Exhausted
We took the truck to TMEC, a local exhaust shop, to have our new Gibson Cat-Back system and Random Technologys high-flow catalytic converter installed. The experts at TMEC evaluated our exhaust system and the factory layout. The final result was clearly a custom exhaust system that looked good and cleverly evacuated the exhaust sound behind the passenger-side rear wheel.
 TMEC first measured and cautiously...  TMEC first measured and cautiously fit all the pieces together, making many modifications and bends before doing any welding. |  Considerable work was done...  Considerable work was done to gain a perfect fit from the header flange, around the oil pan, and to the Random Technology catalytic converter. |  The final touch: The Gibson...  The final touch: The Gibson chrome exhaust tip is welded coming out of the right side, behind the rear wheel. |
Downright Polar
Creature comfort was definitely on order and as such, we opted for a little help from Vintage Air. We ordered a complete R134a systemwith the exception of the evaporator coil, where the original sufficed. Our kit even included all the fittings, barrier hoses, and brackets, as well as a pressure switch and expansion valve. To keep things in the engine compartment uniform and looking good, we ordered the polished compressor and chrome drier.
 We opted for the universal...  We opted for the universal A/C bracket to hold the front of the compressor... |  ...and a small slotted bracket...  ...and a small slotted bracket to secure the side of the compressor. This would allow the A/C compressor to be secured by connecting it to the power steering pump bracket. |  The condenser was installed...  The condenser was installed with four brackets, one in each corner. Here, a hole is drilled through the bracket and into the radiator core support. |
 We had Best's Lakeland Hose...  We had Best's Lakeland Hose Service crimp all the fittings onto the hose ends. This photo shows a crimping press securing the fitting to the hose. This local service came to our door and handled the hose end installations. |  Because we used the original...  Because we used the original evaporator coil, we cut the fitting off the old hoses and, as shown here, Best braised new ends to fit our hose. | |
Be Cool
The tanks on our original radiator were shot, and while we had made repairs previously, new leaks were now appearing. Rather than continue to repair the down-flow radiator into service, we turned to Be Cool, which built us a custom cross-flow, four-row radiator. The result was better coolant flow and lower engine-operating temperaturescertainly part of the equation for additional performance from our Slant Six.
 If we had made the swap simply...  If we had made the swap simply for aesthetics, we would be applauded. The Be Cool radiator easily replaced our original factory core and routed the lower return hose away from other rotating accessories. |  To further clean up the look...  To further clean up the look and offer rigid hose construction, we used Inglse's CoolFlex upper and lower radiator hoses. | |
The Results
To be brutally honest, we were a bit reluctant to discover the actual output of our Slant Six at Vincis Hi-Performance in Orlando, Florida. Would we meet our goal of producing V8 performance from the six-banger?
On the chassis dyno, we ended up with 140.1 corrected horsepower at the rear wheels and 194.0 lb-ft of corrected torque. According to Vincis, this equals 175 hp and 243 lb-ft of torque at the flywheela whopping increase of 85 hp and 83 lb-ft of torque as compared to a stock Slant Six.
We also widened the rpm range of power, and now the engine maintains an average of 120.5 hp and 178.1 lb-ft of torque through 5,000 rpm. And yes, it will break the tires loose!