Another VE Exhaust Thread

[Stuart123]

Joined

Asked aquestionn exhaust question

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How many people do this on this forum? I've seen a bunch and I've only been around a year.

Posted 2 days ago
Went to work
Came back to this.
Really ?

Still at work now, but had to reply to this asap
Will do a proper reply tonight when I get home.

Regards,
Stuart (The joiner / Asker / Leaver guy)

 

[NZ-GTR]

Love the signature Stuart, almost reminds me of the "but I f**k one goat" joke

 

[Stuart123]

Thatsguy - My car is also a Manual, but mine is a wagon. So your system still may drone in my Wagon as they are very prone to it.
Dimetime - I actually forgot to ask about the bi-modal setup. I've thought about it a bit though and at this stage i don't think i'll do that. I'll see if i can get away with it never being loud first. This is likely a good idea for others that may be following the thread though.
Ducker85 - Thanks for that, i will question Autofashion about the vf HSV headers. Its going to come down to what they have available if i go second hand. If i go new, i will most likely get Difilippo headers/Cats so later on i can get the rest of the system if i still want more power and not have to change the headers/cats again.

I doubt that is much more info i can gather on this topic, everyone has been awesome with all the info.
In saying that, i still check these forums every few days so if anyone has more information on quiet performance exhausts for my Ve wagon i would still be happy to hear. Not as interested in Sedan/Ute setups as the sound you get is different.
Will be a while before i get a system as i'm waiting for my old Grange to sell so i can use the funds for the upgrades. So still plenty of time to get my mind changed!

NZ-GTR - I actually didn't know what you were talking about in the beginning. A nice quick google search found me the answers, nicely said lol.

Regards,
Stuart.

 

[monstar]

Monster - Given this is basically the same idea as you recommended i'm starting to gain faith in you
So another question for you, this means i'm paying ~$500 for HSV headers/cats installed. In your opinion still worth going to the pacemakers?

See the HSV short 4-2-1 with a 2" mandrel bend into HFCs are pretty bloody good to get the high HP up top like near 300 tuned properly with a couple of bolt-on upgrades and top fuel. But the PH5387 Pacemakers deliver stronger broader torque, not as peaky, nice colour and sound sweet.
Personally think it daft to rev the tits of the thing to get a dyno figure when 95% of the time this two tonne Tess needs more torque.

Blackve - A bimodal system off a vf 2 wagon, sounds like a decent idea. I'll investigate that idea more. Cheers.

Much easier to use the more available vacuum diaphragm bimodals and either a Mild2Wild or Forza control device running from a little spigot that's already at back of your intake manifold.

 

[Stuart123]

Hello all,
No finished product yet! But I thought I should update.
I have spoken with 3 performance shops now and none of them say I will gain anything much down low from going the pacemaker Triy's. I tried to push it with all 3 shops and all 3 greatly recommended against.
Seems the general consensus is they do with the ls1, but the ls2 doesn't gain much at all to be worth it.

The last place I have visited was chevs performance in Carrum downs. By far the most approachable and helpful shop so far.

So... it looks like I have decided on going otr/tune/paccie 4 into 1's/100cel cats. Average price installed is about 3.5k.
Will get this done and see how it feels to drive.

Once I've actually got something installed I'll reply back with thoughts to hopefully provide something of worth to others.

Regards,
Stu

 

[monstar]

Stu, have you considered why longer length smaller dia 4-2-1 are better at maintaining exhaust velocity at low RPM?
The other thing, don't listen to salespeople. There's physically no way a fixed length primary can scavenge apart from the tuned length of the merge - ie at low RPM. Fat primaries are contrary to low speed exhaust velocity (torque).
Caveat emptor, else PM me.

 

[Not_An_Abba_Fan]

There is no way a proper tuned length header will work at all rpms experienced with on the road driving. An exhaust can only be tuned properly to a set rpm range, this is why most performance shops recommend what they do, to get the best performance over the entire rev range. Sure, there will be compromises, but you will not get an exhaust to work effectively on a road driven car. It will perform well, (depending on the setup) and it will sound good (depending on the brand), but it will never be 100% efficient.

