Hi... I am going to do some moding to the 06 checkmate this winter.... My list right now is air filter, 17% supercharger pulley, gp intercooler, and i was going to go with a non-resonated cat-bak miltek. I was just curious is it worth putting a miltek header on also, or does it really not need a header for this setup. I am not going to do any engine work or ignition/tuning type things. Thanks

 

Hi.. I have the Milltek header and resonated cat-back. I opted for the resonated cat-back to be more civilized haha. You will notice more torque and it really opens up after 5000+ rpm until redline. RMW makes a good one as well but the Milltek comes with a better cat from what I have researched.

 

yeah if i go with a header, i will get the resonated cat back then bc that makes it way louder.... i was just wondering for doing a typical pulley, intake and exhaust if you will get enough gain from the header to make it worth it

 

Depends...
How do you use the car...lower rpms in town (short tube header) or highway/race(longtube)...
Do you care or need emissions testing?
And do you care about noise....drone? Long trips?
Do you care about header life...most are fairly short lived....and you get EXACTLY what you pay for...no free lunch...the eBay specials/obx versions tend to fit poorly, and flex joints fail fast....
Do you plan to get a cam? Run a tune? Port and polish or get a BVH? Bigger injectors?
Lots of questions, yes...
But cars are all about compromises.... Finding the right mix for YOU...
Headers are right for some, but will ruin enjoyment of the car for others....

 

If you are looking for $$ vs performance....
You will get LOTS more than a cat-back (4-6 HP most) for the $$....
But many other lower hanging fruit IMO....
A tune will cost you $350, and injectors about the same...both with the setup you have will get you to maybe 210 whp....
Try to run too much power without adding fuel....you can do some $$ damage.

 

your probably better off spending 200 bucks on a header vs a 600 GP intercooler, just my 2 cents.

fwiw, header will make the car much louder.

 

Car does both highway and town.... don't really need to worry about emissions, and if i was doing the header i was going to go with a resonated exhaust. I was not planning on doing injectors, cam, tune or anything like that. That why i was curious is it worth even running one without the motor type work or do i just do a cat back system and don't put a header with it just use stock.

 

I regret buying my Scorpion sport header with catalyst. While it does pair up nice with the Scorpion cat-back it was not worth it.

My two issues

The fitment wasn’t great. I had to have the header bolt flange holes opened up 10 thousandths just to get it to bolt up, all 8 of them.

The check engine light has been on since day one. I knew that this was a possibility going in, but it seems that even o2 sensor spacers can’t fool my car into thinking everything is A-OK. A 02 senor simulator is out of the question. The ECU is way too fragile in these cars IMO.

If my stock header didn’t crack, I would have kept the stock header.

 

yeah i am looking at spending the money on a good one though like a miltek

 

RMW makes the "shorty" for street use....VERY well liked by many folks.
Milteck is also know from some great stuff...so you should ok if you go that route...
As for the header question....
If you want more sound...go for it. The main issue is fit with the cheap ones, or check engine lights for folks going catfree.....bang for the $$, not the best choice, but heck....you own the car!! Kinda like the IC....you get the mods you like!! Some have return in HP...some sound...some looks.
In any case, enjoy the car!! Motor on!!

 

Does anyone have any experience with the Alta header? I have one in my garage that I simply have not had the opportunity to install. I can’t find any information anywhere.

Thanks in advance.

///Rich

 

Ok so its really kinda a buy if you like it option for getting a milltek header/sport cat if I'm not doing more mods?

 

You should not have any fiting problems with the Milltek header/ cat-back. From what I rad the rmw and the Milltek yields the most gain but yes they are costly. Oh yes there is none or very minimal droning with the Milltek setup. With the resonator the exhaust gets very loud around 3500 or 4000 rpm anyway but for highway cruising, no problem at all and not much louder then the jcw exhaust I had. The GP intercooler is a nice added bonus to keep intake temperature down a but on hot days.
I started with a jcw 210 with ATI crank with +2% so the Milltek header and exhaust did add midrange and higher rpm power. I cannot comment on the other setup but I do feel the gains with the Milltek setup.

 

ok yeah thats gotta be a killer setup.... I'm curious if i would need a tune if i put a header on also. It seems like it would just from my experience with modding quads.... but car are way different.