Originally Posted by jimdavis@professiona

I had read earlier where people had commented about why late model V8's don't have the same sound as earlier "old school" engines.

One reason given was the aluminum block. I don't buy that. I have an early style SB Chevy with a Milodon aluminum block and the exhaust still has the "old school" rumble instead of the late model raspy roar.

Another reason given was the firing order. I didn't even know that LS1s had a different firing order than earlier SB Chevys but I am not buying that either. SB Fords have a different firing order than SB Chevys and the earlier models still had the "old school" sound. I had a 1995 Firebird TransAm, which I think had the same firing order as earlier SB Chevys and it didn't have the "old school" sound even after I put a Borla cat-back system on it.

I think it has to be the catalytic converter. That is about the only thing that is different on later engines. But I think it is really a shame the way these late models sound. I have a 2005 Corvette with a Corsa system on it and even though it sounds better than stock, I still don't like it. A late model Mustang sounds better than a stock Corvette. I am amazed that the Corvette engineers couldn't come up with a better sounding stock exhaust.