I had my Magnaflow 14468 installed yesterday. I was wrong in my previous post about the installer having a mandrel bender. Anyway, the bends look ok, definitely not 'crimped' but maybe slightly more restrictive than the stock pipes. But since the muffler has much less backpressure than the stock one, overall I am sure I have less backpressure than before.

The sound is good, but I too have noticed what seems to be a little drop in power. I can relate 100% to what you said about a lack of responsiveness when giving it a little gas while cruising. WTF?

I am no expert, but here's a list of what I think may be possibilities:

1. The exhaust system has less backpressure than before, robbing some torque

2. The PCM needs time to adjust for the more efficient exhaust system

3. The stock exhaust system was tuned for the perfect amount of backpressure to make as much hp and torque as possible

4. The exhaust is louder (duh!) making the whine of the supercharger less noticable, which makes you THINK the truck is not as fast as before


Hey guys, please give some feedback! I am trying to decide what to do about this. I have only driven the truck about 30 miles since the installation, but right now I am undecided if this 'mod' has helped or hurt.

Sammy

 

Hey guys i just the 12468 installed 2 weeks ago heres
my take.

The lack of response u feel , is that the truck is
in overdrive and u need to kick it to make
the tranny kick down the louder exhaust just makes
it more noticeable, i noticed it before i changed the muffler.

to me everything else feels the same ,boost amount
and time to build it up.i agree about the noise drowning
out the whine of the sc makes it feel different
its time for an open filter!

theres plenty of 12 second trucks on here with a magnaflow
so i doubt its hurting anything.

 

Thanks for the reply, trashguy. What you said makes sense, I am hoping that is what the deal is! BTW, were the new pipes on the outlet of your muffler madrel bent? Also, are they stainless or aluminized?

 

hey

its aluminized , i dont know if they are mandrel bent
the bends look smooth.check out the pic ,if anyone can tell if
there mandrel bent let me know.

ps.
i know there filthy but it snowed and rained for 2 days.

 

They look just like mine except my pipes are welded instead of clamped. It's kinda hard to tell, but I don't believe they are mandrel bends. It doesn't really matter, though, the backpressure is still less than stock given the more efficient muffler. I am just concerned about less torque due to less backpressure!

Here is an adjusted copy of your pic:

 

ttt

 

if you get one of my pulleys and a chip----your L will not be torque-challenged!

Surely thought it sounded good. Maybe you're not having to push as hard as you used to on the throttle pedal and that makes it 'feel' slower?

Dan

 

What do you mean by not having to push as hard on the throttle pedal?

 

I'm glad to know i'm not the only one experiencing this exhaust problem.. I also think that by hearing the exhaust note it sounds like the truck is going faster than it really is i guess. I went back to the muffler shop that installed my magnaflow to hopefully find the factory SVT pipes to see the differnce but they trashed them..Also i found out that they only changed the pipes that come out from the back of the muffler to mount up with the tips properly. The guy told me that mandrel ment or not, it shouldn't matter out to the tips. He also told me that quite naturally when you install an aftermarket muffler especially on fords, you lose back pressure and torque. I still kept my factory muffler so maybe if i don't get use to the what seems to be a drop in power i may put it back on.. Also i find that i've been in a habit of testing my truck to see if the potential is still there... Also i may just go ahead and install a cat back system 01Lightning

 

The more I drive the truck the more I believe that this loss in power is all in my head. At least that is what I am trying to convince myself! But seriously, I am beginning to like the muffler and IF there is a slight decrease in low end, I'm sure there is an equal increase in top end. I agree that the non-mandrel bends after the muffler do not affect anything. Don't even worry about that. I am just going to enjoy my truck's new sound!

 

I FEEL THE SAME WAY, I THINK ITS ALL IN THE MIND ALSO.
SO I'M JUST GONNA ENJOY THE SOUND AND THE TRUCK OVERALL!

TAKE CARE MAN.

 

01L,
Those are good, clean bends. With a higher flowing muffler you should lose a small amount of torque and gain a small amount of top end HP. What I was referring to in the previous thread about the bends being a problem, was with the crimper style benders. They will dramatically affect the back pressure with our vehicles.

Just trying to clear things up a little.

 

Hey Odin,

I know the kinds of bends you are talking about. Obviously whoever invented the machine that does that kind of bending did not have performance in mind!

Thanks!

 

Aw well thanks Odin!Now that I have a bleeding ulcer from our last talk. Mine are also smooth bends.But I'm considering changing my Magnaflow to the Bassani cat-backs.Heard a lot of good things about it.Any input?

 

A lot of the guys here run the Bassani and love them, so they gotta be pretty good. I have always run Borla on my F-bodies and I decided to go with it on my L. I think it was a good decision. You can stand 20 feet away from the exhaust exits and feel the air blasting past you when the engine is revved. I know the Borlas aren't as loud as the Bassanis, but they sure sound good.

Sorry about the bleeding ulcer. I suggest a bottle of the pink stuff.