Muffler Performance?

[MtnDewd]

Hey guys...
I have pretty much stock 99 Tahoe with the exception of an Airaid CAI. Is there much difference between a glass pack and a Magnaflow or Flowmaster 40 series muffler performance wise? Sound wise is there much difference between a glass pack and a Flowmaster or Magnaflow?
Thanks...Bret

[haks310]

Glass pack and Magnaflow will outflow the Flowmaster by a lot. I'll try getting you the stats if I can find them. Far as sound is concerned, it's more of a personal taste, check out youtube and see what you like.

[Sasquatch]

my 05 yukon was stock when i got my flowmaster catback and i could immediately feel a little more power in the mid to high rpm range.

go with whatever sound you prefer. it may be true that you gain a bit more HP with a borla,corsa, etc but i`d only worry about that if i was racing my truck for money.....which i`m not. i`ve just always liked the way flowmaster sounds.

[Shaggy]

I had a American thunder flowmaster on my 95 silvy and it made a huge difference. I really like flowmaster, but it did start to rust after like 5 yrs, but that was 5 yrs ;)

[road1will]

Either magnaflow or glasspack will flow better. Flowmaster does not flow well due to its chambered design.

[Sasquatch]

Either magnaflow or glasspack will flow better. Flowmaster does not flow well due to its chambered design.

i wouldnt say it doesn`t flow well...... it flows a hell of alot more than stock. the few more HP you gain from the other brands are negligable. and if you live in the north you can always get a stainless steel flowmaster for a little more $$.

i`m not knocking the other brands, i think they sound good but everyone hates flowmaster because it`s chambered design rather than a straight through design.

does anyone actually have proof of the immense horsepower gains that you get from the other brands? i`ve looked with no luck, i`m just curious what the diiference would be.

[MtnDewd]

Thanks for the info guys!

[Sepiroth]

Flowmaster, anymore, has a rust thru warranty. I wanna type that its good for lifetime.

[road1will]

i wouldnt say it doesn`t flow well...... it flows a hell of alot more than stock. the few more HP you gain from the other brands are negligable. and if you live in the north you can always get a stainless steel flowmaster for a little more $$.

i`m not knocking the other brands, i think they sound good but everyone hates flowmaster because it`s chambered design rather than a straight through design.

does anyone actually have proof of the immense horsepower gains that you get from the other brands? i`ve looked with no luck, i`m just curious what the diiference would be.

flows better? That's relative. It may flow better than our oem mufflers, but it doesn't flow better than all oem mufflers. I saw a noticeable decrease in power after putting a flowmaster on my land rover.

[Sasquatch]

i`m not willing to get into a pissing contest about what flows better and what does not. we all like what we like for whatever reason. i`ve never seen dyno proven results on FM vs stock or vs any other muffler.

can you come up with any?

---------- Post added at 03:04 PM ---------- Previous post was at 02:13 PM ----------

well i finally found something. it`s a muffler shootout done on a 90 mustang.

http://www.carforums.net/showthread.php?t=51203

keep in mind that they do not list what exact muffler they use from all brands and different models from any brand could yield different numbers.

and on our mostly low performance trucks it could be a different story on which provides more horsepower. i could care less what flows better and gives more horsepower, i`m just trying to dispell the myth that flowmasters don`t flow at all.

a 7 horsepower difference between the top and bottom isn`t a hell of alot. and a whole 3.4 HP between magnaflow and flowmaster isn`t too impressive seeing that flowmasters don`t flow well as you put it.

Results based on 5.0 Mustang Magazine December 2002 issue (page 55). Test car is a ’90 Coupe with 370 HP and 11 second potential. A number of 66 pulls were made to compile this information. Where does your muffler stack up?

