Thanks for that honeycomb inserts tip. Didn't know that. I spoke to both of my mechanics and they both recommended it too after I mentioned it.

So I finally got her over to the muffler shop right before they closed after three hours of waiting for the AAA tow truck from my mechanic's shop. Don't have her insured or registered in NYC yet so can't really drive her.

I'll be mentioning all of this to them tomorrow along with the other advice you guys gave me.

I didn't really have too much time to shoot or get deep inside the exhaust but here is a shot of how bad it looks now.

In one of the pictures you can see the ruptured part of the Cat. This happened while I was driving.

As I just noticed today as I haven't looked under her too many times the resonators have already been deleted.

Attached is also a picture of the car outside of the mechanic shop while I was waiting to be towed. She's not so ugly as what's currently under her. haha

As for the video you posted from Flowmaster. I really like the sound of the Super 50. The first mufflers shown. Definitely don't want people to hear me from blocks away but also want that nice exhaust sound when I pull up or accelerate near them.

Don't want too much noise in the cabin if I decide to put my windows up.

I think I've listened to your clips before from reading one of your other posts. The exhaust sounds really good.

 

Guys so about to get the work done. Buying my own parts mostly but the muffler shop I went to that is doing the custom piping is asking for almost $600 in parts in labor for just pipes alone.

That includes the exhaust pipes running back from the Cat to the muffler, the delete pipes for the tail pipes and the tips.

So parts and labor for this section would be $250 for exhaust, $250 for tail pipes and $100 for chrome tips.

Doesn't factor in my Cat and Muffler. I'm buying those myself and they'll just be charging me for labor. They're using aluminum or aluminjzed steel for the pipes.

Is this too much for those type of pipes?

Thanks!

 

NOPE!


Oughta be reall neat.

 

wow, that certainly took some backpressure to blow out like that. Will probably run completely differently after.

soo its 600 plus your decision on cats and mufflers? So depending on what you get it will be around 1000 give or take a bit? Those tips can probably be cleaned up if you still want them, but if you are getting bigger diameter pipes maybe you don't want them....

Consider checking ebay and craigslist for mufflers. Many people buy them and move on to louder ones or quieter ones and sell theirs with little wear. Don't buy used cats.

You can also take your pics and estimate to another shop to see if they can give you a better deal, without having to tow the car again.

Even if that is it, compared to buying any other system, the minimum is usually around $1300 for an XJS, uninstalled, usually without cats. So you are saving at least $500 if not more. That is quite a bit of savings. A grand probably feels like a lot right now, but it is an old car in a northern state, and after this you won't need to worry about the exhaust for a very long time.

 

Okay. I've been watching this thread since before I joined, and I've seen that Walker exhaust diagram before.

If that's accurate, that means that before the rear cats, the system is 2.25" so theoretically (unless that chart is inaccurate - I'd go crawl under my car now, but it's cold, dark, and I have had a bit to drink) all I'd have to do is replace the rear cats, and I'm well on my way to a 2.25" system, no?

I've taken a shining to the sound of the Dynomax Super Turbo mufflers (replacing the Flowmaster Hushpowers that I used to ramble about,) and my plan was to install those in the resonator's position, delete the mufflers at the rear of the car, find a nice exhaust tip, and drive with a smile. Kind of curious about these Monza resonators now, though.

I'm after a note, not a volume, but I'm certainly not averse to the volume.

 

On my way to my muffler shop. So the muffler guy is saying that the Flowmaster 50s are too big to install on the XJS.

Something about them being too big and not giving enough clearance under the car.

 

That's one of the reasons I went with the Deltaflow 40s. They fit within the "pocket" created for the stock front mufflers.

 

Oh boy... I don't have the ability to edit my post, but I just realized that the measurement was for the clamps - not the tubes.

Back to the drawing board

 

Ok fellas. Thanks for the help with all my questions the past week or two in regards to the exhaust system. I got it done last week but I finally was able to move the car from the muffler shop to my garage.

Thanks to JagZilla and Sidescrollin for great info and advice.. I would have never thought or knew of removing the filters inside the downpipes right before the cats and my muffler guy didn't know about it either.

The stuff that came out from in there was pretty gross looking and thick. No wonder the engine was heating up so much before this.

I'm not 100% pleased with how it sounds currently however I guess it's all trial and error and I'm sure I'll figure it out.

