pardopachiv

brought my takeoff gt mufflers, and frpp x pipe to a local hotrod custom place recommended by many parts guy couple days ago; tried to customize my v6 dual system. got turned down by the owner; who said he would not use my parts but stainless works to build the entire exhaust system from headers to mufflers because of better quality, fitness, no leaking and many other superior advantages. the price that i got quote on the catback was almost $1000, not saying the longtube headers and x-pipe (well over another $1000 according to SW's website). they charge $75 per hour labor. in the effort to convince me, he showed me their work on a camaro ss with SW exhaust system...which sounds really good, nothing like i heard before, have ti give credit for that though.

they also provide custom dyno tune; guys said the handheld sct tuner won't do me any good b/c that it doesn't take into consideration of local cold weather, and many other factors. thay charge $780 to tune my v6 mustang for any fuel quality i want.

another interesting thing that draw my attention was that they use Cold Ait Inductions Inc. intake kit on cars that they modified; the insulated filter housing looked really attractive. anybody has experience with Cold Ait Inductions Inc. (very pricey by the way)

jimkaray

These guys sound like they either have no competition or are really good and command a premium. If you are not out to slay the world I would look elsewhere.
The FRPP X pipe is fine and the band clamps won't leak if done right - and it is a do it yourself project so any pro would not have an issue. They can weld it up if they like and are worried about leaks. It sounds like all you need parts wise is the drivers side over axle intermediate pipe and the muffler hangers. You can get that from Ford and have the same quality as the rest of the exhaust, or go for a cheaper aftermarket replacement parts. Also, the Factory stuff is stainless just a lower quality than the fancy custom stuff.
Stock 'canned' tune the handhelds come with are crap. You can get custom mailorder tunes for around $60 ea that will blow you away. I am happy with VMP but there are plenty of other tuners out there. If possible I would try and find a Canadian tuner just in case you do want to go the dyno tune route in the future and they are familiar with your fuel choices & mixes.

I_Call_D.I.B.s

I'm guessing the reason they suggest Stainless Works is because they use T-304 grade stainless steel. Borla does too. It's more corrosion-resistant than the T-409 grade stainless most other exhaust systems are made of, but also more expensive. If Manitoba overseasons their roads with salt in the winter, and you drive your Mustang year-round, then in my opinion it's worth looking into (I'm actually considering their cat-back system for my Mustang). If not, find somewhere else who will work with what you have.

Nuke

Just about all of the quality axleback and catback systems for the S197 are StSt.

pardopachiv

I just did my dual conversion this Monday at another local recommended exhaust/muffler shop. They used aluminum pipe to customize a mid pipe for the driver side, reused the existing steel pipe for the passenger side. they told me the aluminum one works better for rust resisting, has no problem for sounding issue, works just as same as the existing one, and cheaper in price. well, the result is quite pleasing so far, just a little worried about the aluminum pipe in the future...

Old Mustanger

What they used is an "Aluminized" steel pipe. It is an Aluminum based galvanizing instead of the normal Zinc based. An Aluminum pipe would not be able to handle the temperatures required of an exhaust system. Plus the chemicals that are common in a car's exhaust would eat away at Aluminum pretty quickly.
The OEM stainless steel exhaust will last a lot longer than Aluminized Steel pipe.

pardopachiv

So, is the aluminized pipe any good, will it rust out after 2 to 3 years? we have nasty winter season here...

Old Mustanger

Aluminized steel pipe is supposed to last longer than Zinc galvanized steel pipe. But it will not last anywhere near the lifespan of Stainless Steel pipe.

pardopachiv

any difference to the performance, sound?

onederful100

SW do make great exhaust products.
but sounds like the shop you went to is trying to sell you something and its very expensive.

your SCT tuner will work just great, no need for a $700 dyno tune. thats a waste of money.
but it'll be nice to fatten up the wallet of that shop's owner.

i had a similar experience with a local shop.
i had exhaust parts i wanted to put on (BBK LT's and x pipe), but shop wanted to sell me SLP system for 1200 plus install.
i've had 3 other BBK headers on other Mustangs before so i know its not the best, but its cheap and it works well.
and its what I wanted to do, so i took it elsewhere and found a better shop that does all my work now.

if I were you I would find another shop. my 2 cents.