exhaust question

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3XBrownCutty

Royal Smart Person
Mar 20, 2008
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www.cardomain.com
I have an 83 cutlass with a 3.8l V6.

I was looking to put a flowmaster 80 series crossflow muffler in it, and in noticing that the smallest pipe diameter is 2.5", i was wondering if I could use that muffler with a 2.25" diameter system (cat and pipe.)

I'm new to exhaust, so help is appreciated.

Also, what are some of your guys' setups to make a v6 sound better?Thanks!!
 
add 2 cylinders and 200hp. :wink:
 
You need 5 mufflers and 2 x-pipes. :lol: :lol:
 
Hey, it's only 3 mufflers and 2 x pipes...lol...

Anyhow, there is a secret to making a V6 G body sound great. Step one starts with an engine swap to a V8, step 2 involves adding a proper exhaust system. Otherwise, a V6 car with a single exhaust will never sound very good. Plus, going with a 2.25 in single pipe the whole way makes the Flowmaster muffler sort of irrelevant. Instead of having a quiet slow car, you will have a louder slow car with no real improvement in performance. The reason V8 cars sound good has to do with the harmonics of how the exhaust pulses work together. Plus, the ones that sound really good usually do so because they have been extensively modified from stock. Short of a turbo, there is very little you can do to the 3.8 to make it happy in a 3300lb G body. Making it louder and not quicker will net you less respect on the street than if you had left it stock. It's the domestic equivalent to a 4 door civic with a 3 inch tip on a 1.5 in exhaust system. Respect in these cars without a factory turbo is available, but it is not inexpensive either. That is, unless you know what you are doing, are fairly lucky, and can get parts cheap.

PS, my car started life with 3.8 liters of boat anchoring performance, and I drove it for 200k before I swapped it. So, I am not trying to be an ******* here. I'm just trying to be honest and keep you from wasting money. I ran mine until I could tolerate the sheer awfulness of it no longer, then I gathered the parts for a few months, gathered money for a few more months, and planned my swap. I kept the 3.8 running, but did nothing to try and make it faster since it was a moot point.
 
Yeah, I completly agree. Thats why my 4.3 is getting ready to get rolled into a river. Don't waste your time on a n/a 3.8, you'll just end up getting laughed at. Save up and find a good running 350. Its not as expensive as some might think.
 
3XBrownCutty said:
I have an 83 cutlass with a 3.8l V6.

I was looking to put a flowmaster 80 series crossflow muffler in it, and in noticing that the smallest pipe diameter is 2.5", i was wondering if I could use that muffler with a 2.25" diameter system (cat and pipe.)

I'm new to exhaust, so help is appreciated.

Also, what are some of your guys' setups to make a v6 sound better?Thanks!!

To answer your question, yes you can use the 2.5" muffler. You need to use a sleeve which will go over the 2.25 pipe to bring yours up to the 2.5" diameter. If you can make the sleeve 6" long or so, use muffler cement on the sleeve and clamps then tack weld it so it wont move or let exhaust through.

As well, any cat-back exhaust will probably be better than what you have now and can still be serviceable if you ever do the V8 Swap. It probably won't help with making power but will sound better.
 
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