flowmaster american thunder major cabin drone!

official_style

New Member
Apr 18, 2005
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today i had my bassani x pipe with comp cats installed, and my flowmaster american thunder kit. if i am around 1800 rpms, and give it a lot of gas, i got MAJOR drone, like it kinda rattles stuff. is everyone having this problem? would putting dynamat under the rear seat and trunk help? i love how it sounds with this setup, but i need to do something about the drone!
 
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Dear Offical Style:

I installed Mac's on my 2005 Mustang and get a terrible drone between 1500 - 2000 RPMs. Sound is "KILLER" but the drone is bad...

Read alot about Flowmaster's set up and they mention that they engineered the drone out of their product...

If so, what you hear is normal...

If not, then they are FOS!!!

Maybe I'll stick with my Mac's and spend the next paycheck on springs...

Stay posted and maybe others will confirm my findings...

Dave
 
official_style said:
today i had my bassani x pipe with comp cats installed, and my flowmaster american thunder kit. if i am around 1800 rpms, and give it a lot of gas, i got MAJOR drone, like it kinda rattles stuff. is everyone having this problem? would putting dynamat under the rear seat and trunk help? i love how it sounds with this setup, but i need to do something about the drone!

Hey man I have the Flowmaster american thunder kit also, it drones alittle when ever i am in overdrive at about 1800 rpm's. Now flowmaster did not say that they completely did away with the drone but it is alot better then if you would have just slapped a set of plain 40 series up their. I don't know if dyna mat will help but if you cant stand the drone then its worth the try. Any ways doesnt the sound that the flows produce just make you want to cream your pants! :banana: Oh yah you said you have cats and a x pipe, the increased air flow might have increased the drone alittle, just a guess.

P.S. Dont even think about getting Bassani!!! Flowmaster sounds alot better :spot:
 
I've heard that chambered axlebacks like Mac, American Thunder Flows, JBA's, etc, have really bad drone when coupled with an X pipe, especially the Bassani x pipe. If you switched to Bassani axle pipes, the drone may be significantly reduced since the Bassani is a straight thru design, and not chambered. You could then sell your flows used to someone on a Mustang board, or ebay for that matter, at not too much of a loss.
 
it is a pretty bad drone, but i LOVE how it sounds, and i seriously doubt that the bassani axle back is going to have the same sound as the flowmasters. the way it sounds right now is PERFECT! what i probably should have done was skip the x-pipe. what does everyone think about the dynamat idea?? how does the bassani axle back sound? where is the cheapest place to buy it?
 
The flowmasters may sound better to you but your not gaining any horsepower and there is no depth to the sound. The chambered muffler is a Horsepower killer. Your right move was going to Bassani Mid Pipes. Most of your power created by exhaust replacement is in the Mid Pipes.

Go back to stock mid pipes if you don't like the sound, there are a ton of guys that would buy those Mid Pipes from you.
 
well i was kinda messing around with it driving to work today, and its really only bad in 4th or 5th at 1800 rpms, when you give it a lot of gas. its not that bad, i am going to dynomat the trunk, and keep it this way. it just sounds tooooo good to change it. ill get some sound clips up as soon as i can stop driving it for a little while!
 
i have the flowmaster axle back, and there is not a bad drone at all. its just a little louder than the stock setup. i am very happy with the flowmaster kit. but, i dont have the x pipe, so maybe that is where the drone is originating from.
 
I'm running Flowmaster Super 40's and have moderate drone at around 1800 RPM.

I think your X pipe is making it worse. :shrug:

Since 1800-2000 RPM is around 50-65 MPH, I'm considering 4.10 gears, to bump up the RPM a bit and get it out of the "drone range".
 
_Style, I had the Super 40's on my car and had the same problem. A few other people on the board mentioned the same thing, before the server crash. Apparently changing the pulleys helps (never did this myself - did a Roush conversion and had to replace the exhaust), according to a few guys who tried it.
 
well i have been driving it all day, did like 100 miles, a little highway, and mostly city driving. i went back to my exhaust shop, and had them take off all the clamps, and weld everything. this has made the drone much less annoying for some reason, and also, there were a few leaks with the clamps, now there is not even 1 tiny leak. i dont think i even need to dynamat the trunk now. if you put it in 5th and floor it at like 1800 rpms, there is a drone, but who actually does that when they are driving? i am completely happy with my exhaust now, i am going to try and make an exhaust clip tonight.
 
The flows only drone when you are trying to speed up in too high of a gear. I noticed mine doing it when my wife was driving. These mufflers sound quiet inside the car, but man they sound good on the outside.
 
My Bassani's drone also at around 1800 RPM but I've got the X pipe too. It's kinda driving me nuts but I love the sound otherwise. I'm going to try a product called QuietCar that I found online- they say it's better than dynamat and you can brush it on to get more coverage (I'm gonna do the entire trunk).
 
blk05gtstang said:
Hey official_style any chance you could post a couple shots of your car from the back with the flowmaster axle back? I'm considering it for my black coupe and want to see it first. Thanks!

I installed the Flowmaster American Thunders this afternoon. I will take a picture for you as well sometime tomorrow mornign or afternoon. I think that they look and sound great. The only thing I had issues with was getting one of the hangers lined up correctly, very tight spacing between the body and the mufflers.