Has anyone here done any testing on mufflers

[My427stang]

I have always thought that my Flowmasters on my 489 were not the most efficient

I have read a few interent studies that agree, but wondering what you guys think

Reason I ask is I am going to change out my crush-bent 3 inch H pipe and building a nice mandrel bent X-pipe to replace it. Current H pipe is pretty, but going to try the X for laughs and the tubing will be a lot cleaner.

As I started thinking, I like the sound of the Flowmasters but hate the low rpm drone, especially at highway speeds in 5th gear, so if there is a better street muffler, I may give it a shot.

Anyone done any testing? Seeing as I am redoing it, looking for something that may complement the motor a bit when its breathing harder

My setup now is:

489 cid FE, 1 3/4 primaries into 3 inch collectors
3 inch crush bent H pipe (not bad at all didnt have far to go, 35 degrees maybe) with a 3 inch crossover
3 inch Flowmaster Deltaflow mufflers 3 chamber
tapered reducer to 2.5 inch mandrel bent tailpipes

Will use the same setup but go to a 3 inch mandrel bent X pipe to replace the H pipe and may change the mufflers as well

Street car 99% of the time, but I have always had the hunch that the Flows aren't all that good for the car

Opinions? Dont mind a little growl, but trying to hear the radio inside and have the ability to idle around without killing the neighbors

Anyone have any real world results on muffler changes? Right now leaning toward Hooker Max Flows or Magnaflows

Thanks in advance

[Windsor377]

I wish I could give a good answer.

The only muffler I can make sense of is the Dynomax Bullet. I just treat it like a piece of pipe.

The best sense I can make out of the "chambered" style mufflers is, the terminiation of the inlet should equal the measument of your deisired "collector" length. What you do with the chamber and the rest of your tail pipe measurements is up for grabs as far as I can tell, from a design standpoint.

I'd like to undersatnd that too. Maybe some folks have some ideas...?

[Tony377]

This was given to me when I asked a similar question on another forum.

The results in HP order:
1.Flowtech Warlock (open) 374.2 hp/ 333.1 tq
2.Bassani Real Street 373.7 hp/ 333.8 tq
3.Hooker Maxflow 373.5 hp/ 333 tq
4.Borla XS 373.3 hp/ 332.6 tq
5.Magnaflow 372.8 / 332.5 tq
6.MAC 372.3 hp / 331.5 tq
7.Flowtech Afterburner 372.3 hp/ 330.1 tq
8.Hooker Aerochamber 372.1 hp/ 330.4 tq
9.Bassani 372 hp/ 333.5 tq
10.Spintech 371.6 hp/ 332.2 tq
11.Edelbrock Performer RPM 370.9 hp / 331.3 tq
12.Borla XR1 370 hp/ 334 tq
13.Flowtech Terminator 369.5 hp / 331.3 tq
14.Dynomax Ultra Flo 369.4 / 333.2 tq
15.Flowmaster 369.4 hp / 331.8 tq
16.Flowtech Warlock 366.3 hp / 325.3 tq
17.No muffs 365.2 hp / 330.1 tq

Sound Off in Quietest to Loudest (Decibels):

1.Borla XS, 80db at idle, 90db at 2,000 rpm, 110db at WOT.
2.Hooker Maxflow, 80db at idle, 90db at 2,000 rpm, 120db at WOT.
3.Magnaflow, 82db at idle, 91 at 2,000 rpm, 114db at WOT.
4.Flowmaster, 82db at idle, 93 at 2,000 rpm, 115db at WOT.
5.Flowtech Warlock, 83db at idle, 92 at 2,000 rpm, 112db at WOT.
6.Dynomax UltraFlo, 83db at idle, 94 at 2,000 rpm, 113db at WOT.
7.Borla XR1, 83db at idle, 96db at 2,000 rpm, 118db at WOT.
8.Bassani Street, 83db at idle, 96db at 2,000 rpm, 120db at WOT.
9.Edelbrock RPM, 84db at idle, 93db at 2,000 rpm, 118db at WOT.
10.Bassani Real Street, 84db at idle, 96db at 2,000 rpm, MAX. (120+db).
11.Flowtech Afterburner, 86db at idle, 94db at 2,000 rpm, 115db at WOT.
12.Flowtech Terminator, 86db at idle, 94db at 2,000 rpm, 119db at WOT.
13.Hooker Aerochamber, 87db at idle, 94db at 2,000 rpm, 114db at WOT.
14.SpinTech, 87db at idle, 97db at 2,000 rpm, 116db at WOT.
15.MAC, 87db at idle, 98db at 2,000 rpm, 119db at WOT.
16.No Muffler, 91db at idle, 103db at 2,000 rpm, MAX. (120+db).


