BRacing
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- August 21, 2001
- Messages
- 123
- Reaction score
- 0
- City, State
- Northern California
- Year, Model & Trim Level
- '96 Explorer Sport
I had a custom exhaust installed last week, and here's the how and why FYI.
I have a 96 Sport 4.0, so i needed a custom exhaust setup because the aftermarket "cat-back" exhausts are made for 4 door models.
From my racing experiences, Flowmaster mufflers do NOT perform as well as others, but they do perform better than stock mufflers. My racing team uses MagnaFlow mufflers, because they have excellant flow numbers with a quiet sound.
My stock explorer has single exhaust that flows through 2 catalitic converters before going into the HUGE muffler and out the single pipe. The piping through the cat's is 2.25" in size, and then reduces to 2" in size at the flange after the cat through to the tip. The stock piping is made of stainless steel and is mandrel bent. The stainless steel piping should last forever.
I decided to use the stock piping, and replace the factory muffler with a 2.25 MagnaFlow muffler. We cut out the factory muffler, and then welded the MagnaFlow in place using adaptors and extensions since the Magnaflow was shorter and was a bigger diameter muffler. We then cut about 6" off the tip and welded on a slip-fit chrome tip just for looks.
I decided to use the stock piping for several reasons.
1. Cost - it's just cheaper to use the stock piping than fabricating new piping
2. Durability - Most shops will not have Stainless steel exhaust tubing.
3. Size - i could have upgraded the size, to 2.25 or 2.5, but the new bends in the tubing would have caused severe kinks in the system, yielding a DECREASED flow compared to the stock 2" mandrel bent tubing. If you find a shop that can do custom mandrel bends, there may be a benefit to upgrading to the 2.25 size, but be prepared to pay for the extremely high fabrication costs.
Results!
My 4.0L does not see usage beyond 5000RPMs, so a huge increase in flow is not necessary. I simply removed the major restriction from the exhaust system. The exhaust note is noticible, but not intrusive or excessive. The performance increase above 2500RPMs is noticeable. My gas milage increased from 24mpg to 26mpg commuting on the freeway at a constant 75mph.
This should cost less than $150 at any reputable muffler shop.
Any questions, feel free to ask!
I have a 96 Sport 4.0, so i needed a custom exhaust setup because the aftermarket "cat-back" exhausts are made for 4 door models.
From my racing experiences, Flowmaster mufflers do NOT perform as well as others, but they do perform better than stock mufflers. My racing team uses MagnaFlow mufflers, because they have excellant flow numbers with a quiet sound.
My stock explorer has single exhaust that flows through 2 catalitic converters before going into the HUGE muffler and out the single pipe. The piping through the cat's is 2.25" in size, and then reduces to 2" in size at the flange after the cat through to the tip. The stock piping is made of stainless steel and is mandrel bent. The stainless steel piping should last forever.
I decided to use the stock piping, and replace the factory muffler with a 2.25 MagnaFlow muffler. We cut out the factory muffler, and then welded the MagnaFlow in place using adaptors and extensions since the Magnaflow was shorter and was a bigger diameter muffler. We then cut about 6" off the tip and welded on a slip-fit chrome tip just for looks.
I decided to use the stock piping for several reasons.
1. Cost - it's just cheaper to use the stock piping than fabricating new piping
2. Durability - Most shops will not have Stainless steel exhaust tubing.
3. Size - i could have upgraded the size, to 2.25 or 2.5, but the new bends in the tubing would have caused severe kinks in the system, yielding a DECREASED flow compared to the stock 2" mandrel bent tubing. If you find a shop that can do custom mandrel bends, there may be a benefit to upgrading to the 2.25 size, but be prepared to pay for the extremely high fabrication costs.
Results!
My 4.0L does not see usage beyond 5000RPMs, so a huge increase in flow is not necessary. I simply removed the major restriction from the exhaust system. The exhaust note is noticible, but not intrusive or excessive. The performance increase above 2500RPMs is noticeable. My gas milage increased from 24mpg to 26mpg commuting on the freeway at a constant 75mph.
This should cost less than $150 at any reputable muffler shop.
Any questions, feel free to ask!
