest to the front of the car and installed that bolt. Once it was started, I removed the bolt in the middle hole, and slid the gasket behind the header flange and started the rest of the bolts. Its a bit tedious, but went pretty smoothly. I found it helpful to remove the vacuum tube from the brake booster and tuck it up out of the way to have more room to get to the rear bolts closest to the firewall. One piece of advice here: don't tighten the header bolts all the way up yet...leave them fairly loose so that the header will still wiggle. This will be helpful when it's time to slide the x-pipe on.
At this point, you should go ahead and install the O2 sensor in the DS header. You can go ahead and install the wiring extension and plug everything up. I used some zip-ties to get all the wiring tucked up and out of the way, free from any contact with the header primaries.
Here's a pic of the DS header installed. Not the greatest angle to see clearance to the steering shaft, but it's adequate. It is fairly close, though.
For the passenger side header, I found it necessary to remove the valve cover. It's quick and easy, though...just 4 bolts to remove. You will also want to remove the dipstick tube, which is held in place by 1 bolt in the side of the head. The header installed very easily from the top on this side, and everything was quite a bit easier to get at with all the additional room.
It is very important to go ahead and install the O2 sensor in the PS header now, while the header is completely loose. This is the one issue I had with these headers...the O2 installed on the PS side is hitting the tunnel on the underside of the car. If you don't install the sensor now, you will not be able to install it after you get all the header bolt snugged up. The angle that the O2 bung is installed really should have been slightly lower...there is plenty of clearance. Still, I was able to get it to work. As with the DS, go ahead and plug in the extension and route your wiring up and out of the way, using zip ties to hold things in place.
Here's a pic of the passenger side header installed...
The TSP off-road X-pipe is a nice piece, and it's 3" which can be a plus. It is also made of 304 polished stainless, and looks fantastic. Here's a quick pic...
Getting the x-pipe slid onto the headers was probably the most difficult part of this swap, honestly. Things just did not seem to line up perfectly, and it took a bit of "convincing" with a pry bar in a couple places to get things slid on. One thing that worked for me was to apply a thin layer of Vaseline on the surfaces that would be sliding over each other. Once I finally got the x-pipe "started" on the 2 header collectors, I was able to get it slid up a good way.
The slip-fit nature of this system leaves you the ability to adjust at multiple points...either at the header collectors, or at the connector pipes that mate up to the axle-back. Here's a pic of the pipes I'm referring to...
And one last pic of the welds...
You can also see where the system necks down from 3" to the stock 2.5" in that last pic, just before the flange. These tubes went on easily, and lined right up with the stock Ti exhaust. I expected to need a significant amount of adjustment to get the exhaust tips lined up, but really there was very little to be done. My PS tips were inboard a little farther than the DS, so I went back under the car and tapped the slip-fit back out toward the rear of the car about an inch, and everything looked perfect.
At this point, you can go back under the car and tighten all the band clamps on the X-pipe and associated piping, and then tighten the header bolts all the way. Reinstall everything you removed if you haven't already, and you're done with the exhaust install. Don't forget to reinstall your dipstick tube!
I should give a shout-out to ECS for the mail order tune they sent me via email...I already had HPTuners, so I requested a mail order tune to be sent to me over email, which they were happy to oblige. I emailed them my OEM tune, they made the necessary adjustments, and sent it back to me for me to load back into the PCM. Because I removed the AIR components, I needed all AIR associated codes deleted out, as well as codes for rear O2 sensors, CAGS, and anything else you might need (rear gears, tire size, etc). ECS also adjusts the tune itself for any mods you may have, such as air intake (I have a Callaway Honker), headers (obviously), throttle body, intake, etc. So I had a great experience with them and their tune worked as advertised.
The car is slightly louder at idle with a much better tone. It's really not as loud as I expected it to be, especially with no cats, but I'm good with it since the car is going to be my daily driver. It does sound great when you rev it...almost like an exotic. I haven't gotten to drive the car since the install...we got snow here the day I finished up and the weather has been nasty ever since.
