Also worth noting my kit shipped in two parts, one box for just the rear mufflers, one for everything else. Box 1 of 2 (15lbs) arrived first on Tuesday with the rear mufflers. Extremely well packed. The larger box Box 2 of 2 (40lbs) was temporarily lost by UPS and looked like it was drop kicked across the country. The other box arrived unscathed. One of my pipes at the slip fit will require a bit of finesse with a pipe expander to correct the damage during shipping. I do not believe this is a trubendz issue as they packed everything extremely well. Double-lined box, stapled and taped shut, and UPS still managed to man handle it to the point of almost opening.
Back in 1980, I worked for several months at a place that made horse race timers (barrel racing etc.)
We got a unit back in that was shipped in a steel case made of 1/4" plate steel; the case was damaged to where we thought we'd have to use a cutting torch to open it to fix the timer inside!
UPS of course claimed it was because we didn't have enough cardboard around it ...
Try UPS freight, ugh. I won those brand new AMR wheels and tires I briefly had in an ebay auction and shipped through them, the seller packed all four wheels together separated by thick cardboard but when the 18 freaking wheeler pulled up with them to drop them off they were the only thing in there and on their side rolling around, scratched the lips and a few spots on the spokes.
Then the topper, 2 weeks later I got a bill from UPS for $300 for “loading dock drop off”. eBay seller took care of it luckily, then two months later UPS threatened putting me in collection with now a $400 bill for being late! Had to contact them, contact the seller and contact them and back and forth to figure out UPS forgot to close it. Morons.
Having worked for UPS in my younger years, I will tell everyone that if you ship something fragile, DO NOT place. "fragile" sticker on the box anywhere. That package will get tons of "extra love". Instead, package your item very safe inside the box. From there, package that box inside another box with at least 1" of padding on all sides.
My kit, although purchased as 2 separate orders, arrived complete in one box. It was very well packaged and came damage free.
So far, I have the flanged mid pipes and x pipe installed with the Catted down pipes I made, also flanged. I added flanges to the front of the mid pipes to match my downpipe flanges.
The slip fit secondary midpipes appear to fit, but I need another set of hands to weld the hanger posts to the pipes.
All in all, I am very pleased with the quality and price of the kits. I wish the x pipe was a better piece but for the price it's fair.
My kit, although purchased as 2 separate orders, arrived complete in one box. It was very well packaged and came damage free.
So far, I have the flanged mid pipes and x pipe installed with the Catted down pipes I made, also flanged. I added flanges to the front of the mid pipes to match my downpipe flanges.
The slip fit secondary midpipes appear to fit, but I need another set of hands to weld the hanger posts to the pipes.
All in all, I am very pleased with the quality and price of the kits. I wish the x pipe was a better piece but for the price it's fair.
That's why I really like the magnaflow midmount true-x muffler that they made with the ball socket joints on the front and the slip fit on the back. I'm also going for tone and not rasp on my 3.8 SC so I'm hoping this sounds decent.
That's why I really like the magnaflow midmount true-x muffler that they made with the ball socket joints on the front and the slip fit on the back. I'm also going for tone and not rasp on my 3.8 SC so I'm hoping this sounds decent.
I did not care for the mid mount sound in the 2 valve. Not sure about the 4 valve yet, but it seems like it will be badass.
The cats really tone it down and cut out rasp. The x pipe also takes out a bunch of harshness. I did have the pipes on to the back, just not hung and that also helped. It is going to be too loud without some mufflers on it.
I hate buying mufflers...too many choices.
I generally end up with a glasspack, round, and a little smaller inside than the pipe. That seems to make them have a pop to the sound.
In this case 2.5 pipe so 2.25 muffler.
For this car I wouldn't go smaller inside though I would stay 2.5 to be least restrictive.
I am taking advice if you have it, I will need them in the Spring.
Why not just skip the mufflers all together? You've got CATs that cut out drone / rasp. You've got an X-Pipe (possibly the Magnaflow mid-muffler it sounds), and then just straight pipe it after your mid-section decision. I'm sure that'd sound hella badass right there!
Why not just skip the mufflers all together? You've got CATs that cut out drone / rasp. You've got an X-Pipe (possibly the Magnaflow mid-muffler it sounds), and then just straight pipe it after your mid-section decision. I'm sure that'd sound hella badass right there!