 

[Stuart123]

Hello again all.
Another update on my progress.
Monstar - I still could not find a performance shop who wanted to install tri y's. So i just went with what they recommended.

I worked out a spreadsheet narrowing down to 3 systems i was interested in. All 3 systems are 1 3/4 4into1's and 2 1/2 catback.
1, Full manta from Abba, then installed with OTR and tune at a shop.
2, Full in house system with OTR and tune at Dandy exhaust.
3, Full difilippo + otr + tune at C & A Autofashion.

The main points it came down to wasn't price. Full Manta and full difilippo were within a couple of hundred of each other. The dandy system was cheaper, about $600 cheaper.
I had almost settled on Manta, but switched minds at the last second. The only reason being the shop had never installed one and were not sure on the results.

I ended up going with a full system from C & A Autofashion in Blackburn. I dealt with a Con there who was very helpful and upfront with everything all along. The install job done was excellent and also the cheapest i found for the system. They got the tips perfectly aligned at the back, i am picky with things not looking even. The only drawback with them is they have work backed up, so it took me 2-3weeks to get it in there.

Now Results - I picked up my car yesterday.
Small but noticeable more power through the low/mid range, less likely to stall on takeoff. The biggest difference is 3-4k rpm. There is a large noticeable performance increase there. (I do not have a very fine tuned butt dyno, but their actually dyno shows 266rwkw)
I seem to be able to change gears smoother now.
The exhaust note is epic. Sounds beautiful and deep like you would expect an old school v8 to sound like.
However, In the wagon it is definitely too loud. I love the note, but have no doubt i want it softer. The sound at 3krpm+ is nice and you would expect it. But i can hear it all the way from 1krpm up. At any speed, under acceleration its worse.

Now i am considering getting the original mufflers adjusted to put back on. The difilippo ones are about half the size of the standard ve ones.

If i had my time again. I would be getting a Manta System posted out to me from Abba and getting Autofashion to install it. Abba guarantees his system is a quieter system.

If anyone is in a similar boat and wants more information feel free to reply here or pm me. I check the forums every few days.

Regards,
Stu.

 

[monstar]

Well Stu considering you were after forum advice on useful torque gains normal driving and ended up being sold on HP gains up 3-4K rpm, probably more a lesson in sticking to what you want vs being sold what's cool and available.
Typical old school basic loud pipes, because shop knows deep down you really want to hoon around like a 20 year old making an epic noise. Easy to get sidetracked / sold into expensive branded auto fashion by professional sales / installers. Invariably cool guys who clearly know the shiny things you will pay well for, despite your need being a quiet system "I don't want a loud exhaust. I don't want to be 'that' guy waking the neighbours up when i get home late".
Seems needs outlined in OP were sidelined a bit Stu, best thing now is to convince yourself you need what you've got. Hundreds of people here ended up with near enough same system for exactly same reason.

 

[Stuart123]

Hello Monstar,
Its ok I can cop a bit of 'I told you so' from you. Since you did indeed tell me so, lol.

I spoke to Autofashion about reinstalling the old mufflers, but it was going to be another 2 week wait.
Dandy Exhaust swapped them over for me today. Have only driven it for 5mins back to work, but the sound is pretty much exactly what I want. Its the same loudness as stock but a nicer tune, I guess the extractors help with that.
Power doesn't seem to have dropped much if anything? hard to tell just with my butt. Definitely still go's much better than stock.

As you said... the powers not quite where I would like it, but the sound is good now so I am happy enough with my setup. Could have saved a few bucks knowing what I know now though. Now to sell these pretty much new 2.5' difilippo mufflers (with 3' tips) and recoup some cash.
Maybe there will be a muffler halfway between stock and difilippo I can look at in the future, stock does have a nice... stock... look about it though.

Maybe my next car will have an LT engine for lower torque

Thanks again for the massive amount of valuable information in this thread, hopefully it will help the next person in my position.

Regards,
Stu.