Side Pipes

[bremillard]

I've been reading the different fixes for the very restrictive side exhaust and either the fixes weren't really any better or they were very expensive. What I ended up doing was sawing the ends off of my mufflers and removing everything inside(fiberglass, tubing ect). That left me with long 4" collectors. I bought some 3 disc inserts from Car Chemistry and put them in at the header side of the empty tubes. I also got 2 Vortex cones from Dynatech and put them in right inside the downturn -just out of sight. I welded everything back together and had the whole mess recoated with silver ceramic coating. I now have a really freeflowing, awesome sounding exhaust system. Total cost was about $650.00 including the cost of recoating. I will probably have to get some guards as the pipes get much hotter now than with the glasspacks but even throwing in another $225.00 for the guards it was still cheaper and probably less restrictive than anything else that I looked at. -Bob

[Adrian472]

Well done its great to see somebody being more than constructive and resource full.
Adrian

[marcocsx3121]

Before and after dyno numbers would be great to have.

[Don]

Bob......constuction of the side pipes is still in- process. I am also using the Car Chemistry 3 disc system in the front and a Vortex Insert Cone.

I purchased an auger type muffler from:

Racing Products & Muffler Co
941 West A St
Hayward, CA 94541

510-783-3714

No web site

Contact name is Dave Stuart ( owner ), who was very helpful when the need for a quiet muffler was mentioned. The core is 4" narrowed at each end to 3" w/o any pipe extension, overall length of 30". Dave used a 5/8" center tube with extra baffles to control the sound. Construction is excellent. Turn time on the order was a few days. Very pleased as a 1st time customer.

Price for the pair was $133 + S & H.

[bremillard]

Don,

We have more than just sidepipe mods in common. My first car was a 70 AMX and I currently have a Z06. By chance is your wife a blond?(ha ha) My exhaust is not quiet nor is is annoyingly loud(at least by my standards) but it is free-flowing and capable of the 700+ horses my motor makes. The system that I got from Shell Valley was capable of about 300 h.p. at best. -Bob

[Don]

Bob:

Re: Exhaust Systems:

Z06: Borla Stinger w/4" Quad and a Bassani X pipe, very aggressive sound when accelerating. Nice sound at idle. Combination of both eliminated the jingle/popping sound when slowing down.

AMX: DynaMax w/ Dr. Gas X pipe. Combination of a Comp Magnum 280 cam, muffler, and the X pipe allows for a nice sound at idle, i.e. stop lights and cruise nights, and a unique, but pleasant to my ears, tone when accelerating.

Cobra: For the long term, needed a much quieter system, Had previously used mufflers from Arizona Exhaust , owner is retired , which are great, but loud. First time using the auger type muffler. I accepted that the 3 disc CC and vortex cone will impact the HP, but it is a compromise for street only driving.

Chevy Pick-Up: Dr Gas X pipe w/ Flowmaster. I cannot explain why a stock V-8 w/automatic needs a X pipe !

Have not been able to configure the side exhaust system w/ a X pipe, but 3 out of 4 is acceptable

Don

[CowtownCobra]

My pipes are way too loud. Don't want to remove and disassemble. Can the CC discs be inserted after the fact? Any ideas?

Thanks

[bremillard]

Dave,

You may be able to put a Vortex cone(available at among other places Summit Racing) in the turnout-pushing in far enough to be out of sight. They have to be tack welded into place and that will probably discolor your ceramic coating or chrome if so equipped. I have seen some guys use 3/16" SS pop rivets to hold them in place but Vortex doesn't recommend this method. The round discs from Car Chemistry cannot be inserted in this fashion-you must disassemble for these. -Bob

[dlampe]

Hey Bob, What benefit does the vortex cone offer? Did you get the flow you where looking for from the disk set up? I am considering the same system. I guess the issue is flow and noise level. I don't mind being loud but I need to keep the cops happy! I just need to know if the flow is a lot better than the chambered exhaust system that I will be getting with my kit.

[Don]

From the product description:

100% T-304 Stainless Steel Construction
Compact Size Fits All Racing Applications
Ultra Lightweight-Less Than 1/2 lb. each
Little or No Power Loss
Easy Bolt Installation
Insert Cones on 3", 3 1/2", 4", 4 1/2"
Turn Down with Insert Cone in 3", 3 1/2", 4"


How It Works: The Vortex Insert Cone, installed near the exit of the header collector or muffler outlet, provides a large friction area to reflect and dissipate sound energy, thus reducing the dB level. The open area of the cone is actually greater than the area of the collector or exhaust pipe, thus reducing a backpressure condition. Because no significant backpressure has been introduced, the engine is still able to use the scavenge ability of a good header to creat horsepower and torque. Dyno and track testing show significant noise reduction with little or no power loss.

Part: 72-32510
Price: $69.95/ea

[bremillard]

Originally posted by dlampe


Hey Bob, What benefit does the vortex cone offer? Did you get the flow you where looking for from the disk set up? I am considering the same system. I guess the issue is flow and noise level. I don't mind being loud but I need to keep the cops happy! I just need to know if the flow is a lot better than the chambered exhaust system that I will be getting with my kit.

I don't know what type of muffler your system has but the one that I got from Shell Valley was just a glass pack that flowed enough for about a 300 h.p. combo. I have 700 h.p and 540 c.i. so it severly choked my engine. The disc setup by itself I was afraid would be too loud(although I never tried this alone) so I added the Vortex cone too the disc setup. At full throttle it is pretty loud but at cruising speed it's almost mellow. With just 2 hours running on my old mufflers my sparkplugs were dark and sooty indicating a real rich condition. After just an hour of running with the new exhaust they have cleaned up to a coffee?cream color indicating a correct air/fuel mixture. -Bob

[Don]

RE: CC Inserts Exhaust Sound Suppression

The CC website explains the concept and provides comparison data:

http://www.carchemistry.com/ccinserts.html