Headers and Interior Noise

[swathdiver]

Question for y'all with headers. How much louder if any are the long tubes with regards to interior? Can you still talk to your backseat passengers or your wives? I've got a bad cat that needs replacing and am considering those Amazon headers like @badandyturbo put on his Tahoe but since this is our family cruiser, a quiet cabin is more important at this point than horsepower.

Otherwise, I'm leaning heavily on replacing my Y-pipe and cats with the Magnaflow 51578. I can do this repair myself, the former I'd to have done for me and that is a factor too.

 

[randeez]

mine you just hear accelerating....like giving it any little bit of gas at all

but idling or cruising constant speed you can only faintly hear, all three cats gone just the stock denali catback 3.5" (muffler and resonator). but thats also with a cam, stock cam should be a lot quieter

 

[iamdub]

Ceramic coat them to make them thicker. Some companies can coat the insides as well. This will really help retain the heat.

I plan on Speed Engineering headers and Y-pipe and, if I can afford it, Swain Tech coating. I'll also add additional sound and thermal insulation to the cabin side of the firewall and foil-backed stuff for the engine side and under side.

 

[badandyturbo]

You are welcome to listen to mine whenever you like. You hear them under acceleration but as far a cruising they are not any louder than having a performance muffler.

 

[niely]

mine you just hear accelerating....like giving it any little bit of gas at all

but idling or cruising constant speed you can only faintly hear, all three cats gone just the stock denali catback 3.5" (muffler and resonator). but thats also with a cam, stock cam should be a lot quieter

I 2nd your comment. I only hear my headers, cam, exhaust etc while accelerating....at any speed, otherwise if i'm maintaining speed there's really no difference.

 

[dross99_si]

Why are the Speed Engineering headers so much cheaper than say the American Racing or Stainless works?

 

[randeez]

because they are made cheaper
the flanges are nice- 3/8" thick iirc, after that though.... the tubing itself is, im guessing, thinner but it is also roll welded (there is a welded seam down each tube, while not visible from the outside it just lends to the "cheapness", seamless/extruded is just a better/stronger/more consistant tubing ). they are more generically produced to fit a wide variety of different engine/transmission/cab configurations which leads to it mostly fitting all of them with a few tweaks but fitting very few of them perfectly. AR or SSW header lineups are much more model/configuration specific.
the connection to the y-pipe is not the greatest either where as the others put a lot more effort into the complete bolt on package

I had vbands installed from the collectors to the ypipe, and the ypipe completely welded up. and will have connection to the "catback" done with a vband also.
for some that just want to throw on a perfect fit system definitely go with the big names, the little bit of extra work needed to get the speed engineering where i wanted it wasnt to bad in my mind for the cost savings

 

[dross99_si]

Got it. Thank you

 

[iamdub]

...for some that just want to throw on a perfect fit system definitely go with the big names, the little bit of extra work needed to get the speed engineering where i wanted it wasnt to bad in my mind for the cost savings

^^^This.

There have been plenty mention the nice fit of the cheaper (mostly the Speed Engineering) headers. It's their Y-pipes that some have had minor to moderate fitment issues. It usually seems to be a misalignment with the aftermarket Y-pipe to the original pipe. There are so many variables that can affect this that are beyond what the header manufacturer's can account for, so it may not even be their fault. The way I see it, it's just a metal pipe that ducts hot gases and sound. If it needs a little tweaking, so be it, nothing detrimental will be affected. The type and quality of the tubing is probably the other biggest difference between the cheap and expensive brands. Seamless tubing is better quality and more expensive, but poses essentially no effect on flow. Again- it's hot gases and sound going through a tube. If the diameter and routing of the tubes are similar, the results will be similar. The gases and sound don't care who made the pipes. Also with the type of the tubing is the grade. The expensive ones may use a better alloy of stainless that's more corrosion-resistant. Personally, I'd save the $1,000 and tweak the piping to fit. But I have the equipment to do so. I also live in an area where corrosion (rust, etc.) is a problem (no salt here), so the grade of stainless isn't so much of a concern.

If you want/need something more guaranteed to be a direct, hassle-free bolt-in and made of top-qaulity materials, then you're probably better off ponying up the cash for the expensive ones. If you can work with 'em a little, then save your money and get the cheaper ones. Performance-wise, they should all perform the same.

My main concern with headers is heat retention. My plan is to get the cheaper ones, ensure they fit, and splurge on a top-notch coating (Swaintech).

 

[Tonyrodz]

This is me coming home after getting all the work done--cam, head work, long tubes, convertor. It still had the stock muffler on it. Wasn't too bad inside.

This is it idling after coming home the same night. Stock muffler still.

After installing the mbrp muffler, drone is a little loud inside. Gf hates it, not me tho.