Catalytic X-Pipe and Axle/Cat-Back

Preston951 · Dec 8, 2008

What do you recommend for an x-pipe with catalytic converters? I want to keep my car street legal, because I've heard its a total pain in the a** to always be changing them. Also, what would you recommend for an axel-back or cat-back system? I've been looking at the Flowmaster American Thunders and the Boomtubes (but I've heard Boomtubes suck ).

I don't want the car to be extremely loud, and I want the car to be street legal. I'm looking more for a performance increase than a sound increase. I drive a 2008 automatic GT.

(I know exhaust doesn't give a huge boost on its own, lol )

Links and personal experience would be wonderful!
Thanks a ton!

whyask · Dec 8, 2008

Bassani if you have the cash if its a budget thing pypes ! Check out brenspeed.com they have some great deals right now !

stangzilla100 · Dec 8, 2008

between flows and boomtubes, boomtubes wins hands down. they are louder and meaner sounding. heres a couple examples.
YouTube - mustang gt exhaust take 5

YouTube - mustang gt exhaust take 4

Preston951 · Dec 8, 2008

Okay... so Pypes with cats? I've heard not to get Pypes. More brand recommendations???

Thanks!

08RetroV8 · Dec 9, 2008

I dont know where you live but most states do not allow any tampering with stock cats (unless they are damages or need replacement) so either way it will not be street legal. I got the offroad x-pipe and i loooove the sound, i have been told that it sounds just like the bullitt from steve mcqueens movie... ill try and get some sound clips up. But its not hard to switch out the midpipes if thats the problem. You can do it yourself in about 30 minutes or pay any garage about 30 bucks to do it, takes them about 15 minutes or so.

stangzilla100 · Dec 9, 2008

Pypes MM sound great, but pypes systems do have fitment issues. i have the M80's welded in before the rear axle and MBRP deletes, LT's and o/r x pipe. the legalities of running off road varies by state. for instance where i live it is illegal to go catless, but they have no way of enforcing it so everyone here goes off road, so technically i am illegal but no way of giving me a ticket. heres some clips of the M80's
mustang gt pypes mid mufflers cold start- Video
YouTube - mustang gt exhaust take 9
Stangzilla does a driveby- Video

slayr281 · Dec 9, 2008

08RetroV8 said:
I dont know where you live but most states do not allow any tampering with stock cats (unless they are damages or need replacement) so either way it will not be street legal.

Yeah, I'm not sure how that works. Muffler shops and other car places won't usually do anything with cats because they're scared of legal implications. Something like, they're only allowed to replace it with the cats/exhaust that it originally shipped with, and those setups run rather expensive, with the cats costing like 250 each. Thanks Ford. You won't see many legal h or x pipes (there are a few) just because of that cats issue, although they'll certainly pass smog no problem. Most smog technicians will just look to see that you have cats and check off the box. If you run an off road setup, you're in violation of this federal law, as you don't have any cats which are required on all cars manufactured after 1974.

As far as exhausts go, it's a personal thing, but I've always liked the Bassani and Magnaflow exhausts, but I know that BBK, Borla, and MAC are just as nice. I'm not much of an SLP fan, because the sound is a little too over the top for me. Had some good experiences with the Pacifica Boom-Tubes, and we're just a short drive down the street from them, can say those sound pretty nice and are so easy to do on the 05+ Mustangs.

Preston951 · Dec 9, 2008

Thanks guys, I would prefer I stay legal, just because the last thing I need is an insurance boost! (If that would ever happen )

Here's a link to the x-pipes I'm looking at... Pypes 409 Stainless Steel Catted X-Pipe

And as far as axel-backs...
Pypes 409 Stainless Steel Mid-Muffler Cat-back with Polished 304 Tips
Pypes 409 Stainless Steel Violator Axle-Back with Polished 304 Tips
SLP Loudmouth Axle-back Exhaust

'13_ImpactBlue_GT · Dec 9, 2008

slayr281 said:
Yeah, I'm not sure how that works. Muffler shops and other car places won't usually do anything with cats because they're scared of legal implications. Something like, they're only allowed to replace it with the cats/exhaust that it originally shipped with, and those setups run rather expensive, with the cats costing like 250 each. Thanks Ford. You won't see many legal h or x pipes (there are a few) just because of that cats issue, although they'll certainly pass smog no problem. Most smog technicians will just look to see that you have cats and check off the box. If you run an off road setup, you're in violation of this federal law, as you don't have any cats which are required on all cars manufactured after 1974.

As far as exhausts go, it's a personal thing, but I've always liked the Bassani and Magnaflow exhausts, but I know that BBK, Borla, and MAC are just as nice. I'm not much of an SLP fan, because the sound is a little too over the top for me. Had some good experiences with the Pacifica Boom-Tubes, and we're just a short drive down the street from them, can say those sound pretty nice and are so easy to do on the 05+ Mustangs.

