2nd Gen Non-Engine/Transmission Exhuast repair or upgrade??

[bkroupa]

I was just under my new (to me) truck checking it over & noticed the front of the muffler is cracked/broken all the way around. The rest of the system looks pretty good. I plan to add an 11 plate & 3k GSK, but don't really plan many more mods. Would it be worth upgrading the exhaust to a 4" system or would it be just as good to replace the muffler with a better one & the lumpy section in front of it?

I'm not worried about flash or chrome tips, but improved drivability, power, or economy would appeal to me.

What would be the best 3" replacement muffler? or best deal on a replacement exhaust? I do plan to have this truck for a long, long time.

 

[Forrest Nearing]

best replacement muffler is straight pipe



I'd splurge on an exhaust system, but that's just me. you'll probably be fine w/ the 3" system.



Forrest

 

[bkroupa]

Forrest,

This is 4play formally from the Corral



I don't mind spending the money if it'll actually help at my planned power level which will be basically whatever the stock clutch will tolerate. This is my daily driver, 700 miles or so a week & will be towing a ~8000lb camper at least once a month.

I need to keep the noise reasonable. Would I gain much with a 4" system over a performance muffler & dead cat?

 

[Forrest Nearing]

Buddy,



small world!!! LOL! your name registered about half a second before I read your reply



I would go ahead and splurge... you can get a good aluminumized 4" system for aroud $270 I believe.



will you gain much over utilizing the stock 3" stuff? not at this point, but with the number of miles your'e going to be putting on, the miniscule fuel consumption difference will add up quicker, and the turbo will spool up quicker and the EGT's will be lower, which is a good thing w/ the extra 8,000lbs of weight and wind resistance!



oh, and the popular consensus is that the #10 plate is the best all around plate out there. disregard the TST chart... you can slide the plate forward for more power or back to save the clutch. the 10, 4 and 0 work well with GSK's



if you want the truck good and quiet, I'd either add a resonator to the system where the cat used to live, or do a search on the 51" Nelson muffler.



good to see a familiar face! well... you know what I mean!



Forrest

 

[jeepit]

An aluminzed sustem for $270. Where can I get one!

 

[mikel]

I'd be interested in this aluminized system for $270 too.



Back to the original question, if it were me I'd do the #10 as you have been advised and the 4" exhaust.



Good luck,

Mike

 

[gitchesum]

Or if you feel like driving to Houston, I got a full 3" system you're more than welcome to. Only got one cut in it that would need welding.

 

[Mark Craig]

Exhaust Woes

bkroupa,



We get this call daily, the 24 vavle trucks are at an age where the factory exhaust system are starting to fail form the outside in as opposed to gas systems that fail from the inside out! The prices most folsk get from a muffler shop and especially from the dealer for OEM replacement parts is usually way higher than an exhaust system like we sell. Plus now you can get a stainless system that should last you a lot longer than the OEM system did. Do yourself a favor and get a 4 inch system, it'll last , lower your EGT's, spool the turbo up a little sooner, sound real good and set the truck up for other mods down the road.



Mark @ DPPI

 

[Forrest Nearing]

looks like prices have come up a little bit this year...



I remember when the 4" aluminumized systems were $269... ebay, Summit, Rip, etc.



now the Summit/ebay 4" systems are sitting right at about $300.



at those prices, I might spend the extra $50 or whatever and get a Magnaflow system!



Forrest

 

[bkroupa]

I went with the Walker 21468 $52 locally with tax & a few feet of 3" pipe for now. Rip offered me a very nice price on a system, but for the difference, I can do some other stuff that I need worse (for now). I'm sure I'll be calling Rip for the 4" before too long.

 

[Forrest Nearing]

I think you went the right way at this point...

 

[Chipstien]

One thing you might want to consider is to buy that muffler in a 4" inlet and outlet and then use some 4" to 3" reducers. That way when and if you decide to buy a 4" system you will already have the muffler. When the time comes just go to a local big rig shop and pick up everything you need to make your own 4" system for under 100 dollars. All *you* would need is a welder.

 

[rmrc]

I was in the same situation as you around a year ago. The muffler went but the rest of the system was still sound. After checking what a replacement muffler would cost and the fact that some other part would need replacing shortly, I decided to change the entire system with Rip's 4" and his Donaldson muffler. I'm very pleased with the quality, price and sound!!!!!