We ran the 2 valve with just the 3 cats and no resonator, no mufflers.
I will try it with just the pipes first of course (economy) because money is always an issue.
Thanks
I generally end up with a glasspack, round, and a little smaller inside than the pipe. That seems to make them have a pop to the sound.
In this case 2.5 pipe so 2.25 muffler.
For this car I wouldn't go smaller inside though I would stay 2.5 to be least restrictive.
I am taking advice if you have it, I will need them in the Spring.
I have a 4.6 LX and I'm a big fan of '70s musclecars so I went with Flowmaster 40 mufflers. Those, paired with the JBA shorty headers (California legal über alles) made my car sound like a pretty decent small-block musclecar. All legal exhaust (Magnaflow 3 cats, Mandrel Exhaust Systems dual pipes out back) at the stock diameter so maybe not what you're looking for. But I hate that water out of a jug "glug-glug-glug" sound that most modern Mustangs and Camaros have, which from what I've heard is usually Magnaflow mufflers.
I have a 4.6 LX and I'm a big fan of '70s musclecars so I went with Flowmaster 40 mufflers. Those, paired with the JBA shorty headers (California legal über alles) made my car sound like a pretty decent small-block musclecar. All legal exhaust (Magnaflow 3 cats, Mandrel Exhaust Systems dual pipes out back) at the stock diameter so maybe not what you're looking for. But I hate that water out of a jug "glug-glug-glug" sound that most modern Mustangs and Camaros have, which from what I've heard is usually Magnaflow mufflers.
Now that I think on it, at one point we were running catless downpipes, and no third cat, no resonator.
We had to add two 12", 2.00" glasspacks to the very ends and also a single 4" x 2" glasspack as a resonator in the midpipe to kill the rasp it had. That was loud under power but tolerable at idle. No glug-glug but a nice pop to it on the throttle.
There should an age/db calculator. For every 10 yrs you age, the amount of of decibels you consider tolerable goes down by "X" db.
Years back, I drove my turbo Eagle Talon 1.5 hrs each way to the dragstrip with an open downpipe. One time.
Now, on my turbo Toyota, I just switched to a quieter catback, fuel pump, fixed wheel bearings, etc. Trying to get it close to as quiet as the T-Bird. And, I absolutely HATE the sound of a Coyote 5.0 with an aftermarket exhaust on it. I should probably just get an electric car.
There should an age/db calculator. For every 10 yrs you age, the amount of of decibels you consider tolerable goes down by "X" db.
Years back, I drove my turbo Eagle Talon 1.5 hrs each way to the dragstrip with an open downpipe. One time.
Now, on my turbo Toyota, I just switched to a quieter catback, fuel pump, fixed wheel bearings, etc. Trying to get it close to as quiet as the T-Bird. And, I absolutely HATE the sound of a Coyote 5.0 with an aftermarket exhaust on it. I should probably just get an electric car.
Hahaha, I'm not that old. Yet. I don't mind loud if it sounds "right", which means either musclecar or high-end Italian sportscar. What I can't stand lately is loud exhausts that sound like obnoxious lawnmowers, and many of those cars have that crappy pop-pop when they let off the gas, like a backfire or something, but it sounds cheap or the owner can't tune his car right. I also can't stand cars that sound loud = fast but don't go any faster than the other cars on the road (sometimes slower because they're lowered too much and, oh no, this is a city street not a racetrack so we have to gingerly navigate these imperfections). Similar to how I can't stand loud stereo systems that seem to be all subwoofers and everything rattles like the glass is about to vibrate out of the car.
For me exhaust needs to be loud enough to drown out all tire noise at speed. I hate the whirr and whistle of tires on highways more than the worst sounding loudest internal combustion engines out there. V8s in particular have such a nice calming low end rumble to them, unless you have mufflers that produce a buzzing drone I cannot imagine how anyone finds it annoying to hear it. But I think 5.0 Coyotes with loud exhausts sound like poo too, I don’t know if it’s the VVT or the firing order but it’s not half as pleasing uncorked as 4.6s or Windsor 5.0s to my ear.