Here in Hamilton County, the "smog techs" you referred to are totally stupid!!! They do the undercar inspection with a mirror on a 5 or 6 foot pole and have never said or maybe never noticed the lack of catalytic converters on my 03.

'13_ImpactBlue_GT · Dec 9, 2008

Preston951 said:
Thanks guys, I would prefer I stay legal, just because the last thing I need is an insurance boost! (If that would ever happen )

Here's a link to the x-pipes I'm looking at... Pypes 409 Stainless Steel Catted X-Pipe

And as far as axel-backs...
Pypes 409 Stainless Steel Mid-Muffler Cat-back with Polished 304 Tips
Pypes 409 Stainless Steel Violator Axle-Back with Polished 304 Tips
SLP Loudmouth Axle-back Exhaust

Nice GT

Did you get the Sport package?

Preston951 · Dec 10, 2008

Toms_2003_Stang said:
Nice GT

Did you get the Sport package?

Hehe... You have no idea how happy that made me feel!

Its the Coupe Premium package!

I thought about the sport package but I figured I'd probably be putting a new hood on eventually and decided it wasn't worth it.

Any more help/advice on an affordable legal exhaust set up guys??? (By the way, I don't need new headers, stockers are cool with me )

Thanks!

stangzilla100 · Dec 10, 2008

dont get the violators, they are too quiet and dont sound that good. if you are staying the cats go w/ the LM's or the mid mufflers if you dont want it that loud. the LM's will still sound good w/ the cats in, if you take them out then thats a different story. if you take the cats out go w/ the mid mufflers or boomtubes.

Beatle Patstang · Dec 10, 2008

I have the boom tubes with stock exhaust. They sound great, too other people. I don't have many people I trust to do a drive by so I can hear them. I want the magnaflow catted X-pipe and shorty headers, though I understand the $ to HP ratio is not in my favor.

Preston951 · Dec 10, 2008

Thanks for the tips guys!

I'm looking for a setup that sounds great but isn't obnoxiously loud. The stock GT is already probably one of the loudest stock cars made, and I don't want to be setting of car alarms at my school by starting the engine... Or do I

But seriously. I want a legal exhaust that isn't ridiculous. Thanks again!

walter · Dec 11, 2008

That Pypes Catted X has a pretty nice price tag on it. Does anyone here have it? I hear Pypes has a noticeable amount of fitment issues, I wonder if anyone has experience that on those.

GreyDiesel · Dec 11, 2008

Preston951 said:
Thanks for the tips guys!

I'm looking for a setup that sounds great but isn't obnoxiously loud. The stock GT is already probably one of the loudest stock cars made, and I don't want to be setting of car alarms at my school by starting the engine... Or do I

But seriously. I want a legal exhaust that isn't ridiculous. Thanks again!

Hey, I am sort of in the same boat, so I did a little googling, and it looks like there is no way to do anything what-so-ever to your mid-pipe and still remain legal in California. I dont know what the case is in Arizona. California has the most strict requirements, so that is why it is always discussed first.

Emissions Laws & Regulations Frequently Asked Questions

If your looking for a good cat/axle-back, I'd look into Corsa. I have spent hours upon hours listening to clips on you-tube, and I think Corsa sounds the best. It is expensive, but... lets face it, the sound of your car is extremely important. The nice thing about the Corsas, is that you can idle around town and not make much noise, then hit it for having fun. Corsas have the largest difference in sound volume from idle to WOT. My second choice would be a Borla/Steeda/FRPP with the 4" rolled tips.

Preston951 · Dec 11, 2008

GreyDiesel said:
Hey, I am sort of in the same boat, so I did a little googling, and it looks like there is no way to do anything what-so-ever to your mid-pipe and still remain legal in California. I dont know what the case is in Arizona. California has the most strict requirements, so that is why it is always discussed first.

Emissions Laws & Regulations – Frequently Asked Questions

If your looking for a good cat/axle-back, I'd look into Corsa. I have spent hours upon hours listening to clips on you-tube, and I think Corsa sounds the best. It is expensive, but... lets face it, the sound of your car is extremely important. The nice thing about the Corsas, is that you can idle around town and not make much noise, then hit it for having fun. Corsas have the largest difference in sound volume from idle to WOT. My second choice would be a Borla/Steeda/FRPP with the 4" rolled tips.

Thanks, and yeah, good point . I'll look into those Corsa's

And by the way, I'm also going to be getting a CAI + tune. Should I do that first??? MUCH better HP to $ ratio.

Catalytic X-Pipe and Axle/Cat-Back

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