2rz 5 Lug header and intake install

I am sharing this because this site has been a big help to me and my Taco and figured my experience might help someone else. I found very little info on my search regarding the outcome of trying to free up some real hp on the 2.4 as cheaply as possible so after doing as much research as I could, I decided to go for a header and intake to try and add as much hp as possible for as little money as possible while not making my ‘04 sound ricey. I settled on an intake and doug thorley header. I am pretty impressed. It breathes so much better, especially at speed on the highway! While it was open, I did plugs, a boot kit and a new pcv valve but I am sure the much improved ‘seat of the pants’ feel is mainly from the freer exhaust flow.

Some advice for anyone looking to do this.......A. Only spend the $500 some odd for an intake and header if you can easily afford it. It definitely wasn't a magic 4 banger bullet! But it certainly improved the throttle response and ease of driving at speed, however, if money is tight - probably not worth the money. I would definitely do it again as it has really improved the drive-ability but make sure to have real expectations when starting with a stock 2rz.

B. DEFINITELY get a new crush washer for the header flange/downpipe connection. I tried using the old one and wound up having to replace the worn stocker after the first test drive due to that junction leaking. I also observed a slight exhaust vibration prior to C below.

C. During undo/install of the the new crush washer, I found the system went together much easier when i deleted the exhaust bracket/clamp that attaches to the bell housing. It also got rid of a slight exhaust vibration I detected initially at a low rpm. I just removed the bracket and clamp and added two washers to the bolts going into the housing as they were too long with the bracket removed. This step made it much easier to bolt up the downpipe to the header and after many miles, it appears that there is nothing lost as the clamp/bracket was only a few inches from the header flange and about a foot from an exhaust hanger (appears as if it was totally over engineered).

D. I kept the stock cats and muffler as my research indicated there was only low single digit increases in hp and I was going for bang for the buck while trying to keep quiet. The intake and header on the stock exhaust have produced a deeper tone but definitely not ricey at all. I would definitely consider it an improvement in quality sound - not noise (and this is coming from an owner of past and present muscle cars).

Thanks again for this site as it has helped me improve my Taco in appearance as well as performance. Hope this post can help someone else. Pics attached.

 

Nice work, it looks great!

 

Op Are you concerned that the intake is now exposed in the hot engine bay?

 

Doooode, what kind of intake system is that??? I like the piping... and is that a DT Header?

 

I know colder air is obviously better but in this case, i feel it is a much better application than stock. The stock intake was very restrictive and inefficient. I was going for bang for the buck....and i felt this intake was the best compromise for power/cost.

It is an injen intake and the header is a DT.

 

Thanks for the post. I have not had much luck finding info or products like this either.

Do you have any numbers on hp or mpg change?

 

Sorry, I only have the ‘seat of the pants’ results, which is quite a significant change - acceleration is improved but highway driving is where it feels most improved. MPG’s are up but my kids started driving the truck off and on coinciding with the install so I haven't been able to get an exact read on the improvement due to different driving patterns (highway vs city). Them driving it is actually one of the reasons I did this....so it would be safer driving on the highway, which it definitely is.

 

Did you buy your parts direct or through a third party?
What kind of air filter are you running?
Did you find any options for a true CAI or ram air?
Did you find anything you liked for muffler and cat if you weren’t balancing bang for buck? I’m going to have to replace mine anyway so would make it a little easier to afford an upgrade.
I would def be interested in an update if you ever get the chance to figure your mileage. More power is always good, but these days I get just as excited about mpg as hp

 

The header i bought iff ebay and the intake off Amazon
Filter came included from injen
My online research showed the cats and exhaust are only good for like 2hp each and I didnt really find any exhaust systems on youtube i liked the sound of. Pretty sure its impossible to make a 4 cyl sound ‘good’.
I will figure mpg on the next fill up and handicap it a little for the additional highway miles.

 

Thanks.
Did you come across any options for a true CAI or ram air?
Yeah, I don’t expect it to sound ‘good’, just hope to avoid making it sound ‘worse’.