Tungsten_Grizzly

Hey guys, just wondering if anyone has any experience running no cats with a gt500 muffler, considering pulling my cats and wanted to know if anyone had any advice as to how it would sound, don't want to be too loud because I work late nights.
Any help or advice would be great.

spectreman

I wouldn't do it. First, it's gonna be loud & maybe more importantly, the car's interior noise level is gonna go sky high; you won't be able to hold a conversation @ normal tones or listen to your stereo. I test drove one w/out cats and wouldn't buy it unless they reinstalled them; it was just too much for me.
Lee

dcarlinf1

Sorry spectreman, but I totally disagree.

I have no cats and OEM mufflers, but I am about to install the GT500 AB's once the weather warms up a little.

My car's interior noise is only slightly louder with the off road X. Not enough to worry about. It certainly doesn't make conversations or the stereo difficult to hear. That is total BS. I don't expect the GT500's to be any different because they are OEM parts.

It will be louder on the outside and that is what you want. I am very glad I removed the cats. I can feel the extra power. I say go for it. Just know that removing the OEM H pipe can be a bitch.

I am guessing that the car spectreman refused to buy had more that just cat deletes. It's true that it can get very loud with Roush or other AB's. But not with OEM style mufflers.

dcarlinf1

Here is what cat deletes and GT500 AB's will sound like

Slowbra302

Okay I can give my 2 cents here. I run car deletes and flowmaster outlaws X cat back. So it's pretty much a 3 inch straight pipe. I personally love it!

Now the wife loves it for short trips but nothing over an hour and a half.

So I bought the gt500 axle back and had custom 3 bolt flanges welded to the over axle pipe, the gt500 mufflers and my flowmaster outlaw "mufflers". Now I can bolt on/off the appropriate one depending on my scenario.

I did this due to neighbor complaints and my wife. I got pulled over by 3 cops (yes 3 at once; this is a long story). Anyways I was rocking the gt500 when it happened. I explained eveything to them and how I have a race setup and the chambered setup. They had me fire it up and rev for them to see how "loud" it was. The supervisor said, "man I can't give you a ticket for that." (Granted I am in CA and I'm not running cats which I did not disclose.
Long story short, I have ZERO drone in the cabin with the gt500 setup as it is chambered. Now the flows, they make all shorts of crap in my interior rattle due to drone.

Sorry for the long post but by all means if you have any questions, let me know!

spectreman

The GT500's are only slightly louder than stock @ idle/cruise but it is more than noticeable, especially when you're on the gas. If you don't expect to notice a difference, why are you swapping out then? Save the $$ & buy something more purposeful.

As for the noise, I'm a little past that stage. At 54, I need a properly respectable car that just burbles a bit more. I can't be driving a noise maker thru my residential neighborhood when I leave in the AM. Your desires may be different but I can only speak from my experiences. W/out the cats, which is what he referred to, not high flow cats, well it was an intolerable vehicle to drive in my opinion. Glad you're enjoying yours.
Lee

BrazenStang

This is flat out, wrong.

I am running the same exact setup as slowbra. I have off road x-pipe and switched to GT500 axle backs for the winter time. It has a nice tone to it. The sound is very mild inside the car. It is as close to stock inside the car as you can get with aftermarket axlebacks and cat deletes. Even outside the car it is very tame. I went on a road trip to South Carolina 600 miles each way with off-road x pipe and gt500's. It was great, and no issue hearing the radio or the passenger, not even close.

I say go for it. Most people would prefer the off road x-pipe with gt500's. I will be going back to my Outlaws when the weather changes. The car sounds wicked with the outlaws and off-road pipe. When the top is down I don't need to worry about drone or interior noise. The wind is much louder.

AMWill

Hey Tungsten,

Great question!

I have run this setup personally and absolutely loved it.

My previous 2012 GT had a JBA H pipe (with the cats deleted) and GT500 Axle-back combo and I absolutely loved it.

In my opinion it was the perfect volume, tone, and was still almost silent while cruising!

I would definitely recommend it if you are looking for a mild mannered setup which can still scream when you need it to.

Hope this helps and let me know if you have any questions!

-Will

Slowbra302

I see what your saying from your personal opinions. But just because there are no cats, doesn't mean it's going to be much louder. The chambered style muffler and if he still has resonators will negate the volume increase of a catless setup but he will still reap the performance benefits.

Your statement about residential areas is exactly why I got the gt500's in the first place 😝

dcarlinf1

I don't expect much of a difference INSIDE the car. Outside the car, I do.

BTW - I am also over 50 (just barely) and my 54 year old brother's ZL1 is way louder than mine will be and he has hi-flo cats. I can't wait to get the GT500's installed. I expect it to be exactly what I want. Will it be too loud for some people's tastes? Of course it will! And, some of those people might be my neighbors. But, I don't GAF.