Heres the deal. Originally it was a toss up between the Flowmaster 40 series and the MagnaFlow 14in Oval muffler. I loved the Flowmaster sound but liked the performance gains that I have heard from the MagnaFlow. I was just going to replace the stock muf and clamp in the aftermarket and then dump the two pipes out before the rear tire......
Now.... I saw the Summit Cat-Back Exhaust System on there site and the price looks nice. They want $150 for a bolt on dual tailpipe cat-back system. WOW.
Have a looksee http://store.summitracing.com/partd...rt=SUM%2D684655
$150 is awsome for all that. But.... How do they sound? How is the performance on the Summit system? I have not heard much about the Summit Cat Back. Anybody have any input or even a sound clip that I can listen to? This is for my personal us and not my website. I am not looking to "steel" a sound clip. Thanks

--Chris

 

I have never heard of anyone using the Summit system. For $150, you get a lot of parts. I found their muffler for $40 which is probably junk. The rest of the system is pretty cheap. If you want to bolt it on yourself, it would be worth trying. You just may want to buy a better muffler. This would be great for 4.6" F-150's as the pipes are only 2.25".

I have heard of people on here getting custom Flowmaster SIDO systems for about $150-200 installed.

 

Read the fine print..... I think it says that you have to remove the spare tire to get the tailpipes to clear. This is if you plan on going straight out the back.....

I'd also have to question the quality and materials used for that setup. (I've seen it in the catalog too.......). You get what you pay for most of the time.

My personal opinion is that you really want to stick with a 'straight thru' designed muffler and one that does NOT use any type of 'packing material' to absorb sound.......

I haven't owned a 'baffle' type muffler that did not break a weld inside someplace and start rattling......... I also found that baffle mufflers tend to resonate more inside the cab too. This is really a personal preference, as some actually LIKE this feature.....

I had a Gibson Swept Side on my truck for about two years. It was better then the stock setup by far, but it was a baffled muffler....... Well, guess what? It started to rattle! Didn't want to deal with their "Limited Lifetime Warrantee" either (In the best case senario, I'd have just been given another baffled muffler anyway....)

Well, I went to my favorite local independent muffler shop and they confirmed that the muffler was rattling and I inquired about the Magnaflow, as they have banners for them (and Flowmaster) in all of their windows. He said he would have to order one, but he stocks these other mufflers called "Flo-Pro" and they are the same type of straight thru design as the Magnaflow and cost just a little less and he had them on the shelf.

He cut out the Gibson POS out, but I kept the nice 3" mandral bent tailpipe . He fabed up a small 12" long, 3" dia pipe to make up for the smaller Flo-Pro and welded up all the joints.

Well, all I can say is what a difference!! The sound is a bit louder and deeper then the Gibson, but no drone. I tow a #4500 travel trailer, so I needed it (reletively) quiet inside the cab and the wife did not want it to sound like my old 5.0 GT did........

As far as performance goes, I can only give you my SOTP (Seat Of The Pants) reaction, which is NOT a true evaluation by any means, but it's all I've got!

I just know that towing my trailer along the same stretch of highway, I don't need to downshift into second anymore on some of the hills. It stays in third and actually gains speed if I give it more gas (gradually, of course). Same thing when empty too. There is this one hill that I take every single day. It's really steep and the speed limit is only 35 mph, so it would always shift into second to make the hill, even at 40 mph. Now, as long as I don't get slowed down by a car in front of me, I can hold third the whole way @ even 35 mph.

Seems to me, I've picked up some low end, but again, it's just my SOTP meter. I'll not go back to a baffled muffler again.....

 

Thanks for the information. I guess it sounds like a great deal but if I am going to need to replace the cheap muffler they give me and mess around with the spare, its not worth it. Im probably going to stick with a decent mufffler setup to dump like I wanted originally, out the side before the rear tire. I think I may have it welded on at a shop also. Thanks alot. You may have saved me from a costly mistake.