Exhaust on Trucks

[Justin Kirkham]

This is an exhaust question, but since it is for my brother's silverado, I thought that it deserved to be here instead.

My brother has a 1999 Chevy Silverado. He has the 5.4L V8, and recently lifted it, but super swampers on it and a new exhaust.

The exhaust is true dual, with 3" pipes to Flowmaster American Thunder mufflers... Honestly, it sounds quite horrible now... It does like something is shooting off a rifle in rapid succession.

I was hoping to find a way to make it sounds better, and I knew that catalytic converters were most likely the best choice... Is that what is giving it the: pop...pop....pop...pop...((Exhaust note with intermittent silence)) sound. Or is it more likely the headers?

If anyone knows what I am talking about, then what can I do to help him fix how it sounds?

-Justin

[95Batmobile]

When I would rev my car before I got headers it would pop and gargle a lot, but now it doesn't do that so much... I don't know how the headers would cause it to pop.
Maybe he just doesn't have enough back pressure with true dual 3" exhaust? I know with open y-pipe my car does exactly what you're talking about...

[Dan M]

Moving to intake/exhaust.

[93camaro_zzz]

Tell him to get an H-pipe or something similar to that, and it wont sound like that. Also, high-flow cats would help the sound a little.

[ellik]

My brother has a 2000 or 2001 SIlverado w/ an H pipe and duals. he is running dual Ravin mufflers. no popping noise (im guessing due to the H pipe) and the exhaust note is awesome.

[KBeezy]

uhm - You mean he has a 5.3, not a 5.4.. Just a little correction for you. ;)


So does his truck have straight pipes, x-pipe, h-pipe, cat converter(s), stock exhaust manifolds..what? You cant tell us: "Dual exhaust with flowmasters" ... It very well could be there is a hole/leak somewhere in the exhaust. Crawl under and look for black-soot. If the install was ****ty and it has bad welds - no surprise.

[Justin Kirkham]

It has stock headers and cats, and back from the stock cats he has 3" pipes to 2 seperate flowmaster american thunder mufflers, with 3" pipes back from there to two seperate tips.

The exhaust job is good, so that is not it. From what I have heard, I am going to tell him to take it to a performance exhaust shop and have them put in an H pipe... Before the mufflers, right?

-Justin

[KBeezy]

What he SHOULD do is this setup..

from the stock manifolds/headers, 3" pipes with an H-pipe followed by hi-flow cats to a pair of flowmaster 50 series mufflers. That'd prolly sound the best. Then sooner or later get a nice set of headers..

[toast]

Tell your friend to either have an H-pipe, or better yet, an X-pipe installed right before the mufflers nad that should take care of the pop...pop...pop sound that you hear. I have heard other Silverodos with true-duals that have no crosover pipe that sound just like what you are discribing, like 2 shots guns going off every 2 secs.

[Justin Kirkham]

Cool, thanks for all the help guys! I will have him get the H pipe soon.

-Justin