Flowmaster Exhaust advice for '10 V8 STA

[rollingjoe joe]

Bought a '10 Adrenalin V8 back in January and am loving it and i'm glad I found this site. So of course I'm trying to squeeze some more ponies of that engine. I already did the throttle body(thanks Todd). Next is exhaust, CAI and then tuner.



Now i'm stuck on what exhaust and which size/configurations. I will keep the stock cats but everything after that is negotiable. I'm looking for performance and sound. I like the Adrenalin dual tip look and sound wise, I think narrowed it down to a Flowmaster 40 delta or super 40. I've searched the forum but it seems that most board posts are regarding the V6. Anyone with a Gen 2 v8 care to share their experiences...ie performance/sound etc.?



Also what configurations did you use? 2.25 in/2.5 out, 2.5 in/out, single in/dual out?



thanks for your time

 

[Carey Frennier]

Flowmaster, Magnaflow, Gibson... Whatever you pick will bring you ponies at the extreme upper end and you will lose a noticeable amount of torque down low. I would not waste your money on a "CAI" because they are all BS and 99% of the gains are pleasebo. You may feel a marginally better throttle response but with ToddZ's TB already installed....should only notice a difference in noise. If I did it over again, I'd do the airbox true CAI mod, chambered exhaust, cams and a nice tune. That would net a nice gain in power and cool/fun factor without busting lose the wallet on FI.



The best bang for the buck is the tune.

 

[Todd Z]

Cut in a 14" magnaflow, will have Mustang sound and keep OEM pipes so its not too loud....



I have videos on youtube of mine so you can hear it.....



Todd Z

 

[Henry Suarez]

I put in a Flowmaster series 50, removed the silencer and old muffler. It will make it sound like the older 90's mustang. You can also remove the tip to a Roush tip for a nicer look.

 

[Supercharged SVT]

 

[Supercharged SVT]

Here is the roush tip - Going Strong after 35K



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[rollingjoe joe]

Thanks for the responses so far... overall I want more power but want to try to keep the low end torque for those as much as possible. I really enjoy those "throw you back in your seat" kind of starts. Also prefer a deeper, throaty exhaust tone like the 60's muscle car tones.



Psycareyo - I've read that about the "cai's" but wasn't sure if they add power or not. "Real CAI"...Are you referring to the cut thru engine wall mod that Todd Z has in his albums? I don't like the idea of losing low end torque... especially when getting on it from a stand still. Is there any way get the nice deep rumble but keep the low end power?



Has anyone installed chambered exhaust/power sticks on the ST?



Todd - searched youtube but didn't find it... do you have the link handy for that vid? did you notice loss of low end power with the magnaflow? Also, when you installed your "true CAI" did you notice any worthwhile gains? Was it in the low/mid/high torque range?



CopSTA/Supercharged - that Roush tip looks hot... i'm liking it more than the dual tip look.

 

[Robert Caffyn]

I went with the Magnaflow set-up. At first it was the cat-back single side exhaust. Well this wasn't good enough. So, I did some research for a dual in/out magnaflow muffler with internal cross-over. Then had a "true dual" set up made for me. The sound was far better and picked up a little bit in the Stoplight Gran Prix. Take a look at these:

Magnaflow's cat back single

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My dual set up

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Looking backward of the muffler

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Looking forward of the muffler

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[Lloyd Chaudoin]

I opened my cats to 2 1/2" at the outlet side, then ran it into a Magnaflow "Y" to a single 3" exhaust. I did not use a chambered muffler, I used a magnaflow. There was no loss of torque feeling at all, if anything a chambered muffler helps to promote torque. Gearing is stock and the K/N didn't seem to help with any increase of maximum power either. However, the truck rolls down the road/highway much easier and with less thottle input ( indicating a torque increase ). Probably the best thing the exhaust opening did was help to reduce the amount of heat coming through the floor on extended drives and when working the truck. I did however, lose a little torque under about 2,000rpm when the cams were installed. That should easily pick back up when the tubular manifolds/headers are done. The exhaust manifolds are the most restrictive thing in our exhaust systems. Get rid of those and everything done to increase performance will become a more noticeable benefit. The tune is also a big benefit, probably as stated before the biggest!! I had BBR do my first tune... I then had Brenspeed do a tune, much better... When done with manifolds/headers I will have Torrie do it along with some tuning for the transmission too. As a note, I personally tend to stay away from the Flowmaster 40/Super 40 series of mufflers. I prefer a more understated grumble of sound. On my wife's Hemi powered Jeep we used a big block 60 series/SUV muffler. It has a nice deep grumble and not obtrusive in the cabin going down the road. Try looking up Ford F150 trucks on You Tube for exhaust sound. Same basic engine series/design and similar exhaust build type. Good Luck with your choice.

 

[Jeremy Tudor]

@ SuperCharged SVT...where'd you get the Roush tip from..I've seen them just never knew where anyone got them

 

[Johnny O]

Psycareyo - I've read that about the "cai's" but wasn't sure if they add power or not. "Real CAI"...Are you referring to the cut thru engine wall mod that Todd Z has in his albums?

That's one way to do it. Basically for a true CAI you need a heat shield of some type around the filter. An open cone filter under the hood is Hot Air Intake. Worse performance than stock but it looks racey. The Gen 2 airbox is already a cold air intake and pretty low restriction. Just get a K&N drop-in and call it good.

Gen 1 intakes aren't quite as good because of the silencer but just yank it out, and again get a K&N drop-in, and call it good.

 

[Supercharged SVT]

depends what you want it to sound like -

 

[EddieS'04]

I really like Bob c's set up.

Also using 2.5 pipe after the cats. Is a good Idea. The gasses are so hot, it is avchoke. It helps the escape volocity. Depending on a V6 or V8 and mufflers used then you can calculate the CFM of the mufflers and motor. For the tail-pipe size. To keep the torque up. As a street machine we dont worry as much about getting max HP.

Unless you want max MPH. But who other than Drag and NASCAR racers do that...LOL

 

[Supercharged SVT]

Well, anyone running boost - I have been through 4 split mufflers - FlowMaster, Magnaflow, Napa, and Brand X - With the heads, the boost, the absence of cats, two resonators and an X-pipe seem to be the weak link - and I would have guessed it to be the transmission!

 

[blksn8k]

Calahan, are you having custom headers made or does someone actually make them to fit a Sport Trac?