I don’t care about capabilities matching noise levels really, there have always been quiet fast cars, that’s not really the point, as long as it sounds good(not poppy raspy or weird like a loud exhaust on a car with a CVT transmission) is all I care about. Tesla’s accelerate fast as hell but are prosaic as far as overall visceral driving enjoyment and the lack of any noise feedback is a big part of the turnoff, I actually find my car more audibly pleasing just cruising A-B rowing the gears up to 2500-3000rpm from stoplight to stoplight and decelerating than WOT 6500rpm. My ideal exhaust system would actually be noisy when going slow and quiet when going fast.
For me exhaust needs to be loud enough to drown out all tire noise at speed. I hate the whirr and whistle of tires on highways more than the worst sounding loudest internal combustion engines out there. V8s in particular have such a nice calming low end rumble to them, unless you have mufflers that produce a buzzing drone I cannot imagine how anyone finds it annoying to hear it. But I think 5.0 Coyotes with loud exhausts sound like poo too, I don’t know if it’s the VVT or the firing order but it’s not half as pleasing uncorked as 4.6s or Windsor 5.0s to my ear.
I don’t care about capabilities matching noise levels really, there have always been quiet fast cars, that’s not really the point, as long as it sounds good(not poppy raspy or weird like a loud exhaust on a car with a CVT transmission) is all I care about. Tesla’s accelerate fast as hell but are prosaic as far as overall visceral driving enjoyment and the lack of any noise feedback is a big part of the turnoff, I actually find my car more audibly pleasing just cruising A-B rowing the gears up to 2500-3000rpm from stoplight to stoplight and decelerating than WOT 6500rpm. My ideal exhaust system would actually be noisy when going slow and quiet when going fast.
Lots of opinions on this subject, heck there is plenty of threads on it here.
What I will do is keep what I have and put the last two kit pipe pieces on each side. So that is:
Modified stock manifolds (left side converterectomy)
Down pipes with Cats, made from MN12 stock exhaust, 2.25", 2 bolt b+s flanged
TruBendz custom midpipe kit, with flanged mid pipes and flanged x pipe
TruBendz MN12 Pipe kit
No mufflers
(2.5" aluminized pipe)
I just need a hand getting the pipes positioned in the IRS so I can weld the Hangar rods to the pipes. Impossible for me to do it alone, I'm not that talented.
From there I need to find some mufflers I can live with.
I do have in stock:
2 MN12 resonators
2 MN12 mufflers
2 FN10 mufflers (with oval tips)
What are your thoughts on using any of the above OEM parts? They are in good condition.
I forget you're here in SoCal as well. You're in the Burbank area if memory serves correct? You're about 1-1/2hrs (west) from me. Perhaps you can provide some insight as to what to do / have done to keep your mods CA legal.
For me exhaust needs to be loud enough to drown out all tire noise at speed. I hate the whirr and whistle of tires on highways more than the worst sounding loudest internal combustion engines out there. V8s in particular have such a nice calming low end rumble to them, unless you have mufflers that produce a buzzing drone I cannot imagine how anyone finds it annoying to hear it. But I think 5.0 Coyotes with loud exhausts sound like poo too, I don’t know if it’s the VVT or the firing order but it’s not half as pleasing uncorked as 4.6s or Windsor 5.0s to my ear.
Agreed. I even hate that in movies, the gas car rolls in like the engine is off and all we hear are the tires and then the door opening and closing. But then you get an old V8 car like in "X-Men: Days Of Future Past" (Wolverine's Buick Riviera) or "Slap Shot" (GTO) and everything sounds right. Not too loud, just that "bluggabluggablugga" sound. My Thunderbird, from inside the car, sounds like a big block when it's moving slowly in 1st gear. I certainly don't hear my car's tires over that anymore. But not so loud that my stereo is a waste of money.
I don’t care about capabilities matching noise levels really, there have always been quiet fast cars, that’s not really the point, as long as it sounds good(not poppy raspy or weird like a loud exhaust on a car with a CVT transmission) is all I care about. Tesla’s accelerate fast as hell but are prosaic as far as overall visceral driving enjoyment and the lack of any noise feedback is a big part of the turnoff, I actually find my car more audibly pleasing just cruising A-B rowing the gears up to 2500-3000rpm from stoplight to stoplight and decelerating than WOT 6500rpm. My ideal exhaust system would actually be noisy when going slow and quiet when going fast.
Slow loud cars still piss me off. If you're going to sound like you're at the dragstrip, could you at least move faster than the Prius in the lane next to you so I can be on my way?
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