 

[bkroupa]

I installed the muffler last night & have driven about 100 miles so far today. The throttle response is better, noticably faster spoolup. I doubt I have any HP gains, but it does seem to require less throttle for normal acceleration between shifts. The noise level in the truck is maybe slighly louder, at the tailpipe it's a different truck. Very definate turbo whistle, not bad but noticable. The dreaded drone is not really noticable cruising, but I did hear more of a groan accelerating firm about 2200-2400.

$80 total investment, took me about an hour in my driveway, I do still have to fab another mounting bracket this weekend. Good cheap repair in my case, or an upgrade for others.

 

[RobertMiller1]

aluminized 4" system

Well, memory is the first to go. just found my old notes.



www.auto-jet.com price for 4" aluminized was $278.

www.summitracing.com is about $299. p/n SUM-680001

 

[JBlock]

Steel and Oil prices

I would completely blame the US steel guys, in the Chinese their the number two oil buyer in the world and bought 50% of last years world steel production. Their industrializing and now everyone wants a car in China. In like Los Angles all traffic jams.



Bad news is Oil porduction will take 3-5 years to ram, everyone flat out.

 

[bkroupa]

Just updating, I do have some drone pulling my ~7500# TT at ~2200rpm. It's not bad, but it is there. The truck is much more noticable from the outside, a definate whistle & more noise, not near straightpipe, but louder than stock.

I removed the snorkel from my stock airfilter housing & opened up the original hole a bit. The truck definately feels more responsive, less throttle needed between shifts. It's only been two tankfulls two & from work (& a third towing) but both of the non towing tanks were my best ever, mid 21's calculated by hand. The truck is all stock except for the exhuast & airbox

 

[bkroupa]

Follow up, after 14k + miles with this setup the cab noise is starting to bother me. I spend 3 hours a day in this truck to & from work 5 days a week. Towing is uncomfortably loud after a while. Power is good, but I'm going to go to a 4" system. Who has the quietest (in cab)

4" system? or possibly I'll buy a down pipe & make the rest.

 

[BKenny]

Im happy with my Rips 4" i was worried about drone and eccesive cab noise at cruising speeds. I put mine on this summer and so far so good nice sound Some times roll down my passenger window so i can hear it more :-laf

 

[Forrest Nearing]

Buddy, I've been around the block more than once w/ exhaust on these trucks... I've had no fewer than TWELVE different arrangements on my truck in the past year! LOL!



first, if you can "make the rest", you can make a downpipe no problem... there's tons of room to work, and you just need one bend... I don't know what the exact degree of bend it is, but you can cut it out of a 90* bend. and just weld a 3-4" adapter as close to the turbo as possible... 'course, these days, prices are probably low enough on a downpipe, it might make more sense to just buy one.



anyhow, one thing I've found that seems to REALLY cut down on resonance is to damn near hard mount the exhaust to the frame... use some really stiff hangers w/ rubber isolaters... and then use a good length of flex pipe...



I just went through trying out THREE different mufflers on my stack setup... each one yielded MORE interior resonance than the straight pipe... I've got 41" of flex pipe between the downpipe and the bed w/ the straight setup... with the mufflers, I could only squeeze ~10-15" in there.



but I'll tell you, the thing that made a HUGE difference was to add a bunch of sound deadener to the interior sheet metal... I would almost be willing to bet that your current setup would be fine if you did that.



anyhow, for your setup, I would go with a 51" donaldson, and if you want furthur reduction, a resonator of some sort right after the downpipe. I've got a 4" dynomax bullet I'll sell you cheap (like I said, I've been pulling my hair out trying different mufflers) and run a good length of flex pipe between the span.



FWIW, none of the systems out there use the 51" muffler, so you're probably better of pieceing together your own system.



but like I said, don't forget the sound deadener... at the VERY LEAST, add some to the back wall of the cab. there's NOTHING back there, and it just vibrates like a steel drum.



my truck with 5" straight pipe and lotsa sound deadener was quieter inside than it was when I had a 27" long muffler but no sound deadener!!!



Forrest