Question about replacement tailpipes

[boostfrk]

I'm getting ready to buy a set of SS tailpipes for my '90 and have seen a couple of sets on CL. My concern is whether these were originally welded and have been cut therefore leaving a shorter piece of straight pipe where the tailpipes meet with the muffler outlets. So, how much length of straight pipe do I need where the pipes slip into the outlet off the mufflers?

Hopefully this makes sense...

 

[2000xp8]

Just buy a complete catback new in box.
You can install it at home and have piece of mind about fitment.
Anything that has been previously welded is pretty much useless on another car.

The extra money you have to spend on a complete catback will be offset by the fact that you don't need to pay a muffler shop to fix another persons mess.

Keep in mind too, rarely do different tailpipe brands and mufflers match up to each other.

 

[Gearbanger 101]

Latemodel Restoration sells a complete set of muffler back 2 1/2" stainless steel tails for $150. I wouldn't even consider putting on used pipes when they can be had that cheaply.

http://www.latemodelrestoration.com/item/LRS-5212PR/86-97-Mustang-LX-Stainless-Steel-Tailpipes

 

[boostfrk]

Just buy a complete catback new in box.
You can install it at home and have piece of mind about fitment.
Anything that has been previously welded is pretty much useless on another car.

The extra money you have to spend on a complete catback will be offset by the fact that you don't need to pay a muffler shop to fix another persons mess.

Keep in mind too, rarely do different tailpipe brands and mufflers match up to each other.

Good info in here, thanks guys. One of the sets I found was from a Flowmaster catback system, and they haven't been welded. That being said the guy says the connection the the muffler outlet was a ball and socket type connection which I don't have with my mufflers (Dynomax ST). So the above statement may stay true, the Flowmasters may not work.

 

[Jarrod@latemodel]

Latemodel Restoration sells a complete set of muffler back 2 1/2" stainless steel tails for $150. I wouldn't even consider putting on used pipes when they can be had that cheaply.

http://www.latemodelrestoration.com/item/LRS-5212PR/86-97-Mustang-LX-Stainless-Steel-Tailpipes

For the price of this kit, you cant go wrong.

 

[2000xp8]

Even if the tailpipes do line up with the mufflers pretty well, you still may need someone to weld them, which means $100+. At that point you lose most of the adjustability, so the first time the tailpipe hits your rear tire, upper control arm, frame rail or gas tank (all of which i have had issues with in the past) you are screwed.

Do yourself a favor, buy a bassani bx (or stainless if your budget is bigger) catback, slap it on yourself, and know that you have purchased a quality product that sounds good and is infinitely adjustable.
I've never heard or seen a single instance of a bassani system failing like mac, flowmaster and cheaper kits do.

 

[NIKwoaC]

I'm going to have to get a set of those LRS tails. My aluminized stuff looks like butt.

 

[Boydster]

I want a set of the LRS tails... and I have a GT.

 

[Gearbanger 101]

Even if the tailpipes do line up with the mufflers pretty well, you still may need someone to weld them, which means $100+. At that point you lose most of the adjustability, so the first time the tailpipe hits your rear tire, upper control arm, frame rail or gas tank (all of which i have had issues with in the past) you are screwed.

Band Clamps FTW. Cheap, leak free and the tails remain fully adjustable.

I'm going to have to get a set of those LRS tails. My aluminized stuff looks like butt.

Same here. I have nice bright, beautiful triple chromed plated 10th Anniversary Cobra replicas on the car.....and these ugly, dull looking tails that won't stay shiny no matter how much I polish them.

 

[NIKwoaC]

The thing is, I'd like to go to a full 3" system on my car, so I feel like I'd be pissing away 150$. But the 3" thing isn't happening soon, and those 2.5" tails look really nice.

 

[2000xp8]

The thing is, I'd like to go to a full 3" system on my car, so I feel like I'd be pissing away 150$. But the 3" thing isn't happening soon, and those 2.5" tails look really nice.

