danman Posted December 13, 2004 Share Posted December 13, 2004 I am thinking of what to buy my Z for the holidays. I have a stock downpipe and leaking crush bent tubing. The exhaust makes a 90 and a 90 within a foot coming right out of the turbo the way it is running now. I want a cheap upgrade and think this is way to go. How much should it cost for a custom downpipe that makes gentle 45 bends with bung for O2 and exhaust temp sensor and a single 3" mand. bent exhaust. I am looking for something quiet yet unrestricted. I don't want to attract any more attention (than a thrity year old rice rocket burning out a second time as it passes through 4000rpm in first gear) needs to. Turbos rock Anyway I am thinking of going to Mel and Sons. I live in Northern California they are in Concord. Any people in bay area with thoughts on shops to buy custom downpipe and exhaust. They did my friends exhaust on his 280Z with a LS1 swap. I was impressed with the job they did. I think he paid about $700. How much should downpipe and exhaust cost??? Is this the best mod? All my turbo stuff is old, but still works. The biggest weakness seems to be stock downpipe. I would like to put on the 75 intake maniford and upgrade the throttle body at same time, but that invites redoing the plumbing and turbo swap, fuel rail, etc.. I can't spend that kind of money right now. Am looking to spend about $1,000 max. Just for background. 1983Zxt, 300ZX computer and MAF, upgraded injectors 420cc Mercedes I think, 300ZX coil, spearco intercooler, HKS boost controler, I think turbo is slight upgrade from stock, can hold 15psi well, only did once though by accident I am not trying to be a hero I usually run around 10-11psi normally using the wonderful California 91 octane. Any suggestions welcome. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dnaught14 Posted December 13, 2004 Share Posted December 13, 2004 1000 dollars is a big budget for exaust and a DP. You will be able to have a nice setup for that price. But for a initial mod on the engine you'll find that exaust and DP are one of the best things to do. An engine that breathes better can produce higher numbers. You may not get a huge power gain off the bat, but as you continue to mod you will be happy for doing this early down the road. Id ask around on this site for potential sellers of mandrel bent DP's and compare prices at different shops. You may not have to spend as much as you're thinking. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brad-ManQ45 Posted December 13, 2004 Share Posted December 13, 2004 What Dnaught14 said... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cygnusx1 Posted December 13, 2004 Share Posted December 13, 2004 I had a custom exhaust made out of stainless steel. 2.5" downpipe with 45's, flange bolted to the custom rear section all still 2.5" They even welded a bung on the DP for the O2 and a flange for the EGR (that I can use to add another O2 later when I'm done with EGR). I supplied them with a SS Magnaflow, round, straight thru glasspack and SS Tip. The muffler and tip was about $125 the custom bent exhaust installed, was $300. It's alot quieter than I thought but it gets pretty loud when I get on it. It does "baffle" or "pop" on decel, but I think getting rid of that would take some serious exhaust development work. You could add a resonator under your seat to make it even quieter. I think $1000 would get you a REAL nice setup but you can do it for less. I used a private local exhaust shop recommended by local hotrodders. Many here will argue that 2.5" is too small.....but you did say quiet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danman Posted December 16, 2004 Author Share Posted December 16, 2004 Thanks for the replies. I would like to maximize performance while minimizing noise. If those two are not able to exist together than I want the performance. The car is not my daily so I won't be tearing around on the streets too often. My car is smog exempt, but I don't need to get pulled over for noise polution and have cop sniffing under hood and under car. I will get quote from local shop and how they suggest to run exhaust. Any other suggestions on mufflers to use. I was deffinitly leaning toward 3" piping though. How much louder does the exhaust get between 2 1/2 vs. 3". I would think muffler choice makes big difference. I used to have honda accord with greddy cat back exhaust. That sounded great, nice deep rumble. I used to call that car my race car simulator. It sounded much faster than it drove. Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stinky Posted December 16, 2004 Share Posted December 16, 2004 You might consider using a large dynomax ultraflo muffler. They are straight through, no baffles. I just welded up a full mandrel bent 3" exhaust with a large ultraflo on the back for a 280zxt I'm working on and it sounds nice. It idles with a nice growl but not loud. Havent had a chance to take it on the road yet but a buddy with a 300zx has the same setup and its not that loud at all. Certainly not a ricey sound. If you really want it to be quiet you can do like I did on my z31 and use two straight throughs. I have 14" where the cat would normally go and a 19" in the stock location. My electric fan makes more noise at idle than my exhaust. Under load it sounds nice but not at all loud. Its more of a whoosh than anything else. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doug71zt Posted December 17, 2004 Share Posted December 17, 2004 I run a 3" mandrel system with a Dynomax Ultraflo muffler on my turbo 240. It is quite quiet at idle and gets a bit louder on the boost. It is a very deep tone with the larger pipe diameter. I'm very happy with it. I wouldn't go for the 2.5" system as you limit your future potential. It's quiet enough I can't even hear my car at full scream over the BB Chevelle in the next lane..... Doug Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.