2in ramhorns or shorty headers

[crm318]

i have a 78 swb chevy sport van and im trying to piece together an exhaust system for it. i was thinking about shorty headers or 2 in ramhorns. either way, they have to be short because im going with chrome perferated side pipes and after the engine, the exhaust will be making a sharp 90 degree turn. i hear that ramhorns flow as good as shorties but does that go for 2 in ramhorns and not the 2.5 ones. what ever i do, im ditching the log style manifolds it currently has. what do yall think?

[airdale94]

Lets see some pics. I use to have a 76 SWB back in the day.

[crm318]

here are some

[special-K]

Wow!That`s too much.I like headers,but the ramshorns flow real good.They are a performance design.But,the 2 1/2s are what you need for header-like flow.Do you need that?Do I?

[crm318]

i sure wouldnt mind more flow. the motor will be a mild efficient highway cruiser that wont see over 4000 rpm.

[Longhorn Man]

if it won't go over 4000 RPM, then there's really no need for the headers.
Besides, shorties suck. You get the PITA of headers, with the performance of a manifold.
(minimal gains unless you get the real expensive ones)
The long tube headers would make the torque that you need with a 2 1/2 ton brick (or is there a water bed in there... if so, make it a 3 ton brick) rolling.

[airdale94]

Wow! Nice looking van. And rust free! Must be the Texas climate. My 76 was rusted out even back in 85'

[eedgell]

I would go with any variation of stock manifolds that you can. Headers of any kind cause as much problem as they fix in DD aplication. Headers are good for racing. Manifolds are good for every day use.IMO

['68 longbed]

i'd have to think headers would be an added headache in a van that tends to be a bit of a headache to do work on anyway. in terms of spark plug and wire changes

[ChevLoRay]

Having the engine directly beneath the instrument panel does cause some ease of access issues, doesn't it? Best way to change plugs is to put it on a rack and do it from underneath. Headers may complicate that. Dual exhaust from stock manifolds, whether original or ram's horn, may make more difficult. But the stock manifolds, where the plugs are beneath the bulk of the manifold, may offer easier maintenance. Putting side pipes on it will give it that 70's look that the rest of it already has. I'd be sure to have an exhaust balancing pipe/x-pipe as part of the system to maximize the available torque. It may be that you won't have enough room for it to be done, though.

Oh, nice short.

['68 longbed]

the motor I just put in my truck came from a 77 vanbody rv, the manifolds that it had were great in the sense that they stayed underneath the plugs and left a ton of room for plug change. while the rams horns are above the plugs and are a little bit of a pain on the last two plugs. almost used those manifolds but they looked like they might shoot into the firewall, and i didn't have time to experiment and redo my exhaust

[wibilly]

imo ramhorns are the way to go