Stlfirebird

okay does any one think that if you have electric cutouts it is worth putting out the extra money to put on a exhaust i just figure why take more money and time making a exhaust when all i have to do is press a button and the car is loud and has great exhaust flow.
Thanks, William

Black 99 Bird

iTrader: (31)

If I had e-cutouts I would not spring for a catback, IMO.

FiredUpZ28

Agreed. Even a catback is a waste of cash if you're going for performance. Sound is another thing.

Microtech82

I honestly liked my cutout with stock exhaust setup. It worked great, and was an easy cheap mod to get a little extra power and loudness.
I want to get cam/heads eventually so I had to throw in headers and ORY to open up the exhaust. Once I went that route I had to get rid of the cutout and put a catback in to refine the sound. I'm not a sound snob and I really thought I would care less what it sounded like but it was really awful.
If you plan on sticking with stock exhaust manifolds and Y pipe then go ahead and just get the cutout. If you are thinking you'll want headers and ORY then skip the cutout and use the money you would have spent on an e-cutout to buy a decent catback.

Stlfirebird

headers are defiantly going on the car i still undecided whether the to buy cutouts. i was thinking long tubes with the cutouts right off of them and the stock exhaust modified to fit i just want to be able to be quiet then louder than hell when i want to scare someone or race.
Thanks, William

BAD2theBONE

A good stainless catback will last a lifetime, while electric cutouts are known to fail (2-5yrs)...

Microtech82

So this is just my 0.02 based on my own experience...

I went with the TSP Rumbler catback because that sound of headers+cutout was so horrible. It is essentially a Loudmouth...piping carrying the exhaust out the back with just a glasspack bullet muffler in the intermediate pipe. It kept the volume, refined the tone, got rid of the noxious odors of having your raw exhaust dumped under your seat, and added a menancing RUMBLE at idle. It took all the good of the cutout (free flow and loudness), added good qualities to it, and removed the bad...and for about the same price that you would spend on a single e-cutout. The only con I have noticed is that it is like a cutout in the aspect that trying to talk to someone in the car while cruising at 70mph can easily turn into a shouting match...

Or, for the price of a couple of e-cutouts you could just go true duals...I know shops here where I live will fab up custom duals off your headers for between $500-600. You will have all the loud you want plus you won't have any rasp from a crappy merge.

You have a bunch of choices but I hope you don't go the cutout path. If you're willing to dump the cash needed to get a dual cutout setup then just spend that money on true duals or a nice catback.

Besides, having headers won't do squat for you if you push them through a stock catback/muffler....you'll only get the benefit of the headers when those cutouts are open.

Stlfirebird

i understand that i would only have gains when i have the cutouts open i just want the car to be loud when i want it to be i have exhaust pipe and a wielder at my disposal I'm just on the debate of whether to do electric cutouts and not do the rest of the exhaust system or do the whole exhaust system without headers and will i have any clearance issue with 3-inch pipe

Microtech82

I had the headers+cutout. It's definitely do-able and will get you the performance gains. It's really wishy-washy, though. The stock exhaust manifolds actually do pretty well from what I've been told. I believe the muffler is where the most restriction occurs in the stock setup. If you are going purely for performance and do not care about the noise, get the headers+cutouts. That was the path I took. I loved it for about a week but was loathing it by the second week which is why I went out and bought the catback and got rid of the cutout.

Your choice will really depend on what your goals and preferences are. If you want a good sounding exhaust, get a catback. They are quiet when cruising/idling but scream when WOT. If you want the most performance I would get the headers+cutouts.

As far as clearance... Honestly, it comes down to what brands you get. My car isn't lowered and I was banging my stock exhaust on a daily basis. When I took it out there were scrapes and dents all over the y-pipe (part of the cutout flange was banged up, as well, since it hung lower than the stock exhaust). I know people complain about the fitment of certain brands, but my BBK headers/ORY and TSP catback has yet to bang or scrape on anything. I know ride height plays more of a role in clearance than the pipe diameter has. If your car isn't lowered then you shouldn't have many problems.

RPM WS6

iTrader: (3)

Also I can't stand the quiet wheezing of the stock muffler, so I would never want to close the cutout anyway. IMO, either do a standard cutout in the I-pipe (best gains per dollar) or get a catback with the muffler of your choice.