That's about it, I think. If anyone has any questions, I'd be glad to help out as best I can. Overall, I'm pleased with the TSP system given the price and overall quality of materials. There were a few things that could have been done better, but overall it's an excellent piece and outstanding value.
The headers and x-pipe were on sale at TSP, and I ended up getting the exhaust, all clamps and gaskets, and 2 Racetronix O2 extensions for about $820 shipped to my door. Everything showed up well packed and in great shape. The headers and x-pipe are polished 304 stainless and look very nice...here's a couple pics...
Weld quality also looked to be pretty good...
I got the stock H-pipe and both exhaust manifolds out with relative ease (Car is a 2002 Z06). I pulled the plug wires, coil packs, and alternator for starters, just to have an easier time getting to all the bolts. I unbolted the ground strap to the block on the driver's side, and I was ready to install the DS header up from the bottom.
***NOTE: I decided to completely remove my AIR pump and all associated piping, tubing, and bracketry. The TSP headers do not have provisions for AIR, and I don't have to pass emissions so I decided to remove it and pack it away should I ever want to return the car to stock. The AIR tubes unbolt from the stock manifolds via 2 10mm bolts. In order to get the complete piping assembly out, you will need to pull the intake manifold (or at least unbolt it and slide it forward, like I did) to get to a 13mm bolt in the back of the DS cylinder head that holds the bracket down. You do not need to completely remove this bolt, because the bracket is U-shaped and the bolt doesn't completely capture the bracket...just loosen it a couple turns and pull the bracket, and then tighten it back up. Once it's loose, take your time and snake the AIR piping all the way out of the car. The AIR pump itself can be removed via an access panel just forward of the drivers side front tire...it is mounted via 3 rubber plugs that just slide out of the bracket they are in. One electrical connector to unplug, and one other small vacuum tube remove and cap. You should be able to remove the pump and all the tubing now. One last thing to complete...remove the large rubber tube from your air intake that leads to the AIR pump, and cover the hole. ****
The DS header went in up from the bottom with ease. I did have the car probably 22-24" in the air just to make things as easy as possible. Once I had the header in place, I installed one bolt in one of the center holes to hold it in place, and then positioned the gasket behind the hole closest to the front of the car and installed that bolt. Once it was started, I removed the bolt in the middle hole, and slid the gasket behind the header flange and started the rest of the bolts. Its a bit tedious, but went pretty smoothly. I found it helpful to remove the vacuum tube from the brake booster and tuck it up out of the way to have more room to get to the rear bolts closest to the firewall. One piece of advice here: don't tighten the header bolts all the way up yet...leave them fairly loose so that the header will still wiggle. This will be helpful when it's time to slide the x-pipe on.
At this point, you should go ahead and install the O2 sensor in the DS header. You can go ahead and install the wiring extension and plug everything up. I used some zip-ties to get all the wiring tucked up and out of the way, free from any contact with the header primaries.
Here's a pic of the DS header installed. Not the greatest angle to see clearance to the steering shaft, but it's adequate. It is fairly close, though.
For the passenger side header, I found it necessary to remove the valve cover. It's quick and easy, though...just 4 bolts to remove. You will also want to remove the dipstick tube, which is held in place by 1 bolt in the side of the head. The header installed very easily from the top on this side, and everything was quite a bit easier to get at with all the additional room.
It is very important to go ahead and install the O2 sensor in the PS header now, while the header is completely loose. This is the one issue I had with these headers...the O2 installed on the PS side is hitting the tunnel on the underside of the car. If you don't install the sensor now, you will not be able to install it after you get all the header bolt snugged up. The angle that the O2 bung is installed really should have been slightly lower...there is plenty of clearance. Still, I was able to get it to work. As with the DS, go ahead and plug in the extension and route your wiring up and out of the way, using zip ties to hold things in place.
Here's a pic of the passenger side header installed...
The TSP off-road X-pipe is a nice piece, and it's 3" which can be a plus. It is also made of 304 polished stainless, and looks fantastic. Here's a quick pic...