http://forums.stangnet.com/archive/index.php/t-392314

[af2]

It's really funny giving ratings without tuning to the specific! All those #'s will be close with the right tune up, then all you need to do is figure out the noise you can stand. I vote for Turbo's

[n2omike]

Since it will have an 'X' pipe, and is a street car... I'll throw a couple ideas out at you.

The X pipe can be a problem when it comes time to do clutch/transmission work, as it can be dead in the way...

A possible solution is to make the exhaust easily removable.

Here's my solution.

Make the tailpipes REMOVABLE. Use 3" pipe back to 3" mufflers, then weld some 3-bolt collector rings to the muffler outlets. To those, the tailpipes can be connected with simple header reducers.

Since you have a mustang, you can attach 2-1/2" flowmaster mandrel bent tailpipes that cost only $99/pr and be done.

This give the best of all worlds... If you want quiet cruising, leave the entire exhaust attached. If you want to thump around town and set off a car alarm or two, remove six nuts/bolts, and take the tailpipes off. If you want to either work on the clutch/transmission or run with open headers, six more bolts and the entire exhaust is gone!

Removable tailpipes allow you to tailor the car's exhaust to suit whatever mood you might be in. As far as I'm concerned, it's the ONLY way to go with a street car!

As for mufflers... As long as you can hold them up and see STRAIGHT through them without louvers or obstructions, they should be just fine! Magnaflows get great reviews. I just purchased some, and they aren't too loud at all until you stick your foot into it. The center in/out models are the best. Magnaflow makes both satin and polished stainless mufflers. The satin ones are $20 cheaper. Last I looked, Summit only had the polished ones in their catalog, but they carry both. Find the part number at the Magnaflow site, then go to http://summitracing.com and paste it into the search box to find the price.

http://magnaflow.com/02product/02muffler.asp

ps. Use short mufflers on mustangs to give plenty of room to go up and over the axle housing.

Good Luck!

[bigjoe1]

EVERYONE a the Engine Master contest used Magnaflow mufflers. I did test several others, but NONE were better on a 750 HP engine. The H pipe ,or X pipe setup is just for WEAK SUCK small blocks ( 302 Fords )It helps low speed power ( 4000 and less )Most BB anything have too much low speed power allready ( hense, you do not need it )A few years ago, I did some dyno testing on a 454 street motor. He brought his entire mandrell bent 3 inch exhaust, with the famous X pipe. Compared to my dyno headers, it LOST power every where. Poor guy, he spent 900 dollars on the trick exhaust pipes. Since I found out how good the Magnaflow stuff is, I always run all my dyno testing with mufflers.
JOE SHERMAN RACING ENGINES

[Windsor377]

Joe,

I don't think the Dynomax Bullets are allowed at Engine Masters. Have you ever worked with them?

[My427stang]

Thanks Mike, its already modular and comes apart in front of the mufflers and I already use Flowmaster mandrel bent tail pipes witha short muffler. All your comments are correct and have been that way since day one Unfortunately I cant use a center in/out on a 70 and have it tuck under nicely, has to be offset in, center out, I'd think your 65 is the same.

Regardless, I appreciate the comments but this is really only about mufflers

Joe and Tony, thanks for the muffler info. I was never impressed with these Flowmasters. I may try the Magnaflows.

[VOETOM]

Several years ago, we did a lot of work on 27 different mufflers with and without crossovers, made a CD of their sounds, recorded lots of static data on them, and we also did some earlier testing on 11 mufflers at the dragstrip. We found that the most power and lowest sound level comes from acoustic dissipating material-packed, straight through, (not chambered) mufflers, as one would expect. However, we used offset inlet-offset outlet mufflers. Center in and center out units will act differently and chambered ones will work better this way I imagine. Hooker Aerochambers addressed the offset inlet offset outlet configuration nicely. Take a look at how they did it their website. They sound good but are a tad loud, in my opinion.

