REVIEW: magnaflow muffler and TU 3" cat back

[acannell]

90 daytona es 2.5 turbo

parts being reviewed:

MAGNAFLOW 3" straight-through glass pack muffler from turbosunleashed.

3" cat-back mandrel bent exhaust piping from turbosunleashed.

Stainless steel exhaust clamps from turbosunleashed.

First, the mandrel bent piping kit:

The kit I received is not quite what was pictured or described on the turbosunleashed website. Only one of the stock hangers is actually welded on, the other one comes taped to a bag. According to Chris, this is because this kit fits many cars and the second hanger would either not be in the right place or would be in the way on a car other than my daytona.

As far as fitting the exhaust onto the car, the rearward section hits the torsion bar strut on the drivers side, and according to Chris, that section may need to be cut and rotated in order to fit. I found that there was no way the piping would not hit the torsion bar strut and/or point anywhere near straight-back without cutting it. I cut this section in two location to make the right curve, and basically completely changed the shape of this section, but it may somehow be possible to just cut it in one place and rotate it.

I also noticed the S bend section hits both the tranny tunnel heat shield and the drivers side brake line support bracket. I had to bend the bracket a bit but it still hits over bumps. Looks like I will need to remove the bracket and do a number on it to get some clearance. Im not sure how to solve the tranny tunnel heat shield clearance issue. These clearance issues appear to be independent of the hanger locations or how the tube is mounted, as such: if you put the S tube where it goes, even if you shift it forward or backward, it still hits. It just needs to have its bends a little closer together.

I was disappointed to find out that this kit does not live up to the websites description of "No one likes the unexpected expense of exhaust shop modifications for a kit that's advertised as a "Bolt-On" out of the box. ". Which is EXACTLY what was required to get this installed. Not only that, the picture on the website actually shows TWO stock hangers welded on to it. Im dumbfounded.

My particular install involved cutting the final section in two places, and switching the locations of the cut pieces to get just the right curve to miss the torsion bar strut and point right at the stock muffler location where my new muffler is.

MAGNAFLOW 3" muffler:

This muffler appears to be 3" straight through, unlike the dynomax ultraflow which according to gus mahons site is 3" inlet and outlet but actually 4" internally.

The muffler comes with no mounting studs or holes or anything of that nature, which I didnt expect anyway. I cut off the hanger bolt from the stock muffler and welded it onto the new muffler, and was able to get this muffler to mount in the stock location exactly like the old one.

After installing this exhaust system, I've learned that how your exhaust sounds depends on EVERY little detail, most definitely including where the exhaust system finally dumps. Dumping it a couple inches foward of the rear bumper versus actually dumping it BEHIND the car makes a HUGE difference in droning.

My system now dumps BEHIND the car, straight out, no turn-down.

Its a stock 2.5" downpipe to a 2.5" cat, and then 3" all the way back. The muffler is installed in the stock location.

It sounds great and droning is very minimal or non existant. Im happy with it, and I HATE droning. The are lots of little pops and unique engines sounds, and if you are familiar with how this engine sounds without an exhaust system, its those same sounds, only very muffled, like you are hearing them through a pillow. At idle it is nearly silent.

Stainless steel exhaust clamps

WORTH EVERY PENNY. Makes making a custom exhaust system like this one SO much easier because you can easily remove and install and rotate pipes to experiment and find the right curve. Doesnt leave dents or crimps on pipes so there is never an issue with things sticking together. They look really cool too. It says on the package that they can be used with slip joints, but I was not able to get them to work like that. Maybe I was doing something wrong? They use one continuous band of stainless steel, if you have multiple diameters of tubing inside the band it just doesnt tighten down over the smaller tube. And I dont think its meant to actually CRUSH the bigger tube onto the smaller tube like a cheap-o exhaust clamp does, its just too much surface area. But if you are joining tubes butt-style (lol) they are FANTASTIC.

[ZachT]

dang, i just bought a 3in DP, and 3in cat back for my omni from chris, damn thing fit great, only thing it hit was a screw coming down from the shifter, grinder fixed it for me.

only thing i wish i would have did differently-well 2 things

1. dont by a test pipe-chris's are 32 bucks for 24 inches, i went to napa had them cut me a 29 inch piece and it was a little over 10 bucks, fit directly where the converter would go.

2. i would have bought a 3in muffler, BTW- do those 3 in mufflers there acctually quite the car down any? i know you have a cat on, but i wont, anybody.


glad to see your install went good, and you liked the exhaust, have any pics?

[acannell]

yes the 3" muffler i bought quieted it down. i compared it by connecting it and disconnecting it just to see, and it makes a difference. that was with it dumping under the car though, while i was putting things together. i havent done a test where i replace the muffler in its current location with a piece of straight pipe.

i would BET that without the muffler and a straight pipe in its place, dumping BEHIND the car straight out, it would still sound great and not have droning. just my BET. i believe im going to try this and see...because I kind of miss the sharp popping sounds...i just HATE DRONING.

did i say i hate droning?

