HP Gains From Headers

[Curtis Riendeau]

Hey guys this is my first post. I picked up a 2015 Corolla S 6MT about 3 months ago. It is slow. I was looking at doing some minor mods to it. btw I am a Toyota Technician so I do my own work

I ordered a short ram intake for it.

I was also looking at exhaust headers.

First off what can I expect from the short ram? a couple HP?

As for the headers what would I see for gains. Im not looking top end power. I want better low to mid rpm for climbing hills and acceleration. and a more throaty sound

Any input would be great.

 

[koby]

Youre going to lose low end power without any engine mods or re-tuning the car after you install intake/ exhaust mods.

 

[JoshTRD]

Hey guys this is my first post. I picked up a 2015 Corolla S 6MT about 3 months ago. It is slow. I was looking at doing some minor mods to it. btw I am a Toyota Technician so I do my own work

I ordered a short ram intake for it.

I was also looking at exhaust headers.

First off what can I expect from the short ram? a couple HP?

As for the headers what would I see for gains. Im not looking top end power. I want better low to mid rpm for climbing hills and acceleration. and a more throaty sound

Any input would be great.

Short ram will make you lose Major Torque and only really perform well in cold weather...the only positives to a short ram is ( the cool sound) my short ram makes me lose MPG because i always have to rev it much more from a complete stop....as for headers i have no input, never had them

 

[HanSolo]

Since you have the 6MT, look into maybe a supercharger combined with equal length headers. The problem will be custom tuning it as it will not be cheap or easy. The right header by itself can net you some increased low and midrange, but the power to dollar ratio is not worth it without doing major mods. It too would also need custom tuning which can cost $500 or more. Either way, your warranty will be getting voided.

 

[Matthew]

Is there even a tuning solution for these cars similar to Ecutek for Subarus? If so, I'd consider a shorty header, probably catless with a cat further down stream and a good flowing magnaflow system with a resonator and muffler. Then replace the filter with a K&N/TRD high flowing filter.

The only thing I would go for on the tune though is MPG. Factory tunes usually leave a lot on the table and with the right parts, you can tweak the car nicely when it can breathe better. Don't expect massive power gains though. It's still a little 1.8L after all. It's not like putting headers on a V8 where you gain 45-50 RWHP.

 

[Curtis Riendeau]

Yeah im not sure if there is a programer for theses cars or not.

Im not looking for 300hp or anything.

Id be happy with 150whp. But i know that would take quite a few mods.

 

[ZeCorolla]

Read this thread:http://www.tunemytoyota.com/forum/showthread.php?t=10681&page=2

He made 151 whp through a couple of simple mods and a tune.

 

[HanSolo]

I do not buy that, but it is not beyond the realm of possibilities. I find it hard to believe that a tune, intake, exhaust, and headers was able to put 151 hp to the wheels. Assuming your standard loss rate for an automatic type transmission of 20% loss by the time it gets to the wheels, a stock 132hp Corolla would be putting about 110hp to the wheels. An intake might gain upto 5hp. An exhaust might gain 1-2hp. A tune might gain 10hp. That would mean that headers on a very small displacement engine gained 20+hp. That would mean that the tune he has is very aggressive and not possibly optimal for daily driving, or the factory manifolds are lousy.

 

[Matthew]

I do not buy that, but it is not beyond the realm of possibilities. I find it hard to believe that a tune, intake, exhaust, and headers was able to put 151 hp to the wheels. Assuming your standard loss rate for an automatic type transmission of 20% loss by the time it gets to the wheels, a stock 132hp Corolla would be putting about 110hp to the wheels. An intake might gain upto 5hp. An exhaust might gain 1-2hp. A tune might gain 10hp. That would mean that headers on a very small displacement engine gained 20+hp. That would mean that the tune he has is very aggressive and not possibly optimal for daily driving, or the factory manifolds are lousy.

I put 198.6 whp to the wheels on my FR-S after a full headerback exhaust, a really good UEL header, and intake after several revisions on the tune. A stock FR-S puts down anywhere from 150-160 whp bone stock. These numbers are possible, but you would need really good bolt ons and most importantly, a killer tuner.

My question is, how the hell did he manage to tune it with a locked ECU? Is he bypassing it? I probably need to read the thread. Also, he probably meant 151 hp to the crank as that would make more sense.

 

[koby]

Im willing to bet a better intake manifold would benefit these cars the most but since aftermarket options are non existent and i cant weld i guess im s.o.l.

 

[HanSolo]

Yeah, I would hope that he meant 151hp at the crank as that is a far more reasonable figure. When you are sitting on a 1.8 litre lawn mower engine, there is only so much you can do without messing with the internals. There is little to gain from n/a engines with a tune simply because manufacturers are trying to get every single hp and mpg as possible while still maintaining reliability and emissions compliance. Boosted engines have more possibilities, but that is almost always because boosted engines are usually tuned conservatively in order to maintain a large margin of safety. When I see factory engines like the MB AMG CLA/GLA45 2.0 litre turbo that makes 355hp, it makes me wonder just how long that engine is going to last.

 

[bandi]

I had a 1985 Toyota Corolla GTS, which I modified back in 1987. I installed a set of stainless steel headers, a two inch low restriction exhaust system, tweeked the air box sensor bias. It would get to 145KM. in the quarter mile and would be able to go up a 5% gradient hill 10km long at a sustained speed of 160KM in 4th gear. It would spin tires through first gear and half way through second gear. Low end torque was amazing as I could be loafing at 70-75KM , in fifth gear,and half throttle would allow me to pass a vehicle and be doing 120Km, by the time I comfortably passed. I unfortunately tried to drive it in Winter, without Winter tires and spun out in third gear, up a hill,( that low end torque,) and crashed the car. The best little sports car I ever had, including a couple of BMWs. So to answer the question of getting low end torque, with headers, I can attest to that.