One of the biggest advantages to a catback (or muffler swap) is that the volume level will fall inbetween the other two. If all you have is a stock muffer and a cutout, then all you have to choose from is very loud (excessively loud with headers/ORY) or very quiet. Catbacks using a performance muffler gives you a middle ground that is nice to listen to, but won't catch the attention of every cop within 5 miles (this is a much bigger concern with an ORY). And you can still put a cutout in the aftermarket catback if you want to pick up a couple extra HP when at the track.

Microtech82

That was my problem. I had the cutout in the intermediate pipe. On stock exhaust it was fine...really deep roar when accelerating...but horrible trying to talk to people in the car or on the phone. I had originally planned to open and close it when I wanted to be quiet, but after having it a couple of days it became apparent that I was NOT going to ever close the cutout haha

Once the ORY and long tubes went in, the car was so loud that I could hear my exhaust echoing off nearby buildings. Before the headers and ORY I wanted to be loud. I wanted to be that guy sitting at the stoplight with the crazy loud blap-bl-bl-blap-BAP exhaust that would turn everyone's head. After the headers and ORY went in with the cutout I was so ashamed of how loud and bad (not the good bad) the car sounded that I seriously considered climbing back under the car to permanently cap off the cutout while waiting for my catback to be shipped. It was THAT bad.

codyvette

iTrader: (24)

I have a single in/out wicked flow that I think sounds better than any Fatback I have heard yet. I just don't have any tail pipe showing which would suck with a firebird back bumper. And with the cutout open its LOUD!!!

Stlfirebird

well the whole muffler thing is no longer a problem because the muffler has not been on my car in a while i just don't know what cat/resonator to get and thanks for all the help guys i really appreciate it.
Thanks, William

Microtech82

If there is no muffler then why spend the money on cutouts? Did you just cut the muffler off rear of the axle?

Stlfirebird

yep cut off behind the rear axle but the thing is performance and my car is super quiet i love loud cars but obviously i can't be open header loud all the time
Thanks,William

Microtech82

Well I guess it all boils down to how happy you are with the two levels of volume you will have with the stock exhaust and e-cutouts. Not all but most of us will agree that stock is something we will never go back to once we put cutouts and catbacks on our cars. That's why those of us who get cutouts with the intention of closing them when we don't want to be loud end up leaving them open all the time or getting catbacks. There's the very real possibility that you will crack open those cutouts and never close them again because...well...stock sucks. That's why we are saying to spend that money on a catback. Those cutouts are going to literally give you headaches from the sound level PLUS the noxious exhaust fumes that will be pouring into your car. You will be torn between two options: go TOO loud, or go wussy quiet. As RPMWS6 stated earlier, the catback gives you a range. It will sound awesome when idling at a stoplight, quiet but awesome tone while cruising, then scream like a banshee when you mash the pedal down. You will sound unique and menacing at all rpm ranges.

As far as performance goes...well... You're not going to feel a SOTP difference between the cutouts and catback. Unless you get a restrictive Flowmaster system, the majority of aftermarket catbacks are pretty good with flow, especially if you get one with a bullet muffler like the Loudmouths and Rumblers (if you want loud, it's hard to beat those) since they don't use chambered mufflers that add restriction to the exhaust.

RPM WS6

iTrader: (3)

So you have an open I-pipe dumping under the car with no muffler and you think the car is super quiet? If so, then I guess you really will need headers and dual cutouts at the collectors to make it loud enough for you.

As it stands right now, adding a single cutout to a system with a mufflerless pipe dumping at the axle isn't going to make it any louder nor perform any better. The next step towards increasing volume would be to remove the cats.

Microtech82

^THIS

Getting rid of the cats will make the car about 3 times louder than what it is now. My car got ridiculously loud with the cutout once the headers and ORY went in.

Stlfirebird

when i cut the muffler of i made my own pipe to keep the original dual tips that came on the car and the Cats are what makes a car quiet muffler is just for tone I'm use to the gases my 81 firebird is straight pipe dumped before the rear axle. so all i have to do know is decide whether to do the true dual cat back system or cutouts if i go with the true dual is there any particular cat or muffler you guys recommend.
Thanks,William

RPM WS6

iTrader: (3)

If you pull the cats off a car that still has it's stock muffler, volume will only increase slightly. The stock muffler is still pretty quiet even without cats, aftermarket mufflers are a different story though. Both items can/do effect volume as well as tone. For example, your car is louder with stock cats + no muffler than it would be with no cats + stock muffler. Obviously, it will be loudest if you remove the cats and muffler as well. Aftermarket muffers can have anywhere from a minor to major effect on sound reduction depending on the muffler.