Didn't get any answers in the Aftermarket Exhaust Section, so maybe you guys will have some ideas here .....


I am looking at replacing my exhaust since it has some holes in it and the emission people won't pass the truck visually.

I currently have a Raven Z55 single in / dual out (3"/2-2.5") and it sounds and runs fine. I called a well known exhaust company and was talking to a guy there and he said that if I want the best low end torque that I can get then I should be going with a single tail compared to the dual tail. Afterall, the truck is 2.5 tons and I want as much low-end TQ as possible. He suggested staying with stock size (2.5") or even go up to a 3" exhaust from the converter back. I was thinking about a dual set-up with an "X" pipe but my finances can't handle that cost, over $1200 CDN.

I was looking at the Magnaflow stuff but they don't make a complete stainless cat-back for my truck. I have found one at Bassani and it would match my shorty equal-length headers that I already have on the truck. Not sure if I should stay with stainless Magnaflow mufflers and get aluminum pipes or go with the complete stainless way.

Anyone have any suggestions or comments ???

Have Fun & Keep on Truckin'
Dean

 

If you can afford the stainless thats the best in my opinion. I live here in western new york in the salt/rust belt, and unless you go with stainless your exhaust only lasts about 3 years!

As far as the tails, i think duel pipes look better. As far as torque i always thought that what you did after the muffler didn't really effect the engine.

-Jon

 

My aluminized aftermarket stuff didn't last much more than 14 months. The seams still rotted and the single-to-dual section of the pipe kit rotted alot faster than the rest. I think they dipped it before they cut and fabricated that splitter pipe. It all looked like as$ and I ripped it all off.

If you have 2wd I'd go x-pipe or h-pipe, true dual with all stainless steel. I now have a wide open exhaust after the cat with no noticable difference in torque or giddy-up, 2 1/2" or 3" I don't think it will matter with the 5.0Ls.

I've always wanted to go with the Bassani (headers,y-pipe, ect) but money is always falling out of my pocket. I can't save $$ for the life of me

 

i guess it all depends on the area you live . my aluminized muffler is holding up very well now after 3 years .

 

Thanks guys for the replys. My biggest issue is that I keep as much low-end TQ as I can with this. I don't know for sure if I lost any low-end TQ with the Raven muffler as I didn't really pay attention to it before the change. And I wasn't at a drag strip with the truck before. Regardless of the direction I go (stainless or not) I want the low-end TQ to stay or get better. I can't do the dual set-up right now, just don't have the cash but then again I don't really have the cash to do this right now either. I hope to get under the truck this week to see what the cat to muffler section looks like before I really make a decision on what to do. Maybe if that all looks good, I might just put another set of tails on it and leave it alone. I can pass the emission test then. The "HP Freak" wants me to put the tails out in front of the rear wheel similar to a Lightning but I don't know if I want to do that either as I run chrome wheels during the summer and I am not as good as I should be at keeping them clean and polished. They get washed every week but I don't always clean and polish them every month so I am concerned about getting the corrosion on them from the exhaust hitting the wheels. Basically the samething that happened to the '97 trucks when the exhaust dumped out infront of the rear wheel. The center caps started to turn green.

Has anyone ever experienced OR talked to others about the difference between a single or dual tail set-up ... maybe even some dyno results ???

Have Fun & Keep on Truckin'
Dean

 

ditto

 

I went with true duals and an h-pipe, picked up a little think, I'm sure I didn't loose anything anyway

 

Duels will not only look better, they will likely sound a little better.

I dont think your gonna change your torque curve that drascially in the difference.

 

Dean,

Low end torque was also my primary conern when I bought my system. After finding a couple dyno charts, checking recommendations, etc I ended up getting a Gibson single stainless system.

Most single systems will well outflow the stock heads on our trucks, so personally I think going with big dual systems isn't money well spent.

Also keep in mind that with minor modification you might be able to get a tailpipe section from one companies cat back, and use an alternative muff if you want.



Being a technology type and F1 fan, I dig a lot into what makes things tick. I have never found any data to support that a dual exit system would have any advantage over a single if tubing flows, etc were equal. Lower velocity and less laminar flow seems to be the only result. Several Formula 1 teams experimented with splitting the exhaust path to direct the gases to a more suitable area on the diffuser. All abandoned the idea.

 

Guys, I appreciate all of your help with this matter.

I think that I have made my decision on what I am doing with the exhaust for now. I am going to keep the Ravin Muffler and remove the exhaust pipes from both ends and create my own side exit exhaust for my truck. Not sure how it is going to look on a Supercab, Longbox truck but I guess I will soon find out. Basically, I am shortening the length of the extension pipe from the cat to muffler. Then coming out of the Ravin with two 45 or 90 degree angled mandrel bends to get over to the outside of the truck. Finished off with two Magnaflow stainless steel tips (2.5" to 3" or 3.5"). I was thinking about complete stainless for everything but the muffler is only 16 guage aluminum and is still in good condition so I will just reuse it to save some money on this change. Maybe if I have to play with the exhaust again in the future, it will go to stainless steel.

Anyone ever see a exhaust system setup like this on a big truck like mine and if so how did it look ????

Have Fun & Keep on Truckin'
Dean

 

Well, my plans have changed. It seems that the muffler shops that I have went to don't want to use my Raven muffler because of it's age and condition. They are worried about blowing holes in the flanges and then causing more problems and then I won't have another muffler to put back on if something does happen. So, I had to switch all of my parts that I originally ordered and paid for and get a muffler to boot. I went with an aluminum Magnaflow muffler (2.5" to dual 2.25"), two 2.25" 90 degree mandelbent bends and two 2.25" to 3" Magnaflow Stainless steel tips to finish it all off. The appointment is Thursday morning, so I hope everything goes well.

Have Fun & Keep On Truckin'
Dean

 

Well, everything didn't go as planned. There was another customer that had went in about 10 minutes before I got there so I had to wait for them to finish on his truck first. That was the bad part !!!!!!

Got the exhaust system installed and it sounds great !!! Wasn't sure how the truck was going to look with the dual tails before the rear-wheel but it doesn't look bad at all. I will try and get some pictures of it all.

Have Fun & Keep on Truckin'
Dean

 

Go with duals they look and sound better.