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2000 Ford Mustang Gt Mustang Burning Rubber

2000 Ford Mustang GT Kooks Headers And X-Crossover

We Pick Up 30 RWHP With The Addition Of Kooks Long-Tube Headers And X-Crossover.
From the January, 2010 issue of Muscle Mustangs & Fast Fords
By Michael Galimi
2000 Ford Mustang Gt Mustang In Air
We're back for more. This... 
   
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2000 Ford Mustang Gt Mustang In Air
We're back for more. This month we swapped in a set of Kooks long-tubes and a 3-inch X-crossover in search of more power. We gained 30 rwhp and 11 rwtq.
The past few issues we have been following a supercharged 2000 Mustang GT as it received a new set of Trick Flow Twisted Wedge Street/Strip 4.6L cylinder heads, the latest Anderson Ford Motorsport (AFM) F82 camshafts, and a larger ProCharger D1SC centrifugal blower. The '00 GT is fairly basic with a built short-block (cast crank, forged rods and pistons) and the aforementioned induction components. The heads were worth 34 rwhp over CNC-ported OEM heads, and we finished at 571 rwhp.

2000 Ford Mustang Gt Kooks Custom Headers
Kooks Custom Headers hooked... 
   
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2000 Ford Mustang Gt Kooks Custom Headers
Kooks Custom Headers hooked us up with a set of stepped headers, which go from 1 3/4-inch to 1 7/8-inch and feature a 3.5-inch collector. The larger tubes help the engine breath easier through better exhaust flow, expansion, and scavenging.
Since we couldn't end on a sour note, we are back at it. Our original goal for this issue was to add a ported Fox Lake P-51 intake and also have the company run our TFS heads through its CNC-machine. That would help our engine ingest more air and get to our goal of 7,500 rpm.

2000 Ford Mustang Gt Kooks 3 Inch X Crossover
In addition to the long-tubes,... 
   
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2000 Ford Mustang Gt Kooks 3 Inch X Crossover
In addition to the long-tubes, we ordered a Kook's 3-inch X-crossover. It is designed to mate to a 2.5-inch after-cat exhaust with the ball/socket flange. It is also designed to attach to the collector in the same manner but the racier Kook's stepped headers have a 3.5-inch collector, which isn't designed for the ball/socket setup.
Deadlines prevented us from adding the ported heads and intake, so we focused solely on upgrading to the Kooks long-tube headers. We made two changes since the car was dyno-tested last issue; the first was the addition of a ProCharger eight-rib blower pulley setup. The unfortunate part was that ProCharger's smallest blower pulley is 3.40 inches, while our six-rib one was 3.20 inches. That meant our baseline would have less boost through the entire curve.

2000 Ford Mustang Gt Spike Inside Collector
Inside the 3.5-inch collector... 
   
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2000 Ford Mustang Gt Spike Inside Collector
Inside the 3.5-inch collector is a spike, which helps straighten the exiting gases and promotes better scavenging.
We had high hopes for the long-tube conversion and larger X-crossover due to the supercharged nature of this Mustang."The shorty headers are not worth it," said Dezotell. "They are a major restriction at 500 rwhp and here we were trying to push 600 rwhp as well as rev the engine to 7,500-both goals were not previously achieved and we hoped this exhaust would help us remedy flaws in our system." These headers are of the stepped variety, which means the header tubes start at 1 3/4 inches and then open to 1 7/8 inches-more on that in a bit.

2000 Ford Mustang Gt Bungs In Collector
Kooks includes bungs in the... 
   
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2000 Ford Mustang Gt Bungs In Collector
Kooks includes bungs in the collector for the 02 sensor. The company also includes 02 wire extensions due to the placement of the sensor further down in the system.
2000 Ford Mustang Gt Removable Tube
Kooks designed each header... 
   
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2000 Ford Mustang Gt Removable Tube
Kooks designed each header to have one removable tube. This is done to make the installation of the long-tubes easier.
2000 Ford Mustang Gt Step In Header
Here is a photo of the step... 
   
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2000 Ford Mustang Gt Step In Header
Here is a photo of the step in the header as it starts at 1 3/4-inch and steps up to 1 7/8-inch. The step helps the exhaust gases expand, which in turn enables it to move quicker through the tube.
2000 Ford Mustang Gt 02 Sensor Bungs
The new Kooks X-crossover... 
   
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2000 Ford Mustang Gt 02 Sensor Bungs
The new Kooks X-crossover includes 02 sensor bungs for those who are running catalytic converters. If that is the case, then the rear 02 must be employed. Those who are running without cats, for off-road use only, the rear 02s must be turned off in the tune and the bungs plugged.
2000 Ford Mustang Gt Comparison
Here is a comparison of the... 
   
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2000 Ford Mustang Gt Comparison
Here is a comparison of the size difference between the two pipes.
2000 Ford Mustang Gt X Crossover Comparison
On the left is the old 2.5-inch... 
   
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2000 Ford Mustang Gt X Crossover Comparison
On the left is the old 2.5-inch X-crossover and the right is the Kooks 3-inch unit.
2000 Ford Mustang Gt Remove K Member And A Arms
Most shops remove the K-member... 
   
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2000 Ford Mustang Gt Remove K Member And A Arms
Most shops remove the K-member and A-arms to access the headers from the bottom-side. It is the easiest way to swap headers in a mod motor application. Machie had the front suspension out in about one hour.
2000 Ford Mustang Gt Header Installation 2
Attacking the header install... 
   
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2000 Ford Mustang Gt Header Installation 2
Attacking the header install from the underside makes it much easier.....
2000 Ford Mustang Gt Header Installation 3
.....Machie removed one tube... 
   
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2000 Ford Mustang Gt Header Installation 3
.....Machie removed one tube from each header as he bolted them on rather effortlessly.

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