Getting the x-pipe slid onto the headers was probably the most difficult part of this swap, honestly. Things just did not seem to line up perfectly, and it took a bit of "convincing" with a pry bar in a couple places to get things slid on. One thing that worked for me was to apply a thin layer of Vaseline on the surfaces that would be sliding over each other. Once I finally got the x-pipe "started" on the 2 header collectors, I was able to get it slid up a good way.
The slip-fit nature of this system leaves you the ability to adjust at multiple points...either at the header collectors, or at the connector pipes that mate up to the axle-back. Here's a pic of the pipes I'm referring to...
And one last pic of the welds...
You can also see where the system necks down from 3" to the stock 2.5" in that last pic, just before the flange. These tubes went on easily, and lined right up with the stock Ti exhaust. I expected to need a significant amount of adjustment to get the exhaust tips lined up, but really there was very little to be done. My PS tips were inboard a little farther than the DS, so I went back under the car and tapped the slip-fit back out toward the rear of the car about an inch, and everything looked perfect.
At this point, you can go back under the car and tighten all the band clamps on the X-pipe and associated piping, and then tighten the header bolts all the way. Reinstall everything you removed if you haven't already, and you're done with the exhaust install. Don't forget to reinstall your dipstick tube!
I should give a shout-out to ECS for the mail order tune they sent me via email...I already had HPTuners, so I requested a mail order tune to be sent to me over email, which they were happy to oblige. I emailed them my OEM tune, they made the necessary adjustments, and sent it back to me for me to load back into the PCM. Because I removed the AIR components, I needed all AIR associated codes deleted out, as well as codes for rear O2 sensors, CAGS, and anything else you might need (rear gears, tire size, etc). ECS also adjusts the tune itself for any mods you may have, such as air intake (I have a Callaway Honker), headers (obviously), throttle body, intake, etc. So I had a great experience with them and their tune worked as advertised.
The car is slightly louder at idle with a much better tone. It's really not as loud as I expected it to be, especially with no cats, but I'm good with it since the car is going to be my daily driver. It does sound great when you rev it...almost like an exotic. I haven't gotten to drive the car since the install...we got snow here the day I finished up and the weather has been nasty ever since.
That's about it, I think. If anyone has any questions, I'd be glad to help out as best I can. Overall, I'm pleased with the TSP system given the price and overall quality of materials. There were a few things that could have been done better, but overall it's an excellent piece and outstanding value.
03-26-2013, 09:29 PM
#2
Intermediate
Member Since: Dec 2011
Location: Argo Alabama
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Thanks for posting this! Great pics and information. The headers look good, price looks even better. With this particular system being so new, it definitely helps to see and hear from someone who has installed them. I'll be anxious to hear what you have to say after driving with them. I am highly interested in these headers and will probably get them soon. Also curious to know if anyone else here has installed them.
03-26-2013, 11:19 PM
#5
Safety Car
Hopefully more people realize these headers are no longer mild steel. They've definitely got my eye. Did you get any pics of how the O2 sensors fit?
03-27-2013, 07:06 AM
#7
Le Mans Master
I have the ceramic coated ones in mild steel from years ago. They are starting to rust where the AC drips onto the collectors so I was thinking of replacing the old ones with the new ones. I had to make the holes in the tunnel plate larger to accommodate the O2 sensors. I was kinda hoping that they would have fixed this part. I was going to put a thicker plate on when I change out the pipes but I dont want to have to drill that one too.
03-27-2013, 02:13 PM
#8
Racer
Member Since: Jan 2009
Location: TX
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I bought mine about a year and half ago. I had to grind my steering shaft a little where it rubbed the headers and cut off the front of my tunnel plate to make room for the o2 sensors (I drilled a hole for one and my bit got too worn out so it was easier to just make one clean cut across the plate, lol), but for the price I was impressed. Mine are starting to rust in the same place as Baxsom's. I'm fixing to do motor mounts so I'll see if that was the reason for my clearance problems with the steering shaft. They make some good power compared to some of the other sets people have around here.
