Exhaust advice
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Instructor
Joined: Sep 2018
Posts: 194
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From: Illinois
Exhaust advice
i had to have the auto trans shift cable replaced my mechanic says my exhaust is starting to rust thru looking for the best bang for the buck car is completely stock no mods.
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Where did the mechanic say the rust was? Trying to determine whether you need to replace the H-pipe area, the over axle exhaust or ??
Tons of different options as far as the over axle, and it's driven by what sound/volume you like. The C5 Z06 Titanium are louder than the stock exhaust but not too loud. BBE (Billy Boat), Borla, Corsa, Flowmaster, Tigershark all make different exhausts ranging from pretty quiet to pretty loud. Some like the BBE PRT are (to me) the best of both worlds; they are sharp and noticable when you first start the car and when you are accelerating hard, but they quieten down and have no drone when cruising. There are also some you can find on ebay that some members like and some do not. One issue there is most of these (probably all) are imported and there's a lack of quality control. Two people may order the same exhaust and one has a great sound and the next one does not.
If you need to replace the H-pipe, virtually all the header manufacturers are going to have the mid pipes. Usually these will be an X pattern in place of the H pattern. Allows a little better flow but for many the improvement with the X pipe is to get rid of most or all of the motorboat burble sound when you are decelerating. You can check BBE, American Racing, Kooks, LG, Texas Speed, PFADT, Stainless Works (SW), etc are places to look for these. And you would look to these manufacturers if you wanted to add long tube headers.
One suggestion is to see if you have any Corvette clubs or Cars and Coffees in your area. Try to find some of the C5 owners there and ask what exhaust they are using. Typically, the owner is very pleased to give you their reasoning for what they bought and will also crank up the car to let you hear the differences in the exhaust sounds.
Best wishes with your exhaust work.
Tons of different options as far as the over axle, and it's driven by what sound/volume you like. The C5 Z06 Titanium are louder than the stock exhaust but not too loud. BBE (Billy Boat), Borla, Corsa, Flowmaster, Tigershark all make different exhausts ranging from pretty quiet to pretty loud. Some like the BBE PRT are (to me) the best of both worlds; they are sharp and noticable when you first start the car and when you are accelerating hard, but they quieten down and have no drone when cruising. There are also some you can find on ebay that some members like and some do not. One issue there is most of these (probably all) are imported and there's a lack of quality control. Two people may order the same exhaust and one has a great sound and the next one does not.
If you need to replace the H-pipe, virtually all the header manufacturers are going to have the mid pipes. Usually these will be an X pattern in place of the H pattern. Allows a little better flow but for many the improvement with the X pipe is to get rid of most or all of the motorboat burble sound when you are decelerating. You can check BBE, American Racing, Kooks, LG, Texas Speed, PFADT, Stainless Works (SW), etc are places to look for these. And you would look to these manufacturers if you wanted to add long tube headers.
One suggestion is to see if you have any Corvette clubs or Cars and Coffees in your area. Try to find some of the C5 owners there and ask what exhaust they are using. Typically, the owner is very pleased to give you their reasoning for what they bought and will also crank up the car to let you hear the differences in the exhaust sounds.
Best wishes with your exhaust work.
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From: Southlake, TX
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Yep. If the OP is looking for a new exhaust without asking about sound... I'd assume he just wants it fixed. Used base model exhaust system is usually anywhere from free to $100 max.
OP, rear section, yes? Even the mid though, used mids.
OP, rear section, yes? Even the mid though, used mids.
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You might want to make a WTB thread in the C5 Parts for Sale section. You can say you are looking for a stock exhaust that is no longer needed/wanted and offer to take it off their hands.