We found that the Dr. Gas X Crossover provided improvement on our large cubic inch Pontiac that typically sees only from off idle on the line up to 5400 rpm. Other X crossovers will not act the same depending upon the crossover's size and shape internally.

The 4100 pound car currently runs 11.50s at 116 with a 3.31 gear and 3" pipes with an X with XLERATOR mufflers mounted under the rear (they are 5" by 11" by 22" mufflers). You can hear and see it here.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ta6kP3itZx8
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8GHYxPqePv8
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cu4I6gfF68w

Tom

[My427stang]

Your movies are awesome, too bad all the noisy cars take away from being able to hear yours!

That car is fantastic, and of course has come up in almost every internet search for testing of mufflers. Its very nice to see and hear what the car really ran like

Are those the Goerlich's Xcelerators? Sure seems like the kind of rpm range and sound I am looking for.

My 489 is really a baby amongst strokers, makes some strong power, but not built for big numbers, it needs to be as happy in 5th at 1700 rpm as 1st and 2d at 5500-5700.

Thanks for the vids and info!

[Windsor377]

When it comes to exhaust, it really can't be just about the mufflers. It must be about the entire package.

Obviously, given the examples, Magnaflow has something going, but why? That's the question in my mind. Not "where can I buy Magnaflows"? af2 made the correct point about tuning the entire system.

I'm not sure Engine Masters is a good benchmark either. From what I can tell, you're basically stuck with headers you have to buy in a box and "street style" mufflers.

When it comes to "chambered" style mufflers, I still think you need to understand what happens past the end of the inlet, otherwise your always searching for the latest muffler du' jour, as opposed to finding what is best for your combination.

I hope this topic continues, as I am out of here in the next hour or so and wont be back until the middle of next week and I think there is some very useful information "out there"...and when I get back, this will be the first thread I check.

Take care all and have a good weekend while you're at it.

[Ron Golden]

Jim and Tom Hand (Lees Summit, MO.) did quite an extensive test on mufflers (flow and sound testing) and published the results in Popular Hot Rodding Magazine. I talked to both of these gentlemen just a few minutes ago and they said it would be OK to contact them for the results and their recommendations. You can contact Tom Hand @ thand@k.c.rr.com.

Ron

[VOETOM]

My 27 Stang, yes they are the large bodied XLERATORS. We found that of the big guys, the UltraFlos from Walker and XLERATORS from Goerlich were the highest flowing and quietest and MagnaFlows were next. This is in the larger case size mufflers. The issue with the Magnaflow, offset offset is they had perforations in the bend, Walker did not. The air flow test shows this clearly, however this is not the best way to compare mufflers. The track is the best way I think as well as driving with them on the street and using your ears to help your brain determine your tolerance levels of sound.

I agree, the whole package is tremendously important. We spent a lot of time finding the right crossover, the right mufflers and the right tailpipes. It all is dependent on one's opinion of tone quality and what is loud or quiet to you. In our case, we were looking for as close to stock sound levels as one could get knowing we had limited size restrictions. Hard to make a quiet, small muffler and that is where larger cars truly shines .
Tom Hand

[n2omike]

I really like my center in/out Magnaflows, but I was looking at one with an offset inlet/outlet at the muffler shop, and the bends inside weren't all that smooth. I was kind of disappointed in them. If you need an offset in/out, you might want to personally look at a few different ones to see what looks best to you.

Good Luck!

[My427stang]

Mike, -I'll start looking inside, didnt realize the bend was there, good advice, thanks

Ron - Thanks for contacting Tom for me, I appreciate it.

Tom - Thanks for the info, I probably will not be able to run as big of a muffler as your wagon, but I think I can fit a decent size in there, I'll have to measure my current Flowmaster case and what I have for room

One last question for, maybe two

- Do you think at your horsepower levels the change from a 3 chamber Flowmaster to an Excelerator would make any difference at throttle positions other than WOT? Same question for the X pipe?

- Did you try different X pipes or just test X versus H. The one I have on the floor is a Hedman mandrel bent version and looks fine, but wondering if you had any other data on one versus the other and in size of crossover merge, degrees of bend, etc.

Thanks again - Ross