I have a 2001 5.4 V8 xlt reg cab short bed and am wondering what are my options for an exhaust that is for power gains first then sound. I don't want it to be loud I really just want it to help with power anything will sound better than stock. Also pretty sure I want duals and would like if possible exit in front of rear tire or just out the back but towards the corners. And the more cost affective the better. Any help would be greatly appreciated and pics too.

 

Are you wanting a cat back or a full system? A full system will be the best gains but won't be cheap.

 

What does a full system include? Headers back? Also what about duals all the way back just pipe no cat or muffler? Pretty green to this just know the super loud sound is not what I want.

 

A full system is headers and anything beyond it, cat back is from the cats back. If you don't want super loud straights aren't the way to go. Look at videos on Youtube to find the level of sound and type you want. Search for systems with straight through mufflers (Borla, Magnaflow, Dynomax bullet).

The problem with getting into the cats is once they're gone it's hard to tame it back down. Plus the legality issues no matter if you have emissions testing or not.

 

True that is there a huge performance difference between straight backs and cat back?

 

I think you mean cat back straights vs a cat back with a muffler? As long as it's a straight through muffler there is little difference.

 

Well I'm saying like what is the loudness difference between two pipes from headers all the way back no cats, no muffler and an exhaust with a cat and muffler or catback straight through. And also performance differences.

 

I follow what you're saying now. I'll try and break it down the best I can. I'm not going to be able to give actual numbers as it's hard to estimate.

Full system/tuning required systems
1. Long tube headers, no cats, dual 2.25" mandrel bent pipe, no mufflers: Best low end powerband and second best overall power. Very loud sound, maybe some popping on accel/decell.

2. Long tube headers, no cats, dual 2.5" mandrel bent pipe, no mufflers: Best mid to high end power. Best for max power numbers, but lower end might decrease slightly. Very loud, little deeper tone than 2.25". Less popping.

3. Long tube headers, high flow cats, dual 2.25" or 2.5" pipe, or no mufflers: Almost identical power numbers as 1 and 2. Cats add little restriction and keep it legal. Only slightly quieter volume, with a little deeper tone.

4. Stock manifolds, no cats, dual 2.25" or 2.5" pipe, no mufflers: Quieter than headers but still loud. Power gains same as cat back system.



No tuning required

5. Stock muffler, stock cats, dual 2.25" mandrel bent pipe: Good low end, slight increase in power and throttle response from stock. Fairly loud.

6. Same as #5, with 2.5": Better top end, best cat back system for power. Slightly deeper tone than 5. Fairly loud.


For any of the above, a straight through muffler can be added to adjust sound volume and not change performance. Louvered mufflers add a slight restriction. Chambered/baffled mufflers add the largest restriction.

I'll add for reference, I have a Magnaflow 5x8x22 muffler, 3" single, with stock cats: if stock sound is a zero on the loud scale and ten is long tubes, no cats, straights; this size muffler is about a 2 on that scale. A 5x8x11" Magnaflow is an 7 on that scale.
Hope this helps/confuses you more on which one you want.

 

i'm gonna straight pipe from the stock y pipe back in 3in with no muffler and a 4in tip...think that will have a good deep tone?

 

^cheap, yes. Good deep tone, not hardly. For a good deep tone you will want to chop off in front of the stock Y and true dual. True dual will give you a much deeper tone than single with dual outlets. 3" pipe would help with the deeper tone, but it will also tend to drone a bit more. Its unnecessary as stock is 2.5", keep it at that unless you are replacing the whole exhaust system. And to reduce the horrible snap crackle and pop sound, you will want some kind of a muffler. If you want as little as possible, get glasspacks, generic will do fine. Almost no flow restriction but will help a lot with the pop. If you still want louder after that remove the rear cats.