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DISCLAIMER: I am not claiming and never will claim that any V6 will have the exhaust note of a V8.
Well, after two wonderful years with my Flowmaster 80 muffler installed I have some thoughts on exhaust choices for the 3800, with one main point to consider.
First, YES your car will sound raspy and terrible up top when you first get your exhaust system installed. This is unavoidable on a stock car. It will be loud and deep down low, and raspy up top. I don't care what brand you buy. Some sound more mellow, others are louder and raspier, but the overall exhaust note is still the same.
Second: Under a load, my car ALWAYS sounded pretty good with the muffler. I don't know whose car ever sounded bad under a load, but this myth that it will sound raspy under load is BS.
As I said, I've been using the same muffler for two years. I've heard of people getting exhaust systems, switching around when they don't like what they hear, constantly switching setups and never being happy with the result. Here is my advice to those people:
Let your muffler and your ENTIRE exhaust system break in. Over the period I've had Flowmaster I made one change, that was the piping (2.5") THAT DAY I noticed after driving it around that it increasingly became louder and deeper. Mileage does make a difference.
I will be the first to admit that under a neutral rev when I first had my muffler installed, it sounded like a ricey piece of trash. However, over a period of time the sound has progressively improved. When my car is warm now I can actually rev it up to 4 or 5k and it doesn't have that metallic raspy sound that is so common. I'm not saying it sounds like a V8 (remember my disclaimer?) However, it does sound a helluva lot better than a 3.8 Mustang I heard that has TRUE DUALS.
I have one advantage over some brands with my Flowmaster: that is that Flowmaster is an actual MUFFLER, not a resonator. This means that my Flowmaster muffler affects the exhaust note a lot more that an SLP Loudmouth would. I seriously doubt you would see as much of an improvement with a Loudmouth as I have with my Flowmaster for this exact reason. If you want horsepower, go with a resonator. If you want sound, get a nice muffler.
Bottom line: My exhaust system sounds good now because I didn't switch around when I wasn't completely satisfied with the results. I let the muffler and pipes burn in and the result is a nice sounding exhaust system. It still sounds like a six, but it sounds like a MEAN six. [img]smile.gif[/img]
Well, after two wonderful years with my Flowmaster 80 muffler installed I have some thoughts on exhaust choices for the 3800, with one main point to consider.
First, YES your car will sound raspy and terrible up top when you first get your exhaust system installed. This is unavoidable on a stock car. It will be loud and deep down low, and raspy up top. I don't care what brand you buy. Some sound more mellow, others are louder and raspier, but the overall exhaust note is still the same.
Second: Under a load, my car ALWAYS sounded pretty good with the muffler. I don't know whose car ever sounded bad under a load, but this myth that it will sound raspy under load is BS.
As I said, I've been using the same muffler for two years. I've heard of people getting exhaust systems, switching around when they don't like what they hear, constantly switching setups and never being happy with the result. Here is my advice to those people:
Let your muffler and your ENTIRE exhaust system break in. Over the period I've had Flowmaster I made one change, that was the piping (2.5") THAT DAY I noticed after driving it around that it increasingly became louder and deeper. Mileage does make a difference.
I will be the first to admit that under a neutral rev when I first had my muffler installed, it sounded like a ricey piece of trash. However, over a period of time the sound has progressively improved. When my car is warm now I can actually rev it up to 4 or 5k and it doesn't have that metallic raspy sound that is so common. I'm not saying it sounds like a V8 (remember my disclaimer?) However, it does sound a helluva lot better than a 3.8 Mustang I heard that has TRUE DUALS.
I have one advantage over some brands with my Flowmaster: that is that Flowmaster is an actual MUFFLER, not a resonator. This means that my Flowmaster muffler affects the exhaust note a lot more that an SLP Loudmouth would. I seriously doubt you would see as much of an improvement with a Loudmouth as I have with my Flowmaster for this exact reason. If you want horsepower, go with a resonator. If you want sound, get a nice muffler.
Bottom line: My exhaust system sounds good now because I didn't switch around when I wasn't completely satisfied with the results. I let the muffler and pipes burn in and the result is a nice sounding exhaust system. It still sounds like a six, but it sounds like a MEAN six. [img]smile.gif[/img]
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