The results in HP order:

1.Flowtech Warlock (open) 374.2 hp/ 333.1 tq
2.Bassani Real Street 373.7 hp/ 333.8 tq
3.Hooker Maxflow 373.5 hp/ 333 tq
4.Borla XS 373.3 hp/ 332.6 tq
5.Magnaflow 372.8 / 332.5 tq
6.MAC 372.3 hp / 331.5 tq
7.Flowtech Afterburner 372.3 hp/ 330.1 tq
8.Hooker Aerochamber 372.1 hp/ 330.4 tq
9.Bassani 372 hp/ 333.5 tq
10.Spintech 371.6 hp/ 332.2 tq
11.Edelbrock Performer RPM 370.9 hp / 331.3 tq
12.Borla XR1 370 hp/ 334 tq
13.Flowtech Terminator 369.5 hp / 331.3 tq
14.Dynomax Ultra Flo 369.4 / 333.2 tq
15.Flowmaster 369.4 hp / 331.8 tq
16.Flowtech Warlock 366.3 hp / 325.3 tq
17.No muffs 365.2 hp / 330.1 tq

Sound Off in Quietest to Loudest (Decibels):

1.Borla XS, 80db at idle, 90db at 2,000 rpm, 110db at WOT.
2.Hooker Maxflow, 80db at idle, 90db at 2,000 rpm, 120db at WOT.
3.Magnaflow, 82db at idle, 91 at 2,000 rpm, 114db at WOT.
4.Flowmaster, 82db at idle, 93 at 2,000 rpm, 115db at WOT.
5.Flowtech Warlock, 83db at idle, 92 at 2,000 rpm, 112db at WOT.
6.Dynomax UltraFlo, 83db at idle, 94 at 2,000 rpm, 113db at WOT.
7.Borla XR1, 83db at idle, 96db at 2,000 rpm, 118db at WOT.
8.Bassani Street, 83db at idle, 96db at 2,000 rpm, 120db at WOT.
9.Edelbrock RPM, 84db at idle, 93db at 2,000 rpm, 118db at WOT.
10.Bassani Real Street, 84db at idle, 96db at 2,000 rpm, MAX. (120+db).
11.Flowtech Afterburner, 86db at idle, 94db at 2,000 rpm, 115db at WOT.
12.Flowtech Terminator, 86db at idle, 94db at 2,000 rpm, 119db at WOT.
13.Hooker Aerochamber, 87db at idle, 94db at 2,000 rpm, 114db at WOT.
14.SpinTech, 87db at idle, 97db at 2,000 rpm, 116db at WOT.
15.MAC, 87db at idle, 98db at 2,000 rpm, 119db at WOT.
16.No Muffler, 91db at idle, 103db at 2,000 rpm, MAX. (120+db).

[MtnDewd]

Wow...I thought there was just a handful of mufflers out there. Most of the mufflers shops around here have only mentioned 2 or 3 different options.
Thanks again for all the information.

[foreverfalcon40]

Stay away from FLOWMASTER! Its been dyno proven on GMFS.com. I can't the thread. But I do remember it.

I understand your POV it "works" SAS. I changed my opinion on works when a wise man told me this...

"work" is a relative term. Stock radio's "work", small tits "work", and so do mediocre looking women, but lets face it...newer/better ones with less miles are always a welcome addition.

[bowtiefreak]

Sticky that part about the mufflers dyno results! Good info. Borla is also a lifetime warranty. We use them a lot in my family.

[road1will]

i`m not willing to get into a pissing contest about what flows better and what does not. we all like what we like for whatever reason. i`ve never seen dyno proven results on FM vs stock or vs any other muffler.

can you come up with any?

---------- Post added at 03:04 PM ---------- Previous post was at 02:13 PM ----------

well i finally found something. it`s a muffler shootout done on a 90 mustang.

http://www.carforums.net/showthread.php?t=51203

keep in mind that they do not list what exact muffler they use from all brands and different models from any brand could yield different numbers.

and on our mostly low performance trucks it could be a different story on which provides more horsepower. i could care less what flows better and gives more horsepower, i`m just trying to dispell the myth that flowmasters don`t flow at all.

a 7 horsepower difference between the top and bottom isn`t a hell of alot. and a whole 3.4 HP between magnaflow and flowmaster isn`t too impressive seeing that flowmasters don`t flow well as you put it.

