LSL Explorer
New Member
- Joined
- March 7, 2019
- Messages
- 8
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- Year, Model & Trim Level
- 2018 Explorer Platinum
Finally got the Borla system installed. Sounds Great, I love it!!
Finally got the Borla system installed. Sounds Great, I love it!!
One thing worth mentioning - with turbo engines, in particular, if you go taking off exhaust parts, you will lower the back pressure generated by the exhaust system. This will lower the torque of the engine. I know people who have pulled off the resonator on their F150 or Explorer, and it noticeably lowered the torque, so they put them back on again.
I fully agree when done with the correct diameter piping it shouldn't have a negative impact on performance. The full turbo back exhaust including our Thunderstorm high flow catted downpipe and cat back exhaust would be the way to go in my opinion. We've not seen an noticeable loss in performance down low, the downpipes flowing better actually helps to improve spool times, horsepower and torque as well. Downpipes alone are typically worth 10-15 wheel HP with the corresponding tune update to take them into account. Then combined with the catback we've seen 30+ whp which is one of the largest gains we've found modifications wise on the Sport next to our custom tuning of course. The catback Thunderstorm systems are manufactured by Corsa right here in the US also which is one of the highest end exhaust vendors in the industry today. And we have a free shipping promo currently as well, so feel free to give us a shout if you'd like to discuss these options further and we would be happy to help out.Thanks for both the tips, and the info!
As someone who has driven and modded small-displacement turbo engines for 25+ years, one of the first mods is a larger-diameter downpipe that intentionally reduces exhaust backpressure to help with turbo spool and to lower EGTs. It's not usually accompanied by a loss in torque, so I'm surprised to hear that this is the case with the 3.5L Ecoboost. Are there any before/after logs that show this?
(I'm considering one of the kits with the DPs, so I'm interested in getting a definitive ruling on it....)
Welcome to the Forum.I just bought a used 140659 (16/17) for $250 on eBay (!!!) and will be trying to get it to fit on my '18 Sport. Fingers crossed, but it should work!
-JR
Did a cat-back Borla system on my 2013 Sport. Noticed no loss of torque or power as the turbos seem to spin up quicker and are not wasting energy by having to force the exhaust through restrictive resonators and mufflers. My gas mileage went up which tells me the engine is not working as hard as before (more efficient). With the forced air system I built (see air intake--from where?), air is being rammed into the turbos and with the Borla system is easier to get out which makes the turbos work more efficiently. The more air and fuel a turbo system can shove into the cylinders, the more torque and power I expect to get. Now on a non turbo engine, the return (negative) exhaust wave could have some effect on torque and power but to what degree I do not know. I have heard that when Borla designs a system, they dyno it. Can't imagine them marketing a system that would cost torque and power. Without putting in a tuner in, I think I'm at the end of the line for performance improvements. Honky.My IG (I have a cold start idle video on the page if you're interested, still working on some actual drive videos that turn out ok)
I've had my S-Type kit on for about a week now. I like it a lot, and was a little worried about it and hesitated a while, but I have no regrets at this point and wish I had done it sooner.
The Borla kits have no drone to the exhaust unless someone just did the install completely wrong. On most any exhaust kit, as long as you have a resonator on, you normally won't get drone - that's one of the reasons the resonator is there. Some people will just remove the resonator and keep the stock exhaust otherwise, but I'm not much of a fan of it personally. The sound just gets too raspy and annoying. Drone comes from the resonate frequency (at whatever RPMs trigger it) matching the vibrations of the car and it causes the whole car to vibrate.
TL : DR Mansplaining Stuff:
The general rule of thumb in exhaust note mods is to start at the rear of the car, and work forward to get it to sound like what you want. Changing the mufflers alone (axle back vs cat back), then seeing what you get. If you still want it to sound deeper, increase the diameter of the pipe and/or change the resonator. If you want it to be louder, remove the resonator (this is where you reach the term "catback" as you are replacing everything behind the catalytic converters). If none of those change it enough, change the down pipe. If you still want it to be louder, change the headers/exhaust manifold.
Of course the pipe diameter will play a part in the tone being deep enough, but even in the Borla 2 1/4 inch pipe, the sound is actually pretty deep on it.
One thing worth mentioning - with turbo engines, in particular, if you go taking off exhaust parts, you will lower the back pressure generated by the exhaust system. This will lower the torque of the engine. I know people who have pulled off the resonator on their F150 or Explorer, and it noticeably lowered the torque, so they put them back on again.
If you want to know the science between the sounds, and why people prefer the V8 over the V6 sound, a V6 doesn't sound the same as a V8 because of the irregular intervals between firing on a 90 degree crank rotation. It fires two cylinders at a 90 degree angle on each side, which makes the "rumble-y sound" really noticeable. This alternating pulse and almost randomly perceived firing order is really the key to the sound.
A V6 doesn't do this since it uses 180 degree crank rotation to fire and the cylinders fire alternating left to right the whole way. This creates a more evenly metered cadence to the cylinders without the irregular accent tone that the V8 has.
When you get into V10 and V12, or W engines, you get more options because you're adding more cylinders. Some fire like the V6 crankshaft above, some don't, which is why they all sound different.
Hope this helps!
Just shined a light up my cat-back system for the 2013 Sport. Looks like a solid straight pipe in there--no perforations. And tapped on the shell. Sounds empty to me. So, I think you got the real thing for a super price. Put the system on and let us know what happens. My gas mileage went up. See the Air intake--from where? thread. I'm also forcing air down it's throat. Honky.Well, the $250 Borla used Borla kit arrived. I'm pretty sure it's legit. I am concerned about the rear mufflers. They sound hollow when tapped. Doesn't seem to be any packing inside. Looking inside with a flashlight shows there isn't a long internal perforated tube like all other Borla mufflers I've ever had. It's a solid tube with a single 2"ish hole on 1 side. Weird. Can any one else confirm that is what the inside of the rear mufflers look/feel like?
Thanks,
-JR