Rumbler update (a little concerned)

[casketcrewchick]

Well after driving it last night when I got home the pipe came loose over the axle area. The clamp that was on it, was a U bolt clamp that came with the exhaust.

Today I and my friend re-tightened the band clamps up around the cat (they were maybe 1/4 turn loose than yesterday and we got them really tight again), and we replaced the U bolt clamp with a 3 inch band clamp around the part that had previously came apart. I really hope it stays on... I know that those 2 pieces dont really overlap as much as other areas of the exhaust and it was a little difficult lining then up, so I dont blame the U bolt clamp for not being able to hold it well enough (even tho it crimped the pipe a lil).

Anyways, now i am a bit scared of it being bolted together with those band clamps but they held up well at the front. The rear scares me a bit. I hope it doesnt keep hitting that one part that goes across the rear by the wheels. It can be unbolted, there are like 4 bolts in it (sorta like the thing that is behind the cat which i had to remove to take it all off in one piece). I hope you understand what I mean. lol its maybe like a half an inch from hitting it but if i hit a bump i believe it will hit and cause it to come loose again. I just pray not!!! lol

I will probably make another post with pics.

Anyways how low from the ground is the exhaust supposed to be? since the pipe with the resonator/muffler on it is really big around its like i dont have much ground clearance... speedbumps could be a problem.

What worries me isnt really scraping the ground, its hitting bumps that might cause the over axle pipe which connects to the rear section to come loose again.

Ummm i think i covered all of the concerns. I love the sound it makes during idle but when i even lightly touch the gas its freaking LOUD like an airplane. TOO loud. LOL

BTW I think its so loud cause of the high flow cat i put on. true or not?

Sorry i dont know the name of anything really.

[Clark Griswold]

You can always replace that bullet muffler with a real muffler. I'm sure someone makes something to fit there.

[casketcrewchick]

yeah I was thinking that. LOL That thing is loud as hell. U can feel the vibration in the car. I love the sound at idle tho.

I have an update on my cardomain page. just hit the link!!!

[BLLDOGG]

you want to know what im going to do in the future to tackle the loud aspect of things. im going to have my full 3" exhaust system, headers and all, but a Z28 or SS muffler i'll get at the dealership so i know its new. that should allow for it to be quiet, have a little rumble because of the system backing it up and i have my dump for the loudness when i want it and the track. it will be a sleeper on the street ;)

[casketcrewchick]

LOL that would be cool, blldogg. I am freaked out by how loud it is cause you cant really tell it from the sound clips. lol

[ReodDai]

You couldn't tell it was going to be loud from the soundclips?! Sweetie.... turn the sound up on the comp ;)

However seriously you should have know it was going to be loud no one ever suggested the word "quiet" or "calm" when discussing it. They did say "loudmouth without as much rasp". Since I have the precat cutout I'm getting a dynomax super turbo if I can find one the right size lol.

[casketcrewchick]

Unfortunately I have a laptop. HAHAHA Anyways i am scared to drive it cause its too damn low to the ground. I dont want to scrape things.

[ReodDai]

If its lower then my cutout then something is installed wrong. My cutout hangs about 1-2 inches below my cat. I don't scrape my cutout on anything that doesn't already hit the front air dam. Oh and those huge bandclamps are the ONLY way to hold exhaust comments together if your not welding. However I weld everything together because I got sick of clamps leaking (not the band clamps the crappy ones some shops use, didn't discover band clamps untill we did work on my friends vette lol ).

[OneQuickV6]

Agreed, it has alot of adjustability built into it. Mine has tons of clearance, and I have no problems dragging anywhere except big speed bumps which no 4th Gen F-body needs to be driving over anyway IMO.

[casketcrewchick]

Hey can you estimate how much ground clearance you have at your lowest spot, ReodDai? I would like to know.

I dont know why it would be hanging its just mainly one spot. The cat is right where the stock one would normally sit. Its the part that bends up to fit the piece that goes over the axle. We pushed everything up while clamping.


Thanks for the responses. I am just hoping nothing shakes lose when i drive to my friends house. Hes gonna tighten the bolts after i get there. I put it on saturday, then drove it. Part came off cause of the u bolt clamp (i hope that is why it came off and not that it *will* keep falling off casue i replaced the clamp), then today i tightnened it but havent driven anywhere. I know of a few rough spots on my way to my friends house so tomorrow I will come to almost a dead stop and piss people off. LOL Damn railroad tracks.

I have been shaking the hell out of the car and exhaust to see if anything is lose and so far, so good. Tomorrow will be another test to see if anything loosens up.

I am a little scared to take it on the highway (u know hitting the little tar strips at like 75). I dont want something falling off and flying out behind the car. lol

[ReodDai]

Honestly for you I'd recommend you atleast take it to an exhaust shop and have them look it over. They will most likely do it for free and tell you what they think is wrong. If nothing else listen to them and go do their fixes yourself or let them do it. I judge my ground clearence by my cat and my air dam. Air dam always scrapes (due to its position on the car and how low it hangs down) so you know if anything is that low it will scrape on certain things. Reason I judge by my cat as well is because I ran over a small rock once and crushed my cat lol.

Just to say this again and don't take offense. Because you don't seem to know whats going on with your exhaust , just take it to a show and let them look it over (your friends may say they know what they are doing but my experience is half the people that say that are lieing)
However like I said I have everything welded because I don't trust clamps.

[BLLDOGG]

noone is perfect when it comes to working on cars. the best top fuel mechanic messes up sometimes. i would say i have alot of experience with working on car but its always a learning experience for me since its usually a different thing everytime

[casketcrewchick]

Freaking holiday. LOL I Know i should take it to a shop and well this is my only car, i am also working 2 12 hr days in a row so this is gonna be tough.

The pic looks really bad like its low because of the angle I was on trying to take the pic. Its not AS low as it shows. It is about an inch below my cat though. The cat isnt out of whack or anything its on good. I dont know why the end of it is down like it is. Its like it didnt want to fit into the part that goes over the axle-- like it doesnt want to slide in far enough or something.

thanks for the replies!

[ July 04, 2004, 07:59 PM: Message edited by: casketcrewchick ]

[Clark Griswold]

Did you also get a 3" S pipe made or are you using a 3" to 2.25" adapter? Also what size is your catco?

[casketcrewchick]

Its a 3 inch s pipe (SLP) and a 3 in and out cat. Its all 3. i figured it was the best way to go since I already knew the in on the stock cat was 3 so i figured why not cut it off there and replace the rest?