Results based on 5.0 Mustang Magazine December 2002 issue (page 55). Test car is a ’90 Coupe with 370 HP and 11 second potential. A number of 66 pulls were made to compile this information. Where does your muffler stack up?

The results in HP order:

1.Flowtech Warlock (open) 374.2 hp/ 333.1 tq
2.Bassani Real Street 373.7 hp/ 333.8 tq
3.Hooker Maxflow 373.5 hp/ 333 tq
4.Borla XS 373.3 hp/ 332.6 tq
5.Magnaflow 372.8 / 332.5 tq
6.MAC 372.3 hp / 331.5 tq
7.Flowtech Afterburner 372.3 hp/ 330.1 tq
8.Hooker Aerochamber 372.1 hp/ 330.4 tq
9.Bassani 372 hp/ 333.5 tq
10.Spintech 371.6 hp/ 332.2 tq
11.Edelbrock Performer RPM 370.9 hp / 331.3 tq
12.Borla XR1 370 hp/ 334 tq
13.Flowtech Terminator 369.5 hp / 331.3 tq
14.Dynomax Ultra Flo 369.4 / 333.2 tq
15.Flowmaster 369.4 hp / 331.8 tq
16.Flowtech Warlock 366.3 hp / 325.3 tq
17.No muffs 365.2 hp / 330.1 tq

Sound Off in Quietest to Loudest (Decibels):

1.Borla XS, 80db at idle, 90db at 2,000 rpm, 110db at WOT.
2.Hooker Maxflow, 80db at idle, 90db at 2,000 rpm, 120db at WOT.
3.Magnaflow, 82db at idle, 91 at 2,000 rpm, 114db at WOT.
4.Flowmaster, 82db at idle, 93 at 2,000 rpm, 115db at WOT.
5.Flowtech Warlock, 83db at idle, 92 at 2,000 rpm, 112db at WOT.
6.Dynomax UltraFlo, 83db at idle, 94 at 2,000 rpm, 113db at WOT.
7.Borla XR1, 83db at idle, 96db at 2,000 rpm, 118db at WOT.
8.Bassani Street, 83db at idle, 96db at 2,000 rpm, 120db at WOT.
9.Edelbrock RPM, 84db at idle, 93db at 2,000 rpm, 118db at WOT.
10.Bassani Real Street, 84db at idle, 96db at 2,000 rpm, MAX. (120+db).
11.Flowtech Afterburner, 86db at idle, 94db at 2,000 rpm, 115db at WOT.
12.Flowtech Terminator, 86db at idle, 94db at 2,000 rpm, 119db at WOT.
13.Hooker Aerochamber, 87db at idle, 94db at 2,000 rpm, 114db at WOT.
14.SpinTech, 87db at idle, 97db at 2,000 rpm, 116db at WOT.
15.MAC, 87db at idle, 98db at 2,000 rpm, 119db at WOT.
16.No Muffler, 91db at idle, 103db at 2,000 rpm, MAX. (120+db).

Not trying to get into a pissing contest, i just stated the obvious. a flow through muffler does flow better than a chambered muffler.

[350VortecSSCT]

Overall, A simple Magnaflow Muffler is the best set up...if you do a muffler, and you wanna do flowmaster, upgrade to Magnaflow because it's higher quality in the metal and has a sweeter sound to it...deeper too...If you want loud the whole time either no muffler, straight pipe or just a glass pack...cheap way as well...Or do Bassani, Borla, Magnaflow and others for deep performance but pricey!

[jmildoc]

go with magnaflow... Better flow.... Stainless steel.... no rust ever...... Sounds great too......

[350VortecSSCT]

Magnaflow