I've owned the truck for about 1.5 years and primarily use the truck for towing my race car to the track....and sometimes drive it on the street and ofcourse during the winters. I've done all normal maintenance on it and it currently has ~ 175k miles on it. I've read a bit about the engine, and it seems that I can get a more out of it with just a few basic things.

As of right now, I've decided on getting a base tune (probably from Blackbear tuning) and changing the exhaust and possibly the intake.

Could someone with experience with the 7.4L 454 engines tell me what are the best options for intake/exhaust? I don't necessarily want to change the intake if there isn't much of a performance gain with stock cams. I definitely want a full exhaust, but I would like something that gives me more power without losing (and possibly gaining?) fuel consumption. Also, considering my long tows and my goal in life to avoid headaches, I would prefer a good compromise between sound and performance. Exhaust sound is nice, but its not a priority for my SUV.

I just can't find much for headers out there, let alone long tube headers...

Thanks for your help.

 

Is this a Vortec 454 (RPO Code L29) in a 96-2000 truck we're talking about? If so post back, I can tell you anything you'd like to know about that engine including all its strengths and weaknesses.