so tomorrow, i need to call like, three shops to see if they can do mandrel bends, and if so. how much. SOCKS recommended a resonator, what do you think?

so i got 490$ i need

1. aluminized 2.5' tubing for the under axel.
2. header install (if its a decent price)
3. 02 sensor lengthened to be placed behind the cat
4. muffler and cat welded
5. mandrel bends

will it be enuf? if so, what is a decent price(please state with or without header install) and have SSautochrome fixed the flex pipe clearance problem yet?





the Catco Cat


The Megan Racing muffler



The SSautochrome 4-2-1 setup





my kitty caesar.........sorry, i thought he could be the RD mascot?

 

I got my entire exhaust installed for $315 at Meineke. I didnt have my own exhaust though, they custom made it and the price included a new cat as well. They did a real nice job on it..so Id recommend them. I know they weld just about anything as well.

Midas is good too..Alex got his exhaust done there (and my dad worked at midas as well so I know their not bad). I dont think they do mandrel bending though..youd have to find out.

*That cat looks pretty mean btw lol

 

yeah, im looking pretty much for mandrel. not crimp bends. what other bends are there that wont restrict flow too much?

nahh, hes a sweet heart. he looks like the pink panther.

 

ok the three major types of bends are wrinkle, press/crush, and mandrel.



wrinkle is found on alot of OEM exhausts, its also that fugly piping you see at advance auto or napa, its wrinkles cause turbulent exhaust, and reduce diameter around the curve, stealing horsepower like a clepto, heres a pic



press/crush is wayy better than wrinkle, as the exhaust stays smooth, but the diameter is reduced somewhat at the bend which doesnt make flow perfect.

crush is a pretty good performing exhaust that will give you the power increase you are looking for at a decent price, i cant for the life of me find a picture of a crush bent exhaust but i believe the stock exhaust was press bent so look at those bends and youll know what i mean.

mandrel is smooth around the bends and maintains the same diameter at all times, making it the best type of exhaust

mandrel is obviously the best for performance, but its hard and pricey to find somewhere that does it.

you either find a speed shop or you buy mandrel bends and do it yourself

this is mandrel

 

Well first off, you are trying to put an actual cat in your exhaust. I tried it once. It just doesn't work out too well. Haha. j/k

As far as funds go, I think that you will be just fine with $490 considering you already have the major parts of the system. A resonator may be a good option to reduce the "buzzy" header sound. There is also something called a "blank" that reduces the header buzz. Ask whoever will be installing the system and get their opinion.

 

I'm running 2.5inch crush/press bent, whatever you want to call it. The piping was $120 installed, mild steel. Other places I talked to wanted $290 for stainless steel press and over $400 for mandrel bent stainless steel.

It really depends on the machine, but my press bends go down ~0.15-0.2 inches in the bends, which isn't bad, not enough to make a difference on a street car. Personally I'd go to a shop and ask to see what one of their press bends looks like. If its not horrendous then I'd do it there and save cash for something more useful.

And yes, with the headers, I'd recommend a resonator.

 

badum tsh!

 

press/crush bends will be completely fine for any setup really.. just get them with aluminized steel.. you will pay like 150$ max for the piping.. if you go with stainless you will at least double the price.. if you go with mandrel and stainless you will triple the price..

also, YES YES YES YES on the resonator.. with those headers a resonator is imperitive... seriously..

you will also save on piping when you get a resonator.. i recommend a 30" resonator..

 

yes i just put that header on two days ago and buzz is driving me crazy. i have a 27" resonator that i'm going to have welded in on my next day off. its so rice as it sits, unless u want people to thing your representing mexico then you might wanna go grab one.

sorry to be off topic but i put that header on and just pluged the o2 sensors where they go in the pipes. well after reading we all know this will throw a CEL. well my problem is that my car isnt throwing a light and it seems to be running just fine other then the loudness. has anyone else experienced this??

 

Optimo, Id have that checked if you dont have an OBD scanner yourself. might possibly be that you have a bad O2 sensor if it just threw.