03-27-2013, 02:49 PM
#10
Instructor
Member Since: May 2012
Location: Charleston WV
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This kind of upsets me a little. I received my LG's in the mail today.. Before I ordered the LG's I called Texas Speed to see if/when they would offer an off road X pipe with their headers and was told that they were working on it but it would probably be at least a month. With that information and went ahead and spent the extra coin on the LG's so I could have them before warm weather season got started.. Wonder when they added the off road X pipe on their site?? Crap :/ Oh well, $331 bucks difference after shipping isn't THAT bad..
Last edited by srooper1980; 05-01-2013 at 02:03 PM.
03-27-2013, 09:20 PM
#11
Drifting
Thread Starter
This kind of upsets me a little. I received my LG's in the mail today.. Before I ordered the LG's I called Texas Speed to see if/when they would offer an off road X pipe with their headers and was told that they were working on it but it would probably be at least a month. With that information and went ahead and spent the extra coin on the LG's so I could have them before racing season got started.. Wonder when they added the off road X pipe on their site?? Crap :/ Oh well, $331 bucks difference after shipping isn't THAT bad..
I drove the car today, and I'm really, really pleased with the sound. It absolutely growls/snarls when accelerating. Sounds awesome. Doesn't drone or anything when cruising, either. I'm super happy. Leaned into it coming out of a curve and almost got sideways...really impressed with the power increase.
03-31-2013, 04:02 PM
#12
Drifting
Thread Starter
Finally got a chance to take some more pics...
Here's an undercar shot take from the rear bumper...
And one to show ground clearance. They really do tuck up very well.
Another taken from the same spot, but to show more of the underside.
And finally, the shot of the O2 sensors. You can clearly see where the passenger side O2 hits the floorboard. The wires are clear and aren't pinched, and the header bolts lined up and went in fine, so I didn't sweat it too much, but clearly there is room fro TSP to change the angle of the sensor down a bit to allow for more clearance.
Here's an undercar shot take from the rear bumper...
And one to show ground clearance. They really do tuck up very well.
Another taken from the same spot, but to show more of the underside.
And finally, the shot of the O2 sensors. You can clearly see where the passenger side O2 hits the floorboard. The wires are clear and aren't pinched, and the header bolts lined up and went in fine, so I didn't sweat it too much, but clearly there is room fro TSP to change the angle of the sensor down a bit to allow for more clearance.
03-31-2013, 06:02 PM
#14
Drifting
Thread Starter
Yeah I think I probably will. Kind of ridiculous, in my opinion. This is a 25k mile Z06, by the way. I guess if the motor mounts were a little more worn out, there might be more room? LOL
04-01-2013, 02:10 AM
#16
Safety Car
Was going to say, if you drive the car, that one will wear through the wires in short order. I suggest loosening things up, removing the sensor and with a 2" or so hole saw, releive that area. You will be glad you did.
And by all means, let them see the issue. A simple tweak to their process to fix.
Ron
And by all means, let them see the issue. A simple tweak to their process to fix.
Ron
04-01-2013, 08:15 PM
#17
Drifting
Thread Starter
Got a response from Jason at TSP today. He says that the area where the O2 sensor is hitting is just heat shielding, and should be cut away. I guess a lot of people run their wiring up through there as well...
Would have been nice to know before I started.
Would have been nice to know before I started.
04-01-2013, 11:36 PM
#18
Safety Car
That's a lame *** answer. Your sensors are rubbing into the tunnel plate, no cutting should be required on a properly designed part. The factory didn't hack holes in there and I don't hear about people with ARHs chopping up their tunnel plate. What about the people with aftermarket insulated plates?
04-02-2013, 01:30 AM
#19
Instructor
That's a lame *** answer. Your sensors are rubbing into the tunnel plate, no cutting should be required on a properly designed part. The factory didn't hack holes in there and I don't hear about people with ARHs chopping up their tunnel plate. What about the people with aftermarket insulated plates?
04-02-2013, 07:36 AM
#20
Le Mans Master
The TSPs and X pipe I installed 2 years ago required two holes in the tunnel plate to clear. There is no way they sensors would have not worn through the wires otherwise. Afterwards it is all fine so if I wanted to keep the stock tunnel plate I could get these easily but if I pull the pipes off again I am getting a thicker plate to go back on. Im not drilling that all out again.