I HATE DRONING

i wouldnt say the install went good. it was a lot of work cutting pipe and getting things welded on, it was definitely NOT an out-of-the-box procedure. it was a typical "take a bunch of stuff and use every tool you own to make it work"...and there is still more work to do because i have to figure out how to get the S section not to hit, and get a second hanger welded on.

i dont have any pics...i will try to get some up...definitely will have them up once i get the 3" downpipe and ahem....cat...ahem installed >

[moparfwdsleeper]

I did the 2.5" on my CSX - turbo back, no cat or muffler...

To say the least..

The f**ker sounded great! Nice low tone, didn't get me a headahce, and what an easy install once I got the hangers welded on.

The Stainless Steel Exhaust Clamps are the shit also!

[Reaper1]

I can't say this with 100% certainty, but there was talk that Dynomax/Magnaflo changed their design for the 3" mufflers.

The only other thing I can say is that getting a 3" mandrel bent exhaust to fit one of these cars an NOT hit or rattle someplace takes a LOT of patience. I STILL don't have mine 100% the way I want it.

[speeduphoria]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Reaper1 I STILL don't have mine 100% the way I want it.

Get to work!!

[GLHNSLHT2]

It's real easy, you just run a side exit Kinda disapointing to hear this. I'm planning on getting a 3" catback for my New Yorker from Chris.

[ZachT]

yeah, i thought mine fit pretty good, and yes those clamps are awesome.

my kit went like this-
3in dp
29in piece
s pipe
over the axle pipe
then welded about 16 inches behind that.


its damn loud, and i get drowning at highway speeds.
and it sounds like a tractor, (not only my opinion, but a few others.

im thinking of putting a 2.5 muffler in the back, just cutting it down with a reducer, if i cant find a quiet 3 in muffler, for some reason i dont trust that magnaflow straight through, just looks like its loud.

idk what to do.

[ButchSuppe]

I work in a high-dollar hot rod shop where almost everything is aftermarket. Believe me NOTHING FITS LIKE IT'S SUPPOSE TO. !!!!!! We always have to cut, grind, weld, bend or redesign the parts. It's just a fact of life when you start modding a car. Than there's the problem of the cheap easily stripped hardware that comes with some kits. Building hot rods ain't as glamorous as you might think.

[acannell]

the problem is not that things dont fit well in the aftermarket. i know and expect that and deal with it everytime i work on my car. the problem is when something is EXPLICITLY advertised as being READY TO GO and requiring no extra work, and is SOOOOOOOOOO _NOT_.

THATS frustrating

[Austrian Dodge]

As mentioned above, I think all aftermarket exhaust systems are going to require slight adjustments to make fit. After all, the G-Body kits TU sells fits from 1984 all the way up to the 16-valve applications INCLUDING all the P-Bodys too. I can't imagine it being a "perfect" fit in every vehicle/year. Here's a thread I remember where a TU kit was installed in a Daytona in 10 minutes without any issues at all.

WHat exhuast will fit daytona

I know TU's new kits fit more then one application just by cutting the over the axle pipe one place and rotating it to change the angle a little. They also provide both hangers but weld only one of them on.

Andy

[ZachT]

yeah in the aftermarket stuff isnt going to fit perfectly. but if you dont want a headache do what most people do and take it to a shop, they deal with it all the time. i personally do all my stuff myself, no need to pay others money for something that can be done with a few hand tools.

i thought chris's kit fit awesome, for the money i dont think you can get a better exhaust system for the L-bodies. only place i got mine to hit is a screw coming down by the shifter. and i got the kit for around 300 bucks. every pipe is bent perfect and putting it together makes it a snap.

i would definately reccomend someone get this kit for the Lbody's at least. i think it took a total of 1.5 hours to get it on with running to autozone for exhaust bolts (to SV) and running to NAPA for a 29in piece of pipe.

[speeduphoria]

Quote:

Originally Posted by acannell the problem is when something is EXPLICITLY advertised as being READY TO GO and requiring no extra work, and is SOOOOOOOOOO _NOT_. THATS frustrating

Hey welcome to Life, thats how cars have been for me.

Now I have better tools and I know to expect that. Like on my Spirit, I've had it apart to nothing and everythings new so I dont worry about breaking bolts or whatever.

But on my DD '99 Grand AM its that way, hell never had a coil spring break on a car or had a flat tire, well with it I've had 2 coil springs break, rear one cutting the sidewall of the tire and the front one cut the axle boot, then 2 other flats. OH and its so stupid that you have to support the motor and undo the motor mount when replacing the serpentine belt