BTW my camera sucked and I couldn't find a quiet place to record the exhaust so the videos aren't giving a true example of what it sounds like in person. My engine sounds pretty good but there is a loose belt that is making a shrieking noise throughout the videos that you may hear as well.

I got some footage outside by a busy Bronx area where there are a ton of mechanic and muffler shops.

Also got some footage inside my parking lot back in Manhattan (lots of echo) with an old camera that isn't even 720p so I guess it's not a true representation of how it sounds.. I forgot my HD camera at home.

I also recorded a small amount on my phone which sounded clearer and is HD but didn't have much memory so video wasn't long enough. I didn't step on the gas hard enough either. haha

All videos below.

Anyways...at this point, I'm def going to put some cats on the car. The exhaust smell is just too much for me without them. Likely just two of them where the original first two were placed.

Also I'm hoping they muffle the sound of the exhaust a bit. I'd like a low tone and I guess the 40 series Flowmasters the muffler guy had laying around are too loud by themselves with straight pipes and no cats.

I really want the engine to breath as much as possible so I'm not looking to put on any resonators so if that doesn't work then I'm going to have to go with different mufflers after the cats.

One thing I'm very happy about is how I let the engine idle for about 35 minutes at two separate occasions and not once did the temperature gauge even go past the N. The needle kept steady right before the N.

One of the problems I had with the car when purchased was overheating and we figured out that it was a clogged exhaust.

So take a look at the vids and tell me what you think. I welcome all type of comments so be honest. haha

I don't think I'm done with this exhaust so any advice or constructive criticism will help me reach the exact tone I'm looking for with my car.

Standard definition video. Outside parking lot

http://goo.gl/e5eWz9

Standard definition video. Indoor parking lot. Lots of echo inside plus I switched from neutral to drive to park a few times which kind of didn't make sense.

http://goo.gl/Iu6ikN

HD cell phone video. Inside parking lot. Didn't step on the gas as much as I should have.

http://goo.gl/d2DII2

 

So if I'm reading this right, you used the stock manifolds into the stock downpipes, and then went for a full 2.25" kit from there to the tips, no?

Is the downpipe outlet 2.25" or do you havea 2" bottleneck there?

I'm going to be having new exhaust installed next year, and I want to walk into it as educated as I can. Is there anything peculiar I need to look out for?

 

Stargazer,
Yes I used stock manifolds and had my muffler guy deleted all cats, although I still plan to put two on next spring. 2.25" all the way to the tips.

I'm not sure how big the stock downpipes are but I think they're 2". One of the more experienced guys on here can probably answer that for you.

My advice is if they are in great shape, keep the original downpipes and have the muffler guy weld off the old cats.

I would also get the downpipes cleaned out like Jagzilla recommended. It was way cheaper to keep the downpipes as the cheapest OEM downpipes/Cats I could find were near the $500 range.

OEM downpipes for this car are all attached to the first cats.

If I put two of those on it would have cost $1000K just for the downpipes and two cats alone without installation. Not worth it. This entire job cost me less than that with installation and mufflers.

The stuff that came out of the downpipes looked pretty dirty and it probably stops the exhaust from breathing properly.

Other than that I think the 2.25" pipes is probably the best choice. My engine seems to be breathing pretty well and the temperature gage doesn't even go past the N.

 

I really appreciate it, BadKat. Exhaust is pretty much item number one for me, with all of the little repairs before that being to get the car "back to zero," effectively.

I was considering leaving the pre-heater packing in but if everybody's doing it... Plus I've seen a few pics and heard a few stories of that "stuff" sliding down and blocking up the tubes. Not in my exhaust!

There's a shop around here that's gotten some pretty good marks. I'll check them out next week. Might just have the resonators removed to get a taste of their conduct and do the real fun stuff next year.

 

I like it!

Any 'drone' inside the cabin at cruising speed/rpm?


Cheers
DD

 

Not too loud you think??

Honestly, my mechanic recommended I change the entire exhaust system before he really checks the engine out and tunes it up so I have only driven it no higher than 25 mph for a few blocks.

Haven't really had a chance to find out what it would sound like on the highway. The car needs a little more work. I need to not only tune it up but I have a front control arm that needs replacing and bushings etc.

I'm likely not going to start working on those issues and tuning it up until after the holidays. Once I do that and get to really drive it around is when I guess I'll figure out if these muffler are for me.

When you sit in the cabin on idle it's actually not that loud. It's really loud with the window down though.