Exhaust advice needed again

iStang · May 6, 2005

I know there are a lot of threads regarding exhausts, but I’m an exhaust newbie and here in the forum I find a lot of experts with experience and different opinions.

Here’s what I want (see sig for car):

Removing exhaust restrictions
Not loosing too much torque at low rpm
Having a better quality exhaust than stock (not aluminized steel)
Keeping the same emissions
Not too loud
No annoying resonances
Only DIY bolt on
Price: quality costs
Keeping a good sound
Not installing headers (too much work)

My questions?

Which brand produces the best quality exhaust?
Does it help just installing an x-pipe and not changing the stock mufflers?
Are there quality mufflers which increase the flow but don’t increase the noise dramatically?

The why?

I will export the car soon to Europe and over there, they have strict emissions and noise law. Sometimes they muffle even a stock Mustang, but I will import this car as moving good and therefore I don’t have to do noise measurements, but if the guy at the inspection thinks the car is too loud (or doesn’t like Stangs ) I will get troubles.

Thanks for your advice

Muscles00GT · May 6, 2005

You're asking for a lot andunfortunately, you're not going to staisfy your whole wish list. If you want to cut out restrictions, then you want an off road midpipe (either H or X..maybe PC), but you still want to pass emissions in wich case you need cats. From the information you gave me, I would recommend a catted h pipe with the magnaflow catback

trinity_gt · May 6, 2005

iStang said:
Here’s what I want (see sig for car):

Removing exhaust restrictions
Not loosing too much torque at low rpm

Up the tube diameter to 2.5" (for most applications...forced induction will probably want more) and choose a catted H-pipe to help preserve the low RPM torque.

Having a better quality exhaust than stock (not aluminized steel)

FWIW, the factory catback is stainless. 409 I think, which tends to get a surface patina of rust spots...But it's still stainless.

Keeping the same emissions

Catted H for sure. My 02 GT went from 4 cats to two with the MRT midpipe and still passed the sniffer test easily.

Not too loud

Very subjective. My wife thinks my combo (factory manifold, MRT catted H and a Steeda catback) is too loud but I like it. It's a matter of personal taste.

No annoying resonances

Tough to find in most aftermarket performance-oriented exhausts. Car makers go to considerable lengths to tune resonance out of the system at the cost of outright flow. Some are much better than others though.

Only DIY bolt on

Most systems are available like this...some use band clamps, others ball-joints...

Price: quality costs

Yep.

Keeping a good sound

Again, quite subjective. Some like the Euro-taste of the X-pipe, some like the musclecar rumble of the H-pipe...some like the hollow sound that Flows give, others want a more subdued rumble...some like the sound of O/R pipes, others prefer more muting.

It's pretty tough to find an exhaust for a Mustang that doesn't sound good though.

Which brand produces the best quality exhaust?

Steeda/Borla, Bassani, Magnaflow...all good stuff.

Does it help just installing an x-pipe and not changing the stock mufflers?

My car gained 8rwHP by switching to a catted MRT H and leaving the factory catback in place.

Are there quality mufflers which increase the flow but don’t increase the noise dramatically?

You might consider Ford Racing's system. It's probably one of the quietest systems available.

FRPP P/N M-5230-M52

blueovalguy · May 6, 2005

I've got an MRT catted H pipe and FRPP catback. This is the system you are asking about. There are sound clips of my car on www.mustangexhaust.com

iStang · May 7, 2005

Thanks for the input so far . I realize that the factory exhaust is really restricted. The gain of HP by changing the mid-pipe is more than I thought. And also it looks like the MRT is lighter than the stock. To my understanding a lot of owners here prefer h over x, because of low end torque and deeper sound.

bluewovalguy: where exactly on mustangexhaust.com do I find your clips? BTW interesting paint job on your stang.

trinity_gt: Yeah, the wife or g/f is another factor to consider. I checked FRPP P/N M-5230-M52 but they don't offer the exhaust for '03 stangs . You write Steeda/Borla, Bassani, Magnaflow are all good stuff; same with MRT?

Muscles00GT: Yes, It's always like that. You want to try to find the best compromise. Often you try to combine contradictory features. I thought by describing what I want it will help to find the best deal for me.

do all of the cats have O2 sensors? What are you doing with the two you are not using anymore?
is the installation DIY? Are stands good enough or do I use a lift?
no considerable drone with the setup you described above?

Muscles00GT · May 7, 2005

iStang said:
do all of the cats have O2 sensors? What are you doing with the two you are not using anymore?
is the installation DIY? Are stands good enough or do I use a lift?
no considerable drone with the setup you described above?

Well, each cat doesn't have it's own set of O2 sensors. There are 2 in the front and 2 in the rear of the midpipe (drilled on each side)..It's hard to describe, but you'll see when you look at a midpipe.

Installation can be DIY. Everything is bolt on. However, if you're purchasing a whole catback, I recommend welding over the bolt on because over time, there's a chance the bolts can come loose and a possible leak may occur. You can do it on stands (perferrabely 4 jackstands). I took mine to a friends shop and he did everything for me for $60 (midpipe + catback).

As for the setup I recommended, it will sound good. A catted H pipe will compliment the magnaflow catback very well. Won't be too loud nor too quiet. It sounds good, but a little quiet for me . It has nice tone and deepness.

RedDaemon · May 7, 2005

http://24.161.94.46/documents/exhaustSounds/index.html its a site i put together compiled with popular setups people have on this site

iStang · May 11, 2005

-=NightHawk=-: Keep on building the database. There hundreds of different setup possible.

I ordered now the MRT H catback and the FRPP catback. Hopefully I'll get the parts soon. I'm looking forward .

Do the pipes of the FRPP look the same like stock?

hognutz · May 11, 2005

find out what the DB requirement is first. There should be a law that governs this.

Also find out if you can even tamper with the midpipe. If there is a visual stock you have 4 cats. no aftermaket pipes have 4 cats.

now if you just need to pass emsions get the magnaflow or vrs x-pipe in my opinion.

then I would couple it with one of these three

1. borla reglar turbo (or steeda is the same I think) t-304 stainless (best quality)
2. magnaflow (cheapest)
3. FRPP 2.5 catback (quittest)

Exhaust advice needed again

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