Headers a must with Supercharger?

[cnycomp]

Right now on my 18 I only have a steeda H-Pipe, stock other than that. Im Very happy with how it sounds and really dont want it much louder.

I am planning a supercharger soon. I have read more than once that a supercharger and the catalytic converters dont mix well and they will fail? So I guess that would mean headers. Will it be crazy loud with headers?

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[1crazymach]

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[JakeS550]

Not sure? I haven’t had to put them on mine but here is a thread in the forced induction section https://www.mustang6g.com/forums/showthread.php?t=104428

 

[Braski]

Im planning on sc with stock exhaust with conservited tune!?

 

[WildHorse]

I have read more than once that a supercharger and the catalytic converters dont mix well and they will fail?

How'd you explain every factory supercharged car out there? All have cats. Don't believe what a guy with a chevette has to say lol.

 

[cnycomp]

How'd you explain every factory supercharged car out there? All have cats. Don't believe what a guy with a chevette has to say lol.

Yes you do have a point. I guess what Im wondering is are the factory converters able to stand up to 800hp? Looks like most superchargers are able to do that now on the 18s. Thats what, 350 more hp than they were made to handle?

Im sure the converters on the hellcats and demons and others are made to hold up but what about ours that are made for 460hp?

 

[WildHorse]

There's nothing special with factory convertors on roush Mustangs. I suppose sc'd it may accelerate cat failure.

 

[Nuked]

There is a thing in the tune called CAT Protect. It dumps fuel when the cat temp reaches a certain threshold. The added fuel cools the CAT. Heat is generally what kills them, and there is not much room for error with cars and Cats nowadays. For emissions and fuel economy most OEM's will run the CAT right at the ragged edge of what the manufacturer will guarantee. A lot of engineering goes into it as OEM's have to warranty any emissions component for 10yrs/100k miles.

Stock Cats are typically a lot more robust than the aftermarket offerings. Alex @ Lund had like 100k miles on his stock cats. I can't remember if they gave out finally on one of his videos or if that was someone elses he showed.

TLDR - Keep cat protect on in the tune and they will likely last a decent while. Turn it off and they will be toast.

 

[PTM5.0]

Nuked nailed it. I thought about that same issue for my 2018 that I've ordered a Whipple for and decided to order non-catted headers because I run 1/2 mile competitions. I make 10+ runs a day during half mile runs versus the average guy maybe making 5-6 quarter mile passes at the strip. If you run 1/4 mile, the stock cats should do ok but if you plan on making long pulls they'll fail earlier due to the heat.

 

[Nuked]

Nuked nailed it. I thought about that same issue for my 2018 that I've ordered a Whipple for and decided to order non-catted headers because I run 1/2 mile competitions. I make 10+ runs a day during half mile runs versus the average guy maybe making 5-6 quarter mile passes at the strip. If you run 1/4 mile, the stock cats should do ok but if you plan on making long pulls they'll fail earlier due to the heat.

Yeah for 1/2 mile events I don't really see anyway to make the cats last and the car be at optimal condition. CAT protect will normally hit before you finish a 1/4 mile, you would literally be in it almost the entire back half. You loose a fair amount of HP with it engaged, I think some guys were talking .3 to .4 in the 1/4. That is fairly significant.

 

[Burkey]

Right now on my 18 I only have a steeda H-Pipe, stock other than that. Im Very happy with how it sounds and really dont want it much louder.

I am planning a supercharger soon. I have read more than once that a supercharger and the catalytic converters dont mix well and they will fail? So I guess that would mean headers. Will it be crazy loud with headers?

Here’s what I found in relation to volume...

Started out with a MF Comp axle back. Nice.

Added catted headers (100 cell) and 3” custom section to replace the factory stuff to the axle back. Volume was insane, as was the drone.

Added 18” (thereabouts) hotdog per side. Toned it a little but still ridiculous.

Swapped mufflers to MF Street. All good.

Removed cats completely and added blower, no REAL change in volume. Still nice to the ear. Loud but not stupid loud.

Hope that helps.

 

[olaosunt]

Yeah for 1/2 mile events I don't really see anyway to make the cats last and the car be at optimal condition. CAT protect will normally hit before you finish a 1/4 mile, you would literally be in it almost the entire back half. You loose a fair amount of HP with it engaged, I think some guys were talking .3 to .4 in the 1/4. That is fairly significant.

Hmmm.
.3 to .4 in the 1/4 mile gain you say from just removing cat protection in the tune ?

I would like to test that but don’t see how to do it with the whippple hand held .

The car is gong to gain power from just deleting the cats due to decreased back pressure /cylinder temps /increased exhaust efficiency so it would be hard to know how much of that gain is due to no cat protection in the tune .

 

[Zinc03svt]

Absolutely not. Lol.

 

[Zinc03svt]

But, you must put on a $2000 corsa cat back. .

 

[LethalPerformance]

Headers aren't a must on a forced induction car but will indeed help quite a bit in making more power and allowing to run more efficient. As Nuked mentioned if you plan on keeping the factory cats in place with a forded induction setup you'll want to keep COT on.

With that said even with COT on there is a higher chance of the factory cats failing over time due to the increased heat and pressure they'll see from the higher hp level the car see's.

Typically if you don't go with an obnoxious catback/axleback then the headers won't make the car wicked loud if it's a catted setup. Once you ditch the cats volume will increase and without the cats or resonator in place it's going to be quite louder then with those still on the vehicle.

Always here to help so feel free to reach out if you have any other questions.

Thanks, Jared

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