New guy with some thoughts/questions on exhausts

New here, and been looking up info on exhausts and intakes.

Figured with as much as I had to say/ask, burying this in a sticky might not be the best idea... Also its less likely to be seen and answered by the more knowledgeable/regulars, as they tend to not frequent the stickys as much. (at least my experience in other forums)

A few quotes from the sound clip thread.

Similar to my questions/concerns. Want at least a little gain in power and MPG, or at least no losses.

Not really looking to go all out, just maybe get a bit better sound and better air flow. The stock exhaust is very quiet and mellow... too mellow.

I like that it is quiet in the cab, and I want to maintain that as much as possible. All I really want is a little deeper/lower tone but without adding much volume to the sound. At least while driving around town and cruising. Plus a little better flow... If I am going to spend the money, I want more benefit than just a little better sound if possible.

Been trying to find sounds of different exhausts from inside the cab, but I have not found many.

Been thinking a Magnaflow 2.5" in and out, 22" long oval would be a good choice. (12586 or 14586) Better flow and sound without much/any volume gain in the cabin. Not sure If I am going to just swap the muffler or ask the shop to redo the pipe as well, maybe add a simple tip for looks.

Would be nice if I could find a video of this setup from inside the cabin.

Am I right in thinking the oval Magnaflow 2.5" in/out with center/offset 22" long would give some better sound without much added volume? (at least in the cabin) And for best results, I am guessing that replacing the factory pipe will be best as well.

I seen several cat back systems on autoanything at prices from $275-600... Having a new truck and clean/un-rusted fasteners should make installing one of the ready made systems easy on my own though. Not like I haven't twisted a wrench a few times before.

The cheap system isn't much more than just getting the muffler replaced by a shop, but is it any good is the question. The more expensive systems are about as much as getting a shop to do a custom job... So those are options, its just important to know what they sound like in the cab and out.

As far as intakes... I don't really want to actually get a full system, maybe just one of the Pro-dry filters in the stock setup. But only if the Pro-dry can filter well enough. Not sure if it would be worth it though.

Any thoughts on my setup/questions?

 

get it custom done at a shop. do the big magnaflow if you want but pay to get 2.5" inch pipe added. I noticed a power increase when i switched from stock 2.25 to 2.5 to match up with my aero 2525. This is after I had been running the aero and resonator with mostly stock piping mind you. A resonated aero 2525 (the 2525xl) would be my recommendation as I love the sound, but magnaflow is my second favorite. You may see some mileage increase, but thats countered by wanting to mash the pedal more. I did notice a 1 mpg increase with the pro dry s drop in filter which i had installed before i got the pro dry s intake. I recommend the intake, you'll do it eventually. The URD intake is another option. Welcome to the slippery slope

 

Welcome to TW devil

 

I went from stock to an 18" Magnaflow, which sounded really good, but after about a week the sound was bothering me, so I went back to the stock muffler and dumped the pipe just behind the axle so that nothing is seen from the outside. It's basically as quiet as the longer pipe, with just a little bit more sound at very low rpms.



The 22" will likely be more deep and mellow. But if you go to a larger diameter pipe than stock, you will lose some low end torque.

 

It sounds like you want exactly what i got. Get the Dynomax super turbo muffler. It has good performance/mpg gains and is nice and mellow sounding. Quiet in the cab until you get up in the higher rpm's. Its alittle louder or deeper sounding then stock muffler.
I would just swap the muffler out bc the stock piping is or ready 2.5"(atleast on my 12' sport) and flows good.
I did the pro dry S drop in filter and removed the secondary filter and havent checked my mpg's since ive done it, but i know its getting better air.
Hope that helps ya!

 

Thanks for the replies. I will look into options at the shop when I am ready to get this done. Not sure if adding the 2.5" pipe will be a good idea, as I don't want to loose any torque. I don't rev the truck up much to get into the higher end.

 

Good decision. Normal driving is usually under 2,500 rpm, and even just 2,500 rpm in 5th gear is 75mph on the highway which is going plenty fast enough. The stock pipe is more than good enough for that. A larger diameter exhaust pipe will only reduce the low end pull that you need the most.

 

Should I use a Magnaflow with a 2.25" inlet and outlet then?

 

Don't expect to see any mpg increase with an exhaust.

Same goes with intake.

 

A 2.25 Magnaflow needs the ends swedged out by a muffler shop a little to fit the slightly larger 2 3/8 exhaust pipe. They all have the hydraulic device that expands the ends in about 3 seconds. Even though the ends are 2.25, it has a 2.5 inch core. I ran this 2.25 Magnaflow stainless steel #11255 for about a week...





and while it sounded really good...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OrDcnSSa82Q

...after a week the sound bothered me so I took it off and went back to the stock muffler. The Magnaflow was welded very cleanly so I cut off the welds and removed the small inner sections of stock pipe so that it's an easy slip on fit. If you might be interested in a barely used almost new muffler, it's for sale for $65 including shipping.

 

I want the larger one so the sound will be quieter.

A loud muffler annoys me to no end... but I would at least like a nice sound to come out.

 

Don't assume larger is quieter, why change your exhaust at all if loud annoys you?

 

That's exactly what I discovered by trying another muffler. It didn't take long to want to go back to stock. I'm sure glad I left the old one hanging around and didn't throw it out!

Marine: There's a cheap and easy compromise.
I cut my exhaust pipe and installed a tip so that it dumps just behind the rear axle and deflects away from the spare.



In normal driving, it's as quiet as stock, but there is just a little more pleasant deep sound at very low rpms. I've been totally pleased with the results.

 

From what I have read the magnaflows get quieter as the size increases.

While I don't want it loud, I do want it to sound like a truck... rather than a V6 family sedan.

I am open to options to accomplish this.

 

What you are going to find is that sound is totally subjective. Pleasing to one is annoying to another. I have the 5x8 24" body Magnaflow (12586), One less then the largest universal muffler they sell. It has more sound, a bit less then the TRD that I tried, but not much. It has an annoying sound peak at about 2200 rpm. Not quite a drone though. If not for that peak, I think it would be perfect.

Do note though that this is a v6. To me, anything that I've heard that is not stock sounds a bit ricey at idle and just off idle. After that they tend to get a better sound, but it's still a v6.....

 

My 4 cylinder and the 18" Magnaflow had a similar peak resonance at 2,000. It bothered me because that's where I drive most, so I took it off.

 

I can understand that. Mines a bit higher at 2200rpm and I have an auto, so my rpms are usually a bit lower then the peak or I am just going past it.

 

HMMM... what about a resonating tip? Would that alter the sound a little?