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cat back systems....

Well last night I start up the '97 GT and it's louder than normal... Check it today and sure enough the both of the stock mufflers have small holes. Lovely. Cheap ass stainless ford uses. Anyway... rather than mess around I figure I should just get a cat-back system.

I know it won't add much if any HP without doing other things. I am just looking for the general wisdom on the systems that are out there. It's been awhile since I've last seen this covered so I figured a new thread wouldn't hurt in case things have changed or there are new options...

By general wisdom I mean, quality of materials and construction, looks, sound, price, where to get... that sort of thing. I'll be checking the usual suspects in a couple days...

Reply to
Brent P
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Lessee..... that's a '97 and I'm PDIing '05s...... purty close to 8 years from some "cheap ass" mufflers????? I don't know what planet you live on but that sounds pretty frickin good.

Choose by fit and finish rather than price and you shouldn't be disappointed. If you live on my street, quiet mufflers are a very wise choice.

Reply to
Jim Warman

There are several different brands you can choose from. The most popular are Flowmaster, Dynomax, Magnaflow, Bassani, etc.

You can go with aluminum or all stainless steel. The SS will cost you some money. Then you usually pick between 2 chamber or 3 chamber. 2 chamber is louder.

Everyone will have their own opinion and preference. Ask some people that have Mustangs and see if you can hear the differences. I put the Flowmaster American Thunder cat back on mine, which is an aluminum 3 chamber kit with the stainless steel tailpipes.. cost me about $300. Good luck.

-Franklin '96 Cobra

Reply to
WhyteStang

I was commenting on the grade of stainless steel used, not the muffler life. Compared to carbon steel sure, it's pretty good and I agree with you there. Compared to other grades of stainless, the basis of my comparison, it isn't.

Reply to
Brent P

Hi,

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More than you ever wanted to know. LOL

Jim

Reply to
JMK3rd

I think the quality of the stock exhaust systems is actually pretty good. Don't hear of any people that had problems with it. Did you do alot of short trips or do you live in an area with a lot of snow/salt on the roads ? I had a 95GT that I sold this year with the stock exhaust. no problems at all. (no-snow, no rain area and never did short trips with it that didn't fully warm up the engine/exhaust) Some of the cheaper aftermarket systems are prone to failure also. make sure to do your research. Remove NO-SPAM from email address when replying

Reply to
Rein

If they are small a little larger than pin holes and not rust holes they are normal. Most mufflers have small holes in them for draining condensation.

Reply to
pete

Thanks. A wealth of info.... but web forums scale so poorly *sigh*

Reply to
Brent P

These aren't the drain holes. The driver's side one has rusted pin holes where the heat shield clamp was. Lost another one.... The passenger side one where I replaced the clamp years ago has an actual rust crack. There also seems to be bludging on the bottom of it.

Reply to
Brent P

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