Mufflers and gears

[865.0]

I know I have asked this question before, but here it goes again.

What is the best performing muffler that is also the quietest?

Quieter being the most desireable of the two.

Currently I'm running 3.73 gears with the 3.35 T-5 gearbox. I'm annoyed with the instant/quick shift from 1st to 2nd gear (stop and go traffic). I have to shift from 1st to 5th gear a minmum of 21 times in a 7 mile stretch/15 minute drive. Now that's with no traffic.

Question is: What gear is recommend for the street? I would like to run around 1800-2000 RPM at 70mph. -OR- Would it be better to switch to a 2.95 1st gear ratio T-5. Would that solve my instant 1st/2nd gear change.

Combo: Stock Long Block, TrickFlow Intake, 65mmTB, 76mm MAM, Powerdyne 6psi, Flowmaster Exhaust.

*Car does not run at the strip*

 

[85_SS_302_Coupe]

Is that a 4 cylinder T5? If you're not concerned with performance, then go back to a stock 3.08 or 2.73 rear end, that'll keep you in one gear longer and you'll be at much lower RPMs on the highway. If you ask what the best gear for street is, most people are going to tell you 3.73, and i don't think dropping down to 3.55 is that big of a deal, so you won't get what you're looking for.

 

[Tonys96Cobra]

For a DD street car, I always recommend 3.55's. For mufflers, 3 chamber flos are nice, or my personal fav, the Hooker aero chamber.

 

[Darkwriter77]

As far as the QUIETEST muffler, you can't get much quieter than Dynomax Super Turbos. I ditched mine because, even though I was wanting something quieter than the MAC's that were on there, it sounded worse than stock - even at WOT, they were pretty blah. The Pypes Violators I have on there now are no louder than the Super Turbos at idle or regular driving (actually a tad quieter inside), but they roar plenty when you romp on it - nice raspy tone like a chambered muff above 3k RPM, but they're a straight-through design.

As far as gears, it depends what you're running for a transmission; if you've got a 4-banger T-5, first gear is gonna be so short and semi-useless that it won't matter what you put in the back. I'm running 4.10's behind a regular V8 T-5 and first is a little brief, but not so much that it's useless for regular driving. Sure, you could downgrade to something as low as stock 3.08's, but the only thing you'll thank yourself for in doing so is maybe picking up a bit of gas mileage - I do NOT miss the 3.08's I had in my previous notch. Being able to step on it in 5th on the highway to pass/merge is nicer than having to jam it down into 4th or 3rd just to get some oomph out of it.

 

[865.0]

Actually it's not the top RPM that bothers me so much (I cruise at 35mph and 1500 RPM most of the time/In 5th), but the Immediate launch. I have the stock '86 Mustang GT transmission. My brothers T-5 world class doesn't seem to be so bad. I believe it's the difference in the 1st gear ratio.

I'll check the mufflers that you suggested. Currently I'm running 2-chamber flowmasters.

Thanks for the advice.