3 inch is not needed for a street car, it's pointless overkill with major clearance issues.

 

[Gearbanger 101]

3 inch is not needed for a street car, it's pointless overkill with major clearance issues.

Not pointless if he's got enough engine to back it up. Not to mention, the larger diameter exhaust system will have a deeper, more muscular tone. I’m wondering though if a 3” exhaust might look out of place on a Fox body. Those are some awfully large tailpipes!

...but I agree, from a pure functionality standpoint a 2 1/2" exhaust will move more than enough exhaust fumes for all but the most serious set ups.

 

[boostfrk]

Even if the tailpipes do line up with the mufflers pretty well, you still may need someone to weld them, which means $100+. At that point you lose most of the adjustability, so the first time the tailpipe hits your rear tire, upper control arm, frame rail or gas tank (all of which i have had issues with in the past) you are screwed.

Do yourself a favor, buy a bassani bx (or stainless if your budget is bigger) catback, slap it on yourself, and know that you have purchased a quality product that sounds good and is infinitely adjustable.
I've never heard or seen a single instance of a bassani system failing like mac, flowmaster and cheaper kits do.

I really am not willing to drop the cash on a full catback, and besides I want something quieter and close to stock, so I've ended up piecing together my own. Alas, the tail pipes are the last component. I was going to use the exact same band clamps as Gearbanger suggested so maintain adjustability and aid in removal down the road.

If the Flowmaster pipes have the ball and socket joint where the pipes meet the muffler outlet, then I'll have to go the LRS route. I don't know of a way to create the ball/socket fitting at the outlet of the muffler since it's not currently there.

 

[NIKwoaC]

3 inch is not needed for a street car, it's pointless overkill with major clearance issues.

All those 3" systems that sell like hot cakes for the '05-'12 cars must be pointless overkill, then.

Not pointless if he's got enough engine to back it up. Not to mention, the larger diameter exhaust system will have a deeper, more muscular tone. I’m wondering though if a 3” exhaust might look out of place on a Fox body. Those are some awfully large tailpipes!

...but I agree, from a pure functionality standpoint a 2 1/2" exhaust will move more than enough exhaust fumes for all but the most serious set ups.

Nah, I've seen 3" setups on Foxes, there are actually a few of them around here; they look really good. The only problem is that they are expensive, and the Flowmaster kit (one of the more readily available ones) has an odd short-polished section tailpipe.

 

[2000xp8]

All those 3" systems that sell like hot cakes for the '05-'12 cars must be pointless overkill, then.

Just so you are aware, catbacks on newer cars pick up nearly nothing, it's the headers that add all the power.
On newer cars they are done for sound not performance, the factory exhaust is very efficient. You get the default size based on the manufacturers sound you prefer, some are 3 in some are 2.5, which changes nothing for performance.
Not to mention 3 inch pipes easily fit on 05+ mustangs, so you aren't sacrificing clearances just to say you have a 3 inch exhaust.

 

[NIKwoaC]

Just so you are aware, catbacks on newer cars pick up nearly nothing, it's the headers that add all the power.
On newer cars they are done for sound not performance, the factory exhaust is very efficient. You get the default size based on the manufacturers sound you prefer, some are 3 in some are 2.5, which changes nothing for performance.
Not to mention 3 inch pipes easily fit on 05+ mustangs, so you aren't sacrificing clearances just to say you have a 3 inch exhaust.

Yes, I am aware of this. I am also aware of the fact that a "big" header tube for a pushrod engine is 1-3/4", while the baseline for aftermarket headers for Coyotes is 1-3/4". There are a lot of things about the Coyote that would get labeled as "pointless overkill" in the SBF world, like 80mm throttle bodies, 300 CFM heads, and 86mm MAF meters. Yet, these things are making 400 to the tire with minimal bolt ons.

So, we can keep labeling things "pointless overkill", or we can take a page out of what the OEMs are doing and think outside the box a little. Or not, you know, and keep building H/C/I cars that barely make 300 to the tire. Whatever floats your boat.